Eggenberger, Mary: my post-war experiences (March 3, 2005)
An interview/narrative of Mary Eggenberger's Cold War experiences. Interview took place on March 3, 2005.
Interviewer: Sinclair, Kate
Interviewee: Eggenberger, Mary
ABSTRACT: Mary Eggenberger (Cassette 1, Side 1) 000: Mrs Mary Eggenberger was born September 19, 1932 in Manning, Alberta where she grew up on a farm with a large family. Moved to work in Calgary and then to Winnipeg to help her sister and went to Vancouver Island with them and worked retail where she met her husband that she had known from home and married soon after. Various family members had been in the military but she had no previous experience with the military. Husband was at his first posting with the all weather squadron. Rented a room in a motel for the military personnel for a couple of months and then rented a house in Comox. 061: Husband is posted to the DEW line and they were separated for a year and she was sent to live with her parents with her daughter in Calgary. Expecting second child. While in Comox she started to learn the life and responsibilities of being a military wife. 099: Husband at the DEW Line for thirteen months. 1961 they went to Europe at One Wing in France. Landed in Calais and then took the train to Paris and then the train to Mogadee. Met by the squadron to help them with finding a place. Given much information on the life in France and told to learn as much as they could while they were there. Sublette a place in Belgium, called Eiselle, a gatehouse while a pilot was on a course. 200: Husband had to go away to Sardinia for two weeks. Had to get a NATO driving license on the base so she could get her mail while husband was away. Rented a house in St. Mart. Speaks about an emergency plan in place when it was thought that war was eminent and speaks about what she was going to actually going to do. 285: Moved to Two Wing and then John was sent on a course to Canada. Mrs. Eggenberger had to move between One Wing and Two Wing on her own. Had a Private Married Quarters but it was not the nicest of places. Had third child with husband present. Husband then moved to Three Wing and made John promise to be there for the move, which he could not keep. Were there for two years. 346: Had to move to Four Wing. Her brother had died and she was pregnant with her fourth child. No PMQ's so had to find their own accommodation. Germans took a liking to her eldest son because of his blond hair and blue eyes. Husband did a lot of traveling, visiting most of the NATO countries. Did not have a hard situation with money and considered themselves well taken care of comparable to the locals. 486: Didn't notice the locals being affected by the global events. She assumes though that it was under the surface. Notes that military men needed to marry strong women. 532: After Four wing her husband decides to leave service to go back to school, could not pay for it through the military so they had to figure out their finances to deal with being out of the military. Stayed with husband's parents in Calgary, Alberta. Her husband was offered a job with the military in the summer and his university was then paid for. 603: Mrs. Eggenberger speaks about having babies in foreign countries. Military First Aid Hospitals. Had a South African doctor deliver one of her babies. Still is involved with the military. (Cassette 1, Side 2) 000: Always rented furnished places so they did not accumulate much furniture over the years. Only traveled with personal goods. She accepted her life with her husband; she married her husband and his life.
- In Collection:
- 2 sound recordings (MP3)
- 51.05011, -114.08529
- One original audio cassette in Special Collections.
- Canadian Military Oral History Collection
- EM_432
- Special Collections Finding Aid: https://uvic2.coppul.archivematica.org/military-oral-history-collection
- September 5, 2012
- Digital sound recording in .wav format at 16 bits and 44 kHz. In .mp3 format at 56 kbps and 24 kHz. Digitized by JF, technical and cataloguing metadata provided by JF and JP. Interview migrated to digital format for UVic Special Collections in 2012. Migration metadata by KD and MT.
- Rights
- This interview has been posted with the understanding that it may be used for research purposes only. Should the interviewee or their heirs have any objections to this interview being accessible on the Internet, it will be removed promptly. Contact UVic Special Collections for permission if using for other than research purposes: speccoll@uvic.ca
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