Show and Tell Friday - September 3rd

I haven't done a Show and Tell Friday for awhile, but I have wanted to share this ever since I got it a few months back...

My mother's first love was a young man named Emery. She met him in 1942 at a dance in Fayetteville, NC where he was stationed with the army. This young man from Pennsylvania was very taken with my red-haired, very Southern mother and they began dating. One year later, they married in April 1943 (interestingly, when my husband and I wed on April 17, 1993, my mother later told me that I had gotten married 50 years to the date that she had married Emery). This wonderful young man was shipped over to Europe in 1944, where they followed the wave of soldiers into France shortly after D-Day. They made their way, battle by battle, deep into enemy territory. On the weekend of January 13th and 14th, 1945, Mama made her peace with the possibility that Emery might not make it back home, like so many other brave, young soldiers. Why did she remember the exact weekend of this experience? Because on Monday, January 15th, Emory was killed in a tragic accident. He was returning to the front after some rest, in a jeep at night during blackout conditions (which means every vehicle was driving without their headlights on so as not to draw enemy fire). At the same time, a quartermaster truck was racing away from the front on this small country road and they met head on. The men in the jeep were run over.

This was a terrible tragedy for my mother and she always remained close with Emery's family. Several months ago, Emery's sister, Molly, passed away. As she was childless, my sister helped with her a lot and received some of her belongings. Among these items was a teapot which she sent to me. We believe it was sent by Emory to his mother or sister during the War.
See the inscription on the top. It says, "For England and Democracy". Emory was in England before they shipped across to France.
On the bottom it says, "World War II, Made in England."

To my knowledge, everything my mother had with Emery, all their personal belongings and keepsakes, were burned in a fire that occurred sometime after Emery's death, so having the teapot which may have come from him is very meaningful.

Thank you for sharing my Show and Tell with me. For more posts, visit Cindy at My Romantic Home.

Have a great day!
Elizabeth