"When we are gone, keep telling our stories" – A WWII veteran's plea to future generations
The Taxi Charity was asked by The Express if one of the veterans we support might share a quote for their remembrance coverage. WWII veteran Marie Scott, 100, kindly helped. Here are her poignant words.
Every Remembrance Day is important, but this year I feel more strongly than ever that we must stop, reflect and remember. The generation that lived through the Second World War is fast becoming the departed generation. Soon, there will be very few of us left to tell our stories first-hand. We have a responsibility to make sure the sacrifices of our generation are never forgotten.
I was just 17 when I joined the Women’s Royal Naval Service, known as the Wrens. On 6 June 1944, I was stationed deep underground at Fort Southwick, near Portsmouth, working as a radio operator and transmitting messages between military commanders and the Allied forces landing on the beaches of Normandy.
I was safely underground, but through my headphones I could hear the reality of war. There was rapid machine-gun fire, the heavier sound of cannons, bombs exploding and men shouting orders. I could hear men screaming, too.
I remember thinking: these are young men and they are dying on those beaches. It was a frightening realisation for a teenager who had never experienced anything like it. I have never forgotten those sounds.
We all had a job to do, and we did it. I was one small part of an enormous operation involving thousands of people, many of whom never came home. I have always felt that the recognition I received for my service belongs, in part, to all those who served alongside me.
Today, as I look around at remembrance services, I think of the friends and comrades we have lost and the many young lives sacrificed so that future generations could live in freedom. It is easy, as the years pass, for the realities of war to become distant history. But for those of us who lived through it, the memories remain very real.
That is why remembrance matters so much. It is not simply about wearing a poppy, attending a parade or observing two minutes' silence. It is about remembering the people behind the names on memorials, understanding what they endured and recognising the price paid for our freedom.
While we are still here to share our experiences, please listen to our stories.
And when we are gone, keep telling them.
Marie Scott
Second World War veteran
