Hillegonda Bolding MacDonald

My Story - Hilda MacDonald

My name is Hilda MacDonald. I was born in 1925 in Beilen, in the northeastern province of Drenthe, Holland, which today is referred to as The Netherlands. My parents, Roelof Bolding and Aafje Bolding (nee: Meinen), gave me the name Hillegonda Albertha Bolding. I am also their oldest daughter and sister to Diny and Arnold. We lived on a small rural farm on the outskirts of Assen, the capital city of Drenthe.

I was a proud Dutch war bride who came to Canada through Pier 21, Halifax, on July 22, 1946, after a five-day sail from South Hampton, England, on the ship ‘Aquitania.’

This is my story.

On May 10, 1940 World War II came to our doorstep when German forces invaded my city and quickly overwhelmed the Dutch forces. As a result, Holland was under German occupation for five years starting when I was only a young girl of 14 years. It was a frightening experience, especially in the beginning. We were forced to abide by curfews and strict orders to keep the house in darkness among many other new regulations. We had to carry passports at all times, as German soldiers were a constant threat. Consequently, my social life as well as that of many other children and teens became very restricted. The importance of surviving was the overriding concern at the time.

I was fortunate to have an interest in art, particularly sketching, which I found to be a pleasant distraction to the war time activities surrounding us all. Some of my earlier sketches I kept and brought with me to Canada as part of my few valuables. Later in life I took a great interest in gardening, sewing, knitting and needlepoint, some of which I’m sure can be found in the homes of my children and others, from coast to coast.

As we lived on a farm, we were fortunate enough to have access to food and other necessities. However, it quickly became short in supply as the German army began to take our livestock for their own war effort. Furthermore, my father died at the young age of 49, from pneumonia due to the lack of medical attention and availability of antibiotics from the Germans. Dutch people were starving, particularly during the harsh winter of 1944-45 known as the ‘Hunger Winter.’ I also witnessed first-hand the plight of the Jewish people in our community who merely disappeared overnight. We lived in constant fear every day.

But on April 13 ,1945 the Canadian Armed Forces as part of the allied response, entered our country and our city, leading to the surrender of the German Forces on May 5, 1945. Soon after we were liberated, I met my future Canadian husband Private Bruce MacDonald who served with the Royal Canadian Army Service Corps at one of the many celebrations honoring the Canadian soldiers. We actually met the same day we were liberated, and we married in December, 1945. In the intervening period I was employed locally in a business environment, having benefitted from formal secretarial training.

Shortly after we were married, my new husband, Bruce, left with his troop back to Canada in late December 1945. I had to wait until July 19, 1946, to leave Holland. I will never forget the state of the country I left – the land was depleted, buildings were flattened, the ravages of war were everywhere. It was very sad. I very much looked forward to my new home in Canada, full of life, hope and opportunities.

I initially travelled by ferry to Harwich Port, England and then stayed in London for three days. Other war brides from Belgium, Holland and England began to gather in anticipation of departing for Canada.

The other war brides and I left from South Hampton, England on July 22, 1946 to cross the Atlantic. We were on the upper part of the ship and some Canadians soldiers heading back home were relegated to the lower deck only.

The ship took five days to cross the Atlantic and arrived at Pier 21, Halifax on July 27, 1946. Bruce met me at Pier 21 and we immediately headed out to do some shopping for clothes and footwear as I had very little after the war ended.

Eventually, we took the train from Halifax to Point Tupper. As there was no causeway built yet to connect mainland Nova Scotia to Cape Breton Island, we took the Scotia II Train ferry across the Strait to get to Point Tupper. We then drove to Port Hawkesbury, a short distance away, which was to become my new home.

Bruce was from a large family in Port Hawkesbury and had a job with the Canadian National Railway (CNR) when he returned from the war. We lived with Bruce's mother, then widowed, Mary Florence MacDonald (nee: Jamieson) who had been married to Duncan Andrew MacDonald, originally of Arisaig, Antigonish County, NS. Eventually we built our own large two-storey house to accommodate our growing family. I still live in the same house although my husband passed away in 1993.

We had 10 children, seven girls (Dini, Winnie, Veronica, Annette, Marina, Heather and Corinne) and three boys (Bruce, Arnold and Ken) and remained in Port Hawkesbury throughout our life. I made many sacrifices leaving my family and home country but also enjoyed many great opportunities here in Canada. I was very fortunate to be surrounded by a large and loving family.

I always had a strong belief in being independent and self-sufficient. I’m sure the experiences of war influenced my thinking in this area. My proudest accomplishment is that all of my children pursued post- secondary education and became independent and strong professional people in their own right. My values, and those of their father, were adopted by them and are reflected in the beautiful families they all raised, of which I am extremely proud. I now have 19 grandchildren and 28 great grandchildren to date, and this summer will be celebrating my 95th birthday. Unfortunately, as I write this note, the world is in the midst of a pandemic known as Covid-19. While I had hoped to have my family visit for my birthday celebration this August 2020, the government-imposed restrictions, designed to keep us all safe, will prevent that from happening. In some small way, these restrictions remind me of those we experienced during wartime, although thankfully, we still have our freedom and I am forever grateful for that.

Finally, I hope my story serves to inform others outside my own family. I was one of the fortunate ones who managed to survive the war and move on to a better life. I think it’s important for my story, and others like it, to be told and I’m pleased to know it will be shared in Pier 21 for future generations.