大象传媒

First of all thank you all, in advance, for reading my story of VE Day. I thank the Lord that, as a family, we did not have to celebrate VJ Day.

My Father went through the 1914-18 war in the Royal Engineers without a scratch. So, when the 1939 war was declared he asked Mum if could enlist again. A heated argument occurred but she gave in,
So, the usual 鈥� enlist, and medical 鈥� and then he had an interview. They said 鈥淭hanks for enlisting but you won鈥檛 go out fighting 鈥� we would like you to be batman to the Officers in the War Office in London.鈥�
This he did 鈥� cut their hair 鈥� cleaned their boots or shoes 鈥� and yes, Mr Churchill鈥檚 as well! (But he still had the badge of the Royal Engineers).

So he went to London in the morning and back to Dagenham in the evening. (We had a newspaper picture and article of him stepping over the fire engine鈥檚 hoses one night in the Fire of London!)

One day he got up, put his head into the larder to get something out for breakfast and then felt a thud. He knew at once it was a V2 Rocket on the Green, not far from our house. When the walls, grit and dust had stopped falling he went along the hall and called out to us all (one at a time) 鈥� Mum, me, my young brother, and my young sister 鈥� all ok. So he stood at the bottom of the stairs for us to slide down to him.

鈥淐ome on Doll,鈥� (That鈥檚 what they called me) 鈥淵ou come first 鈥� show them what to do鈥�. So I slid down on my bottom and working my legs, then the others 鈥� Mum came last. Between you and me she wanted to go to the toilet so she went along the hall and 鈥淥h dear! Look at this toilet鈥�. She pulled the chain and then, not only all the rubble but water as well along the hall. My father said 鈥淵ou silly B鈥︹��

Now at this time I worked at the Plessey Company in Ilford, just a bus ride from Dagenham. (The Plessey Company made the first Bolisha Beacon, then traffic lights and now make many electrical implements found in our homes under the name Siemens Electric.) I belonged to the Youth Club for a weekly sum of 6p, 3p paid by the firm, 3p paid by me. This sum went into a fund which was to help us if we were in trouble with the raids etc. So, bare-footed I walked and found a telephone box and phoned for help. In a very short time there they were, three men and their van, and off they took us to a school where we were given breakfast, clothes and bunk beds. Mum was taken to a clinic to have a piece of glass taken from one eye 鈥� then she joined us at the school where we were for 10 days until we were housed in Ilford. We celebrated VE Day six weeks later.

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