大象传媒

I was born in 1943 so I don't remember much myself. Family memories: My dad worked for the American Red Cross, (he wasn't American) not in the forces, he wasn't called up. The most important thing, he said, when the Americans entered Europe, was to get the doughnut machine to them as quickly as possible.

My Dad was in the ARP in other words he was dragging people out of bombed houses and saw probably more horrendous things on the homefront.

During the blitz he managed to get the family evacuated to his brother's in-laws in Oxford. That shows the difficulty of getting us out. So many people were going they couldn't get accomodation. He was so frightened for us and the only people we could stay with were these inlaws in Oxfordshire.

I was told the family moved into a gypsy type caravan near Bicester. It was the first time as a baby that I stood up.

One night someone was trying to get into the caravan. Fortunately the dog did not bark. We understood there was a prisoner of war camp nearby. We thought it was an escaped prisoner but he went away.

My grandparents lived in Brockley. A bomb fell on the nearby Anderson shelter and killed all the people. My grandparents house had the whole of the front covered in tarpaulins because the walls had been blown out. I still have letters from my grandparents to my aunt about this. My grandfather worked on the railways, he was a station master.

My aunt worked for the post office. She was involved in rescuing records, paperwork from a bombed building near St. Pauls' cathedral.They formed a chain to pass the papers out. I think this was after the building was bombed. Her office was evacuated to Harrowgate.

My uncle was in the forces, in the RAF, but he worked for the medical side. After the war, my Dad's company used to import the Christmas tree for Trafalgar Square from Norway. I think they were the first to do it.

This is just what I remember being told because I don't remember personally, 'cause I was too young.

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