大象传媒

This story was submitted to the People's War website by Jacky Hayward of Hastings Community Learning Centre for 大象传媒 SCR on behalf of Mrs Leonora Ellen Middleton Nee Searby and has been added to the site with her permission Mrs Searby fully understands the site's terms and conditions.

I joined the ATS in 1941 and was based at the Dale for 3 weeks initial training and then transferred to Bradbury Lines Hereford for training as a convoy driver. My first posting was to Ashchurch in Tewksbury where we had to keep the regiments supplied with their quota of vehicles. We also transferred Italian Prisoners of war to and from where they were building their own camp. One of my assignments was to go to Southampton and pick up the first consignment of jeeps and Ducks as they came over from America. I had a special license to drive any vehicle having been in the REME workshops where we had requested from Captain Gosling and Captain Bliss that we be allowed to work there. Out of 12 three off us stuck it. I became Driver Mechanic and then Fitter鈥檚 mate. As a mechanic we went on convoys at the back to deal with any vehicle that faltered on the way. We would be sent a list of vehicles to prepare for convoy. In the springs birds would nest in them and we would insist on changing the registration numbers so as not to disturb the birds, to the great annoyance of the chiefs then we had to re do all the paper work, we would then write notes of goodwishes to the troops abroad. It was our great delight when two polish soldiers had the opportunity of calling in to thank us.
We always knew when there was a big offensive as we had to drive in many convoy up to Stranrear staying at Adrian camp Carlisle. We had to get there first as the big vehicles had to go in the bottom of the ships
I then became a Dispatch Rider, when American convoys became divided we were sent out to bring in the strays back onto the main routes, having done that we would take of our helmets and it was only then they realized that we were females 鈥� great festivities..

While I was posted to Quernmore Park a large farm near Lancaster, My two friends and I wanted to attend a Officers Christmas Ball. I wrote to my mother to ask her to send my evening clothes, we took it in turns, the three of us, to wear and share our best clothes. As we were not Officers we volunteered to act as cloakroom attendants changing from our uniforms to posh dresses when ever there was a 鈥淧aul Jones鈥�, this is a dance were you did not need a partner, when that finished we changed back into our uniforms. I was commissioned in 1944 after attending Windsor where many times we saw the two princesses and would give them our smartest salutes. Margaret Rose would always give us a happy smile while Elizabeth was more reserved and acknowledged us with a slight bow.
There was a great deal of camaraderie between us and many happy times but there was also sad times, when I heard that my brother Archie Searby who was a bomber pilot was missing presumed lost, we never saw him again and when my friend heard that her husband had lost both his legs and although she loved him dearly she was not sure if she would be able to cope.

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