The tireless efforts of the Auxiliary Territorial Service and Royal Artillery saved countless Allied lives during the Second World War.
Mary Cholwill, now 100, enlisted in 1941 and completed her ATS training at Aldermaston when she was just 17.
But she remembers waking up one morning to find all the soldiers she knew had gone. That was June 6, 1944.
Mrs Cholwill, who has lived in Newbury for the past 20 years, is attending the commemoration for the 80th anniversary of D-Day at Greenham Control Tower today (Thursday) to remember her fallen comrades.
She served in the 2nd Search Light Regiment, Royal Artillery, where she operated telephones and plotting boards, monitoring and coordinating artillery fire against incoming enemy aircraft.
Mrs Cholwill previously recalled her wartime service to newburytoday.
“The RAF would get warnings of aircraft coming over,” she said.
“We used to get a plotting number from them and then our searchlights would go up and follow them [enemy aircraft].
“I don’t know how many aircraft we shot down.
“But we were always getting thanked by the RAF, because we saved quite a lot of aircraft from crashing.”
Mrs Cholwill worked as a civil servant after the war before starting a family.
Visit https://www.newburytoday.co.uk/news/wwii-veteran-to-lead-remembrance-parade-9338963/ to read our full interview with Mrs Cholwill.
