'It was bad times, 1940 was terrible': 102-year-old veteran remembers former life in England

Emotions were running high for Barbara McLoughlin as memories of German bombings in her hometown came rushing back.

“I was in Plymouth, the most heavily bombed city in England,” says McLoughlin at the Remembrance Day ceremony in Port Stanley, Ont. on Sunday. “1940 was terrible."

Between 1940 and 1944, more than 3,700 homes were destroyed and 1,175 civilians were killed.

McLoughlin, who moved to Canada in 1963, now lives in Port Stanley. She was one of two veterans in attendance at the service, joining Cpl. Jason Pollett, who served in Afghanistan in 2007 and in Haiti in 2010.

102-year-old World War II veteran Barbara McLoughlin is joined by her granddaughter Jennifer Stirrat at a Remembrance Day ceremony in Port Stanley, Ont. on Nov. 6, 2022. McLoughlin lays a wreath on behalf of Lady Veterans. (Brent Lale/CTV News London)

McLoughlin laid the wreath on behalf of Lady Veterans at the cenotaph.

“We try to have her at every function we have because she just makes everybody smile,” says Madeline Kirk, president of Legion Branch 410 in the Lake Erie village.

McLoughlin was 21-years-old in 1942 when she received her conscription letter. She would serve from 1942 to 1945.

“I was a typist for the army in our camp,” says McLoughlin. “They wouldn't let me go too far because my father was from Italy, yet he was in the British Army.”

During the service, she would meet her husband William McLoughlin, who was also in the military. He would serve as a medic travelling through three continents.

Barbara McLoughlin (right) served as a typist in the Army from 1942 to 1945. She married William McLoughlin who was a medic in the military. (Submitted)

William would join D-Day forces on a landing craft tank, and was the only one in his group that survived.

“My dad [Jicomo Antonucci] was in the First War in the trenches so we all did our share,” says McLoughlin when referring to her family’s ties to the military.

McLoughlin was joined by her family at the service. Her granddaughter Jennifer Stirrat takes care of her, and says she has heard some war stories, but not that many as her grandfather was cautious.

“I think because he was there and he was in Belsen when they went into liberate,” says Stirrat. “It was really traumatizing. He was in the medics and he went in and so he didn't overly talk about that. He was very guarded about that because it was it was really hard on him.”

A Remembrance Day parade was held in Port Stanley, Ont. on Nov. 6, 2022. (Brent Lale/CTV News London)McLoughlin, born July 1, 1920, recalls what she describes as a “nice life.”

“Back then it was bad times, but everybody was happy,” says McLoughlin. “It's surprising, but it was. We saw the good side of it.”

Despite being 102-years-old, and with failing health, McLoughlin keeps a positive attitude. She believes she’ll be returning to the Legion for the service in 2023.

“I’ll be seeing you next year,” she says with a smile.