This year’s event to honour the life and sacrifice of SOE agent Violette Sazabo, who was executed at Ravensbruck during WWII, was focused on the theme of friendship.

A variety of speakers elaborated on the different types of friendship at the Picnic held on Sunday, July 14th at the museum at Womelow dedicated to her memory.

Following the parade of standards and a welcome by Rosemary Rigby, the founder of the museum and organiser of the event, Malcolm Rolfe said a few words about Lilian Rolfe, who was an SOE agent in France. Like Violette she was also executed at Ravensbruck.

Geoff Pattison spoke about the very special friendship between the Hannie Schaft Foundation and the Violette Szabo Museum and Group Captain David Baron talked about the friendship between the SOE agents and the ‘pick-up-pilots’ who flew them in and out of France.

Paul McCue, a trustee of the Secret WW2 Learning Network said a few words about Cecily Lefort who also perished in Ravensbruck. He said she was the least likely person to become an SOE but her husband was French and they lived in Paris, after the surrender of France she came to the UK but as a way of getting back to her husband she became an SOE. At first she was successful but was then captured and taken by train to Ravensbruck.

She managed to throw a message to her husband off the train, which was picked up by a member of the resistance and made its way to him. Eventually he was able to send a message to her via the Red Cross. However, it was not a message of support, instead he asked for a divorce. Mr McCue said that he thought it was a really sad story and it is not known if Cecily died of illness or lethal injection.

Tracy Watson, who recently retired after 30 year’s service in the RAF, spoke about the extraordinary women who fought their own fears and discrimination so that women today can become the people they are. She said that she marvels at the bravery and ingenuity of the SOE women and recalled her military friends made over many years.

Singer, Ruby Ann entertained the guests during the hot afternoon and Roger Tobbell read the Poem Lavender and Lace.

Another example of an unusual friendship was spoken about by Roger Leivers who told of the special relationship between the golden cocker spaniel, Cromwell, who brought comfort and boosted moral to the men stationed at Farmhall, Cambridgeshire, and was awarded a commendation by the PDSA. Mr Lievers said that a special ceremony was held at Godmanchester, near Huntingdon to honour the work of the very special wartime dog with his own statue.

Mr Leivers found notes written by Cromwell’s owner, Sqd Ldr Cautley Nasmyth Shaw’s deputy, Bruce Bonzi in the Imperial War Museum.

He said that the dog had such an incredible connection with humans and could sense the stress and anxiety in them and was able to calm them without any training at all, he just did it.

The PDSA decided Crommie was one of the first post traumatic stress dogs and deserved a posthumous commendation.

Mr Lievers presented a copy to the story to Rosemary and a representative of the PDSA presented Rosemary with a copy of the commendation. These will be placed in the museum.

This is already overtaken by the large quantity of items she has collected and Rosemary is hoping to build an extension, which will be called the Reading Room and will provide a space for people to spend time reading all the information. This could soon be added to as Tanya Szabo, Violette’s daughter, offered Rosemary the archive of material she has gathered about her mother, some of which helped with the research for her book about Violette.

A great friend to the museum at Wormelow, Virginia Mckenna, who starred in the film about Violette’s life, was reunited with Christopher Kirkham who had starred alongside her when he was a baby in the film A town like Alice. There was a joyous reunion before Virginia read the poem which is so much part of the story of Violette, The life that I have.

Many other friendships were rekindled at the successful event and generous donations were given towards the building of the new Reading Room.