Phyllis was born in 1926. She attended the Foundling Hospital school at both Redhill and Berkhamsted. She went into domestic service on leaving the school and then served in the Wrens during the last years of World War II. She has worked in a number of different offices most of her life, and currently lives in London.
Into the World
‘I did miss school, I did miss school – because I mean, all those years you just slept, ate played did everything together. In fact, when my husband used to come to the reunions he used to say we were like one big family – he said we’re even closer than ordinary sisters. If you came to the reunion and saw someone you hadn’t seen for a number of years you just used to seem to pick up the threads as though it was yesterday.’
School Life
‘Our Christmases were lovely – because we had – all the dining room was all decorated out with beautiful, coloured like Chinese lanterns but they weren’t lit until the lunch on Christmas day – they were put up about a week before but they were actually lit on Christmas day. And the tables were all laid out with white clothes and with crackers and fruit and a little bag of sweets at each place, it really looked very, very nice. It was the one day in the year when the staff waited on us. And after lunch we would all go back to the playrooms and a big hamper would be brought in. Because when the foster mothers arrived on their last visit before Christmas they would bring presents for their children and they were kept to one side until Christmas day… and it didn’t occur to us at the time, until afterwards, but they brought the hamper in and every child had a present and we realised afterwards that those foster mothers, like my foster mother, who hadn’t been able to come – they had made a note of the children whose foster mothers hadn’t come and they supplied a present for them and so we all had a present and nobody knew whether it was from your mother or whether it was from the school. But as I say, it was one of those things, at the time, we didn’t, you know, really think about it.’
Search for Birth Families
‘I had had a letter from the school back in 1952 saying that they had traced my mother, that she had eventually married and had two daughters. Unfortunately, her marriage broke up and the– the girls were aged ten and sixteen at the time and she’d had a very hard life and she really didn’t want to do anything about meeting me at that time and hoped I would understand. But they– she did allow them to– to let me know what her maiden name was which was “Whittle.” And– and then I came up to see Val Molloy and again she gave me information about my mother and letters that my mother had written – one when I was– in the October when I would’ve been four months old. She enquired after me and asked if she could have a photograph, but unfortunately, they had to tell her that they didn’t allow photos which was sad really but…
And when I found I had some information about my mother’s maiden name and that I had two half sisters I first went to the archives at Kew to see if I could find out anything about my half sisters. And I found out their names and how old they were and I managed to get their birth certificates and my daugh– grandaughter, Sarah, with the information that I had from the Foundation and from the archives at Kew, she put this onto the internet and traced where my two sisters were. And one was living in Basingstoke, Pat, who’s six years younger than me and my other sister, Merle, who’s ten years younger, she’s in southern Ireland where my mother was actually born. Because my mother came over from Ireland when she was in her early twenties and went into domestic work. And I visited the archives and I also visited the– when I knew the place where I was born and where mother worked and where she was married, and then with the help of my granddaughter, Sarah, putting all this information onto the internet, she traced my– my two daught– gran– sisters and on– in September of last year they actually came to visit me. Merle was over in London visiting her– her sister and they came – my sister Pat, and Merle, and Merle’s daughter Adrianne, my niece – came to my home to visit me. And Merle, before they came to visit me, Merle sent me some– several photos. She said: “I thought you’d like to have some photos of mother and that before we meet so you can sort of get an idea what she was like and… and everything.” So they– they came– they came to me and had the day with me and, as I said, I felt so at ease with them from the moment we met.
I’m v– so fortunate, you know, that I– I know it’s– it’s happened very late, you know, in my life but at least now I have found out, you know, about my mother and to have pictures of her. And, as I said, I do get very emotional when I’m on my own and I think about her and look at her pictures. I carry them around with me all the time. I put them in a frame and then I take them out again… I hold no remorse, you know, against her or anything. I– I just sort of think “There but for the grace of God go I,” it could’ve happened– happens to anybody. But, as I said, I just k– you know, think so– so often about how the– how, you know, my sisters have accepted me, you know, because it couldn– I mean, I– I said to them that day when they came, I said, “You know, it could’ve been different, you know. You might h– you know, might not have wanted to know–“, “Why wouldn’t we want to know – you’re our sister!” So… it’s wonderful.‘
