Lorna’s story

My grandmother Lorna was a very brave woman. She had my mother out of wedlock at time when this was considered ruinous with someone whom she should never have met due to their wildly different up bringing’s and social class.

My grandmother hid her pregnancy ‘til the very last minute, when her married sister realised she was pregnant at first she was angry but then was supportive and protective. My mother was born in May 1937. When the war started my grandmother and mother moved to the country where she worked for an elderly lady. They saw out the war moving between Hampstead and the country working in big houses before finally moving to Australia in 1949, to look for a new and better life.

Once in Australia she worked again as a Housekeeper, where she met and fell in love with the man who became the love her life. In 1950 my uncle Leo was born, but my Grandmother still found herself as a single mother, now bringing up two children as my mother was only 13 when he was born.

My mother was sent away to school then left Australia at 16 to travel to England but stopped in Cairo where she lived with her Aunt and Aunt’s family for 7 years.

It’s hard to imagine now how difficult this must have been, and it’s my belief that her life would have been dominated by her situation.

I used the memory of her and knowledge that she was able to raise two intelligent and wonderful human beings as encouragement when things were particularly dark.

If my Grandmother did it in the 30’s 40’s and 50’s, then anyone can. This inspirational story of how we ‘crack on’ as single mothers is at the heart of this project and I hope she would enjoy the stories of other single mothers who like her have fought against all odds to raise their children.

Well done Lorna, you absolute superstar.