A sad story

[Peter Brydon]

Last week I had a phone call from a local Burma Star veteran who I had met a couple of months earlier.He had lost his Burma Star Asssociation lapel badge and had been searching everywhere for a replacement. He wondered if I had a spare, I said I didnt but I found a nice example for sale on E bay.

As the gentleman didnt even have a computer I said I would bid on his behalf. I was successful and when the badge arrived it was a Gaunt named example in almost mint condition. We spoke over the weekend and arranged for him to contact me on Wednesday so we could make arrangements to meet and I could let him have the badge.

I was a little surprised that I did not hear from him on Wednesday but then on Thurday evening I had a phone call from a lady friend of his, I dont know how she had got hold of my phone number ( and in the cirucumstances I didnt feel able to ask ) but she said that she had phoned the gentleman on Tuesday and did not get any reply,she became concerned and on Wednesday went round to his house to find that he had passed away peacefully sitting in his chair.

How sad that I was not able to let him have the replacement badge which obviously meant so much to him, but it also brings home that fact that as well as the passing of WW1 veterans ,the number of WW2 veterans are rapidly becoming fewer and fewer.

If you know any WW2 veterans ask them about their experiences and the insignia they wore before it is too late.

P.B.

I couldn't agree more, Peter. Once such information is lost, it is gone for ever.

I learned the exact same lesson in the early days of my genealogical research. If I could turn back the clock, even just a few years, what family stories, recounted experiences, or cherished memories would I have saved from extinction.

My condolences on the loss of your friend.

Regards,

Peter.

[johnG]

Very well said P.B. WW2 Veterans are becoming rarer, and I heartily agree with what you suggest.

Regards

john

[CftD]

Death is, of course, the final chapter of life and none of us can escape it. The ever diminishing number of WW2 veterans is apparent every day in the obituary columns. As enthusiastic collectors of insignia, how many of us have considered the future of our collections ? There is the great challenge of wanting to spend our last pound coin on our very last day but predicting when that will be is the problem. Taking Peter's example of the Burma veteran, I wonder where his legacy (of memories and memorabilia) will go. Perhaps a respectful son or grandson will make something of them or perhaps they will be flogged at the next collectors fair. As has been said, make the best of the veterans you know while they are still with us. David

[orasot]

At least you gave him one last piece of happiness Peter, he knew you'd got a replacement badge for him so I think he'd have been very happy, always sad to hear of the passing of another vet, lest we forget,
Wilf.

[davec2]

Very true Peter B. and very sad,

It should bring some of us down to earth with a bump ?

Dave.

[John Mulcahy]

Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam. May he rest in peace.

[chrissy28]

If you know any WW2 veterans ask them about their experiences and the insignia they wore before it is too late.

P.B.[/QUOTE]

I totally agree with you 8th , my 88 yr old father loves to talk about his wartime memories and since I've taken up this project I've been asking him more about his and his families wartime experiences and I've learnt about so many interesting and heartwarming stories.
He was one of 5 brothers who went to fight in ww2 in different regiments, so I have learnt about my uncles escape from the Dunkirk beaches,he got separated from the rest of his reg and had to find his way across France to the beaches and was one of the last to get away hanging off the side off an old paddle steamer only to return and be captured and held P.O.W.
I was amazed to find out my grandfather was at the Somme, he tells me of his awful life in the trenches and how he was one of the tunnelers at hill 60 and my father says he told him he carried explosives into it in his stockened feet !
My father himself,enlisted in the artillery and then found he was an expert shot,( as he'd never picked up a gun before in his life before enlisting) and was sent to infantry sniper school where he won the trophy. His tales of India, Egypt,etc etc are fascinating,and he tells them like they happened yesterday and he was also lucky enough to meet Montgomery and General Urquhart in Singapore which was a great honour.
One day I must record him speaking and then I shall have that bit of history forever.
Im so sorry to hear of the loss of that dear gent, but Im sure as Wilf says he knew you had the replacement badge for him so Im sure he would have been really pleased that you'd done that for him , bless

Chrissy

[ebro]

Chrissy,

If it is possible you use a camcorder while having these discussions with him as there will be details that you may well overlook as obvious now, but on replay in the future they might have added significence.
Also the entheusism of his recollections would be preserved.

Eddie

[chrissy28]

Good idea Eddie,I'll put a camcorder on my santa list Im lucky he recalls so much with such detail not just about his own experiences but his fathers and brothers, very hard times but looked back on with such fond memory.

Chrissy

[Donny B.]

Recording an oral history can be quite an art. It often pays to have a number of "prompt" questions ready to help get a whole picture and maybe jog a memory or two. They can be simple questions such as How old were you then? Who else was with you? How did you get there? What did you have with you? etc.

Donny B.

[sailorbear]

Originally Posted by Peter J

I couldn't agree more, Peter. Once such information is lost, it is gone for ever.

I learned the exact same lesson in the early days of my genealogical research. If I could turn back the clock, even just a few years, what family stories, recounted experiences, or cherished memories would I have saved from extinction.

My condolences on the loss of your friend.

Regards,

Peter.

Absolutely! and what a sad tale but one that is all too common. My father grew up during the blitz in Portsmouth and went on to do his national service inthe Royal Navy, his father (who died before I was born) served in the Army in the first world war, was in the home guard in WW2 while working for the Admiralty at an out station of HMS Vernon on secret experimental work, I so wish I had asked and talked to my father more about his experiences in the navy and about my grandfather, I dont even know what regiment he served in? So the moral of the story is, if you know someone elderly, show an interest and care for them and ask about their life and experiences, before it is too late, I wish I had!

Regards Tony

[Phillip Herring]

My grandfather wrote down his wartime memories for me. He was a dental surgeon in the RNVR and I was the only family member who was really interested. Unfortunately, his hand writing was difficult to read and I am still transcribing.

Phil

[Robin Jansen]

Same thing with my great granddad. He made wood wagons for farmers. He was 5 when ww1 broke out and was 9 when it ended. He was 31 when ww2 broke out end 36 when it ended. I wish i had asked qeustions about how he would get food and other things during those periods. If i ask things about life during the to my granddad, i don't get a answer. He doesn't like to talk about the past. If he tells somethign from that period, it is because he could rememner something when see's a item i have. I showed him a picture of me wearing a dutch pre ww2 trenchcoat. hen told about that his greatgranddad and his granddad work in the coalmines in the ruhrarea.(yes i also have german blood) he remembered that there was a photo of his uncle in dutch or german service in a trenchcoat. He does not know where it is in the the family but if he had it, i get it.

So, yes, if you have a chance to ask qeustions, ask!!

( i hope the photo turns up before he dies.)

[iaindh]

Peter (B),

I suspect the old Gentleman died happily in the knowledge that he had a new badge.

As with all the other posts on this thread, I also wish I had written down the stories my father told me. I have most things stored but its the finer details that are missing. I've recently taken the trouble to actually write down what I remember but there's also I lot I will need to research to complete the story.

Time goes by so quickly, guys, so take the trouble to ask; it is worth it. We can pass on these stories to our children. As Wilf said, lest we forget.

regards,

Iain