ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½

My name is Dorothy Elvin. I went to Morecambe for my square bashing which I enjoyed very much. I was there for afew weeks and then went to Barking College for a cookery course. After I passed I ended up in a smalle place called Sarum which is about 20 minutes from Salisbury.

The first year I was there my boyfriend Frederick was posted abroad and my officer was Australian. She wouldnt grant me leave to see him so I packed a bag and left for home. I hadnt been back very long when two military policewomen knocked on the door. Luckily they were very understanding and said I could stay so long as I went back the next day!

When I returned, I had to go before the Australian Officer. She told me to stand to attention and then march. The room wasnt very large and she hadnt told me to halt, so I just kept on marching out the door! She had me up for dumb insolence - I was trying so hard not to laugh. Consequently I was put on jankers and had to pick up scraps of paper from the parage ground with a pronged stick. I was ribbed about this. I think my friends were actually rather surprised by this episode as I was rather quiet when I joined up.

Very often my friends and I would have to creep to the back of the camp and climb over the fence to get back in after going to a dance because we were late. At that time a trench had been dug around the fence. One time there were four of us and one of my friend fell off the wall. She was rather a large lady so it was lucky she fell first! We all fell down on top of her. Nobody was hurt - just afew bruises and wet knickers (or bloomers would be the correct word).

Anyway, I passed my oral for cookery! I was in the Airmans mess for quite a while. It was quite hot in the summer months and we worked three shifts. If we were on the late shift we walked to Salisbury in the morning. I had plenty of energy in those days. We had a lot of dances in the hanger on the camp. That as when I became very interested in dancing. I met a boy. He was such a good dancer. One meets so many good pals there but there is always that one who is extra special. When things began to get a wee bit serious I was posted off. I went to the officers mess for a while. It was on the other side of the camp and I had to use my cycle from my billet.

In 1944 I was posted to Dunmow, Essex. It was a very busy bomber station, getting prepared for D-Day June 6th. It was a very sad time. There was always someone reported missing each time they went on a mission.

We had to walk to Dunmow to go to a dance. It was such a long walk back to camp. So lonely through the country lanes, nearly half an hour to walk on my own! No nerves about it at that time but it wouldnt be safe these days.

On D-Day the whole camp had to be up very early - 3.30am. We watched the aircraft and gliders take off. It was such a wonderful sight. Mainly it was Stirlings and Halifax Bombers towing gliders.

I was only at Dunmow for a short period when i was posted again to Weathersfield. I had to make friends all over again. It was such a hard winter when I was there. But we still managed to cycle into Finchingfield as there were afew nice pubs. Still, we had our bloomers to keep our bottoms warm. They were called passion killers in those days!

I made friends with a girl called Vera. We had quite afew dances on the camp but we cycled to Finchingfield about twice a week. One night we had quite afew drinks and were on our way back to camp. It was quite hilly and we were showing off doing no hands down the hill. Poor Vera came off and went into a ditch. She had a terribly bruised face and wet knickers. I was ok - couldnt have been so accident prone in those days!

A short while after that happened we were posted once again as the Americans were taking Weathersfield. We all moved by glider to Earls Colm. What an experience. Of course, Vera was feeling abit grotty and had two black eyes. At least this time we were a group moving together. Eventually we were demobbed from there.

While i was there I was in the Airmans Mess. It was a lot harder than at the Officers Mess. I became friendly with a lad called Vincent who was Aircrew. He managed to get me a flight on a Halifax Bomber. They were practising dropping Paratroopers. It was breaking the rules, but I was fortunate as the pilot gave him permission to let me on the flight. He was a rear gunner W. officer and had been on a number of missions over Germany. We went out a great deal. When off duty, he took me to Cambridge for a weekend away. We stayed at a hostel. No funny business though. We had such a lovely weekend. Things are so different now.

We kept in touch with each other when i was demobbed in 1945 and met in London on weekends. I had an auntie who lived in Westbourne Park and stayed with her for the weekend. I was terribly fed up when i left the forces. Then I heard my boyfriend from before the war was being demobbed. This was late 1946 and i had to make up my mind what I was going to do. I had to tell Vincent that Frederick was coming home. It was a very difficult decision to make but I had to tell Vincent I wouldnt be seeing him anymore. Because of this he stayed in the Airforce and returned on flying duties on a wellington bomber.

Frederick returned afew months later and we were married in April 1947. I soon got pregnant. While I was pregnant I received a letter from Vincent's mum to say that the Wellington plane had crashed over Caister. It was struck by lightening in a bad storm. Vincent was 24 years old when he died in this way. Him and the rest of the crew are buried in Caister cemetery. To go on so many missions over Germany in war time and then to be killed in a storm - very very sad.

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