大象传媒

September 3rd 1925 was the day I was born, and many happy birthdays followed. Then came Sunday 3rd 1939 (my 14th birthday) when WW2 was declared. My sister, Betty, two years younger than myself should have been bridesmaids at our cousins wedding on 9 September, but we were evacuated along with our school, Old Moat Lane, Withington on 6th September 1939. It was a sad day for our mother, and my sister and I were also in tears. We waved good-bye, with our gas mask cases and a name tag round our necks, as the train set off to Blackpool. On arrival at Blackpool North station we were taken to a school hall where our prespective families choose the children they wished to bittet. My sister and I were very fortunate as Mrs Hopwood and her daughter Doreen (four years older than myself) chose us -- two little clean, blonde sisters. We lived very happily at 147 Ashton Road, Central Drive for six months. We were treated like their own daughters. We were taken dancing to the Tower Ballroom every week, encouraged to join the library and taught us to knit. It was wonderful, but our mother was missing us terribly. I kept in touch with Mrs Hopwood until she died in a Poulton Nursing home. Unfortunately some of my school friends, were placaed in terrible billets, unhappy, underfed and dirty. I started work at 14 and a half years old as an office girl at the Calico Printers Association Oxford Road, Manchester. Then at 17 I became a Civil Servant in the Post Offfice Telephones, so I was sorry that I could not be called up to be in the WRENS. So I joined the Post Office Home Guard, and went out on practise with them on Saddleworth Moor, where I provided refeshments, and paid out the expenses. I was given a badge and a certificate from the War Office. I also joined the Girls Training Corps,and reached the rank of sergeant. Betty, my sister joined the Voluntry Land Army. During the War we had the black-out. No street lights, dimmed car lights and tightly closed curtains, also an Anderson shelter in the back garden, to protect us from the German air raid bombs. Actually the War years were "almost happy times" and very eventful, which made people close and friendly together, even though we had a terrible amount of civilians and soldiers killed and wounded, and suffered the Manchester blitz and many frightening air raids.

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