大象传媒

My parents joined the hospitality of the Lord Mayor of Birmingham鈥檚 war relief fund sometime during WW2. This meant that they opened their home and their hearts to any of the overseas forces that wished to visit Birmingham and preferred to stay with a family rather than going into a hotel.

Mum had three brothers in the forces and hoped that someone would do the same for them. I don鈥檛 think they even thought how much it would snowball the way it did. We were all privileged to meet so many lovely people and to be counted as their English family. Some of their families, girlfriends and fianc茅s started corresponding with my parents too.

The first to arrive were Canadians soldiers, then Canadian airmen, followed by Army Men.

After the first arrivals mum would be phoned at work in the morning and she鈥檇 leave a note for me to go and meet them at the bus stop after school. I always insisted on taking my younger sister with me, as at that time I was painfully shy. Not so my sister. I was so embarrassed when the three polish men arrived. I introduced myself and in turn they kissed my hand and bowed. My sister was so amazed that she got behind me and couldn鈥檛 stop laughing. It was worse when we got home. She discovered that whenever we left the room and re-entered they stood up and clicked their heels. You can guess what she did and I ended by threatening to lock her in the pantry if she didn鈥檛 stop. Fortunately mum turned up shortly after. I must say the three men took it in very good part.

The Canadian soldiers only came a couple of times. I guess they were needed for a very important job.

We became very friendly with the RCA7 boys. The contact lasted long after the war.

The New Zealanders and Australians came frequently. We really felt the family had become bigger. Mum and dad listened to their problems, usually about girlfriends, - wrote to their parents and fianc茅s and my sister and I were treated as kid sisters. Chased if we forgot to clean our teeth, taken to the park after seeing me walking home with a boy carrying my satchel (he later became my husband), they would at times walk to meet me or pick me up in the 鈥渙ld banger鈥� they鈥檇 bought, 鈥渏ust passing鈥�, of course.

One day mum heard shrieks of laughter and drumming sounds and there they had made a tent out of bed clothes and they were 鈥渂ig chief chuck o beef鈥� and 鈥渓ittle squawk knife and fork鈥�, having a ceremonial feast.

We have so many lovely memories of them and still have contact with one of their daughters and went to visit her and her family in 1991.

Of course the sad times came too. So many of them didn鈥檛 turn up when we expected them and we just had to wait for someone to tell us what had happened. Right until my mum died we didn鈥檛 know where most of them were buried. Some of their parents had died not knowing the full story either.

The wife of one, killed and buried in England came over with her young daughter after the war. They stayed with us for about a year and Ann started school at 5 years old in Birmingham.

Two years ago and following a series of strange coincidences, I decided to contact the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and explained that I was not kin to any of them, but they gave me in the info I wanted.

They were buried in the Commonwealth cemetery in Durnback Bavaria. The whole crew English and Australian.

So we decided we鈥檇 go for Mum and Dad. Easier said than done. No war graves tours included that particular cemetery. The next problem; find a holiday company that went to Bavaria. That took some finding too. But they were brilliant and got us booked into a hotel in a little town nearby and no one knew where the cemetery was until a helpful lady in the local museum said it must be the Britishe Soldatenfriedhof. It was.

We went on a beautiful day it was very emotional for a little time.

Then we had to get back after a series of adventures involving a car ride, boat ride "an der schiffe鈥�, train ride x 2 and a bus; we made it back to the hotel.

We chose to think they were still around playing tricks on us. Daft I know.

But I do know that they鈥檒l never be forgotten by Dorothy her family me, and my family who have heard the stories and seen the photographs many time.

Rest in peace boys.

Postscript. 鈥� Later my parents were asked if they鈥檇 take a couple of German POW鈥檚 into their home for Christmas, they were in a camp on Swanshurst Park awaiting repatriation.

Of course knowing my parents they said yes, and Rudy and Bob became regular visitors too.

This story was submitted to the People鈥檚 War site by Anastasia Travers a volunteer with WM CSV Actiondesk on behalf of Joyce Smith and has been added to the site with his permission. Joyce Smith fully understands the sites terms and conditions.

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