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This story has been submitted to the People’s War website by a volunteer from Lincoln CSV Action Desk on behalf of Irene Paterson and has been added with her permission. Mrs Paterson fully understands the site’s terms and conditions.

During one part of my service there was one incident that vividly sticks out in my memory even until this day. It concerns this Waaf who I didn’t like at all. She was big and sturdy with a hard face and a mass of black curly hair and huge hands. They tried to put me on guard duty with her but I refused. I didn’t want to be on guard with her so I never was, fortunately.

Well, one night I had gone to bed in the bottom bunk and Eva, my friend, was in the bunk above. Eva had this habit of putting her hands down to me and messing about. I felt the bed clothes being pulled about and woke up shouting to Eva to stop messing about. She said it wasn’t her so I told her to put the light on quick. It was this Waaf trying to get into bed with me. I reported it to my senior officer and she was discharged from the forces. It was the only experience of this nature I had, but it was very frightening just the same. Of course, being very young I’d never heard about these things. We used to have a ‘Free from Infection’ check every month and quite a few girls got in trouble with sailors on the docks. I saw one girl who had gonorrhoea which was awful and she was discharged from the WAAFs. Being the eldest of eight children I had a strict upbringing and knew I had to behave myself.

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