大象传媒

I was living in Wrexham during the early years of the war and could hear the bombs exploding on Liverpool for three nights. So on Saturday morning early, I set off on my bicycle, riding through the Mersey Tunnel to The Friends Meeting House where I had heard that a Pacifist Service Unit was being set up in order to help those bombed out. I wanted to help as a part-timer at weekends.

There were four young Pacifist men working there full-time for half a crown a week food and shelter. During the day, they hired hand carts and helped people in the Scotland Road area to move whatever household goods were left to friends or family living in the outer parts of Liverpool. In the evening with part-time helpers, they went round the nearby shelters with coco and later a first aid round, where they got to know many needy people.

One job I did was to get in touch with a lady who was deaf and nearly blind. After several visits, I managed to make her hear and she put her head out of an upstairs window then a shouted conversation took place. Finally, she allowed me to go up to her room. She was wearing a large velvet hat but her clothes were very worn. She lived in the top room of an ancient building providing single rooms only. The stairs went through each room allowing no security or privacy. There was an open fire for warmth and cooking. Coal had to be carried up two flights of stairs. A shared toilet was outside with a clod water tap beside it. Mrs. X had lived here since her naval husband had been killed during the First World War. She was paying a shilling a week rent to the council.

I talked to her and eventually learned that she had worked at the market plucking chickens but was now too old. Her finances appeared to be very small. I had to tell her that the council wanted her to move so they could demolish the building. I promised help with clothing and removal. I also promised to visit the next day hoping to lessen some of her fears. This I did and took her some clean clothing from our second hand clothing store and helped her to wash, more or less all over.

Someone else from the unit visited the housing department on her behalf and eventually a room was found in the house of an acquaintance of hers from the same area who had been re-housed but now had a spare bedroom. We were able to arrange for her landlady to provide meals. A rent was paid and somehow the financial difficulties were overcome with the help of a social organisation. Eventually the removal took place. New bedding was provided and her chest of drawers and bits & pieces made her feel at home. She was a proud lady living without grumbling in extremely difficult circumstances and I have never forgotten her.

After the war, the PSU was no longer a Pacifist organisation and changed it鈥檚 name to the Family Service Units. Eighteen groups are now working in deprived areas in our big cities.

漏 Copyright of content contributed to this Archive rests with the author. Find out how you can use this.