Bert's Story

Dad was called up for military service on 6 March 1941. He was employed as a Storeman (VEH) CL II. His job was to collect and catalogue items left on the battlefield, which could include weapons, clothes, vehicles, or anything else. His unit once came across a German storage shed filled from bottom to top with condoms!

One day during bombing, he and a colleague dived for cover under a truck, only to later realize that the truck was full of munitions. He was stationed in places such as Jordan, Egypt, and other Holy Land locations. During his time in the desert, the men would sell used tea leaves as new to the Arabs. At night, insects would crawl all over the men, but not Dad—we think it was because he had a rare blood type.

At some point, Dad's unit joined the 8th Army, and he worked as a waiter in the Officers' Mess. Later, he was involved in the repatriation of Italy, where the people were very happy to see the British Army arrive. He met the Fiat brothers; one was educated at Oxford and the other in the USA. Both spoke good English, one with an English accent and one with an American accent. He played football with the locals at the stadium featured in the film *Escape to Victory*. He visited Mount Vesuvius and went right up to the crater. Three days later, it erupted, so it was a narrow escape.

One day, he saw villagers flocking towards a church, so he followed them. He was told that a miracle was occurring, which only happened every hundred years. Water was pouring non-stop from a jug in the church. He was given a small piece of gauze with the water on it. He kept it and later placed it inside a crucifix that belonged to his sister, who was a nun. She had been a prisoner of war in France, and although she survived, she didn't live for long afterward, and the crucifix went to Dad.

Before the war, Dad had been working on his Wood Badge to qualify as a Scout Master. After the war, he still helped with the Cub Scouts but vowed never to wear a uniform again. He also used to say that he had been halfway around the world but never had a passport.