HomeMy WebLinkAboutFord, Virginia Kelley
WWII Pat Koppa
WWII Virginia K. Ford
"Some Family
of WorId War II"
I was four years old when the world
"Beany" Ford, Jr. who would turn 180
was in the ROTC, he signed an
Antonio for a two-month radio
army and serve in the signal corps.
Ford; her brother, Oliver Sims
Kelley Wil and the sister's 1
Monday, Dec.
Edwin Verne
he
the
Kelley
sister, Exa
Jr.; who enlisted
I knew something bad was happeni
over and they were outsid
listening to. I did
unbelievably tall
me on the bike. He did
in awhile they
and uncle and various neighbo
seemed like the women would be
outside and maybe I would get
boys just the
the Japs. I di ow what a Jap was,
My mother, who was employed full time,
Harbor, her sister, who had
became the homemaker and s
defense plant. Her job was to
Plant in Dallas, across the street
lived about twenty blocks from
learned later that both she and my
had been assigned to work at the
much longer commute. They decided
a
restone
We
easily. I
aunt
and a
was the better one for our family.
The main difference for me was that mother now worked the shift. In Sept.
1943, I started to grade school. She would school until I
went to bed. She then left to be at work by home until after I
left for school. One day, which stands 0 I woke up
with a high fever and covered with red spots kept
me home from school. When Mother came home, she was surprised, soon about 9:30
a.m., she was reading me a story in bed. This I thought was wonderful and have never
forgotten it.
All I remember about her job was, she would 0 bring home these black rolls,
about four or five feet long. bathtub and covered with water.
Some bleach or soap or something must have been added. After several hours they
would take them out of the tub and eeled white cloth.
They would use this to make dish for quilts.
The rolls contained what was used These were the left over
endings of the rolls, too short to be used was why she could bring them home.
Her job would continue until the war ended. I think Mother received a significant
increase in pay and I never really Mother feeling
patriotic, but she never com she had obs. She seemed
satisfied doing it, no matter what, because it would help bring my brother and the others
home. It had to be done. It was 's stride like giving up cars, using ration
books, planting victory gardens and pu stars in your windows for each military
family member and praying they didn't b gold ones.
My brother served in the army as a courier the al Corps. He was on the Queen
Mary, headed home from Europe after He was supposed to have leave and then
be shipped to the Pacific war zone. He was home on leave on V -J day. He was
discharged shortly after he returned first day home, after his discharge, he
went shopping. He bought . I received two books, "Alice in
Wonderland" and "Aesop's Fables" and since I was eight years old I could read them by
myself.
He also bought an album for himself, Nutcracker Suite." I had never heard of it.
He said he bought it because during th of the Bulge, he and three of his buddies
became lost from their group. For several weeks they y walked the countryside,
living off their K -rations, what they co the countryside and donations
from a few German families who sometimes them a chicken or some
vegetables. One of the soldiers had a portab record player with him. Of course
it played 78's and he had three every evening. It was the
Nutcracker Suite. However, the broken. He bought this album just so
he could hear the fourth record. I never him to play any other classical music, but
we heard the Nutcracker Suite over and over.
Patricia Ford Koppa (Mrs. Rodger)
College Station, Texas
July 2005