大象传媒

This story was submitted to the People鈥檚 War Site by Helen Churchill for Three Counties Action, on behalf of Peggy Vranch, and has been added to the site with her permission. The author fully understands the site鈥檚 terms and conditions.

My first experience of the war being imminent was when I was staying at Plymouth with my aunt and uncle on holiday. The announcement that war was declared came over the radio and my aunt and uncle insisted that we came back to Launceston immediately.

I was between 11 and 12 years old and the following week went to my new school Horwell Grammar School having passed the 11+. After that within a few weeks the evacuees started arriving from London and among them unbeknown to me was a young lad who was to be my future husband. He was 11 years old and like me very keen on swimming. Our first encounter was when he threw water all over me when I was sunbathing. For the rest of the next three years we were boyfriend and girlfriend. Then he went to the naval training school in Gloucester (Lidney).

I carried on with my education and he with his training, keeping in touch by letters. He came to see me on his leave, and our relationship continued during the war years. We finally got married in 1949 and have three daughters.

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