Pepere

This is a photo of my French Great-grandfather, Pepere. This is a picture of him taken during World War II. I believe it was taken soon after he was captured by the Germans and put in a prisoner of war camp in Hemer, Germany (Stalag 6A). He was always a happy soul but in this picture he looks rather grim (for good reason).This POW camp was a forced labor camp and the conditions were deplorable. Pepere lied to the Germans when they asked him his line of work. He was a mechanic by trade but told them he was a gardener because he did not want to be put to work aiding their war effort. I believe he was kept in the POW camp for 3 or 4 years. He was very lucky to get out alive, as 24,000 POWs died there. When the war ended in 1945, my Grandma Ginette who was only 16 at the time, left home with a friend with the intention of searching for her father and bringing him home. She was very close to him and was determined to find him. The 2 girls dressed up in French army uniforms (or something they thought looked close to that), boarded a train, and set off for Germany. Of course they had no money and no papers and they were soon sent back home. Pepere eventually made it home and I'm sure they had a warm reunion.

-Photo and story from my Aunt Carole