Archive (186 life histories found)

Being part of a choir became in reality a lifetime commitment. We all grew up, we all reached the age of twenty-one and all of us gathered to celebrate that milestone. They were referred to then as all night parties and held in the birthday…

The dress dances were exciting and I was asked to many. For the first one, I had a short blue tulle dress with white lace on top, held up by thin blue straps and sequins. Usually all the choir girls helped out by loaning a flashy necklace, silver or…

More memories were saving up for your Christmas clothes. For weeks beforehand, you visited a variety of shops especially on a Saturday to view the style. One particular Christmas I bought a grey wool fitted coat in Maceys of Georges Street. It was…

Becoming a teenager was thankfully very different in those days. I was still involved with the choir and that filled my teenage years fully. All of our time was spent there because now we had a hall where records and photography was practiced and…

After primary school I did a commercial course in the vocational school in Ballsbridge. I completed many short courses, such as dress designing, knitting, arts and crafts and others. Forever it seemed I yearned for further education and an…

The flow of life moved on, we got older, meanwhile our interest expanded to dances and boys. Boyfriends then were usually altar boys or boy scouts who too were attached to the Franciscans. At the time, a bicycle was a great accessory to own and I…

Shortly after war broke out,I was again arrested or interned. We were sent to Lingfield racecourse,and from there to Liverpool,to embark on the troopship 'Dunera ' Below deck we were locked up,and the ship set sail-across the Atlantic,to Cape…

When my mother obtained visas for myself and dad,I was released from concentration camp with the proviso that I had to leave the country within a fortnight. We were only permitted to take the barest necessities. I crammed a kitbag full of things such…

In 1938 my brother and sister had already left for England,but my father and I were arrested-they called it protective custody. In November 1938 arrest,jail,and concentration camp followed. When my father and I were arrested,we spent a few days at…

I stayed at school until 1935,when my parents decided there was no future in an academic career,and I was apprenticed to a wool merchant in Hamburg from 1935 to 1938. Thus started my working life. My payment per month was for the 1st year 19.00 RM…