Joan, a widow who was 11 when war broke out, describes her experience as an evacuee during the war. She remembers the day that war was announced, and seeing all the mothers in the town crying, although she didn't understand why at the time. Joan was evacuated from her home in Gillingham with 3 of her sisters. This was a painful separation, especially since they were not treated well by their two carers in their new home in Chartham. Joan later fell ill with scarlet fever and was put in an isolation hospital for 6 weeks, after which the sisters were taken home to their parents.  Joan recalls her experience being much improved after the family was reunited. She talks of the ‘happy days’ of ‘Digging for Victory’ and sourcing items for the local barracks. Although food was rationed, Joan remembers her mother reserving her meat ration so the family could have a Sunday roast. She also recalls using condensed milk instead of jam to make a tasty sandwich, and the jubilation on the days when boats of bananas and oranges managed to get through. She also speaks with fondness of the time spent in the Anderson air raid shelter in their garden, where they spent most of their nights. She relates happy memories of sing-alongs with their Irish neighbour who often joined them, and recalls often staying up all night talking and laughing- ‘I can’t say they were sad days… we were a community really.’ Although she doesn’t recall being scared of the bombing, the memory of Gillingham bus depot being bombed and setting the sky alight has stuck with her. Joan talks about the pub her father took over in 1942, where she worked as a barmaid. She recalls the celebrations of VE Day, when people sang and danced all night. It was shortly after this that her future husband walked into the pub after being demobbed from the Navy. They married and moved to Scotland, but he re-joined the Navy after 9 years, and she fondly recalls her years as a Navy wife.  Joan’s story reminds us of the often painful experience of evacuation, as well as the spirit of community inspired by the Blitz.

When WW2 started Elvira Burbeck was suddenly out of work and looking for something new to do, so she joined the Ministry of Labour. A friend recommended she join the FANYs (First Aid Nursing Yeomanry). However, as Alvira was in a protected job, she was rejected. She tried again, this time with help from a colleague, and was accepted, and within a month she was sent to Algiers, Algeria. When she arrived in Oran, Algeria, the danger set in, as she was told they would have to go by train to Algiers to avoid any U-boats in the area. Her group decided to fly, which was very exciting for Elvira, as it was her first time in a Mitchell Bomber aircraft. When she arrived in Massingham, Algeria, she worked for an Intelligence officer, processing intelligence coming in from France. Elvria’s role in Massingham involved getting agents ready to be sent into France. She made sure the agents were in the right clothes, and made sure the agents knew how to act when they landed. Elvira was posted there for 10 months. After this, she had several postings in: Rome, Algiers, Italy, Canada, and Sri Lanka. Whilst in Italy, she was involved in finding road and rail targets for agents to bomb. After the war she was offered a job with the Foreign Office in Rome, but she turned it down, hoping to be posted to Bangkok instead. After thinking about it, she accepted the post and the Italians get back on their feet. Overall, she remembers the niceness of everybody, and the joy of working with such nice people during a very serious time. She recalls never feeling like she was at a disadvantage, everyone was valid and everyone’s contribution mattered. Elvira remembers a funny story about a poisonous snake ending up in a lavatory whilst based at Ceylon (Sri Lanka) and the chaos that followed.

Garry Burns shares an engaging account of his service aboard RFA Tidespring during the Falklands War. Raised in a Children's home, Garry understood hardness and strict discipline from a young age. These qualities would benefit his transition into the Royal Navy when he joined. After enlisting at sixteen, he trained as a Gunner, working aboard many warships from HMS Cambridge to HMS Reclaim. This was before choosing to become a merchant sailor, serving aboard RFA Tidespring as a Paint locker-man. Despite leaving the navy, he would soon find himself entering a warzone after Tidespring was called to Ascension Island in preparation for war in the Falklands. Something Garry thought was a joke because the message was received on April 1st. While sailing to South Georgia with a group of other warships, Garry recalls how they were required to bunch up and mimic cargo ships to avoid detection from Russian Satellites who were monitoring them. At South Georgia, many crazy stories unfolded such as, struggling to send marines ashore after the crashing of two helicopters and the drifting of a recovery boat. After the bombardment and surrender of South Georgia, the crew were given the opportunity to inspect the hamlet of Grytviken. Garry was stunned by how forsaken it was. It resembled a ghost town in which everyone had left, yet much was left behind. During the war, they brought hundreds of POWs aboard, including crew members of the Santa Fe submarine which had limped onto Grytviken after being attacked. When meeting the prisoners, Garry noticed how bedraggled some of them appeared. He managed to form healthy relationships with some of them, especially since he knew Spanish from his earlier voyages in both South and Central America. This made him the crew's unofficial translator. Being born mixed race in the 1950s, Garry never had an easy time making friends, especially early on. However, his life aboard Tidespring proved to be a happy one and his skin colour was valuable in gaining the assurance of POWs who may have found it difficult to trust someone of a more English disposition. Garry's story captures the advantages that come from growing up in undesirable circumstances, from the success that can still be attained and the surprising way in which new bonds can be formed.