204637 Pte. Louisa Mary "Molly" St.Quintin Auxiliary Territorial Service from:20 Regent Rd., Great Yarmouth Mary St Quintin, Molly as she was known by everyone was my nanny. During the Second World War she was a member of the ATS working as a lorry driver and also in kitchens on several army bases. One time a bomb went off while she was driving down the road and her lorry got blown into a ditch. On a day off she decided to stay in bed when the air raid siren went off and almost got blown up again, coming through the ordeal with a face full of glass. The third lucky escape was when a bomb was dropped on an army barracks where her group was preparing food for soldiers. But being the tough lady that she was still looked back on those days with thoughts of camaraderie shared with friends who worked alongside her. The way the war changed my nanny's life most though was a chance meeting on a train. Molly was going home on leave packed into a busy train back to Yarmouth. American Staff Sergeant William James Richardson boarded the same train returning to his base from spending a few days in London. It just so happened that the only spare seat was next to Molly. They struck up a conversation and he wrote down his address on a copy of Life magazine. They kept in touch and arranged to meet whenever they could. In September 1944 they were married and I was lucky enough to call him Grandad. They moved back to America briefly before returning permanently to England, setting sail on the liner De Grasse from New York. Two very wonderful people who were the best Grandparents in the world.
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