World War II Woman HeroineShe got to meet with Queen Elizabeth. Here's
her story:
Modest Betty [Popkiss], who was St John Ambulance girl Betty Quinn in those days, was in fact in the middle of an air raid when she first climbed a ladder to put out burning incendiary bombs, then dug with her bare hands in a desperate bid to free neighbours whose Anderson shelter had suffered a direct hit.
It was just three weeks before the Coventry Blitz of November, 1940.
Sadly, although some of the Worthington family were alive when Betty got them out of the shelter, all subsequently died except one little girl who had missed the blast and dashed up the road to find help.
With shells exploding all around, determined Betty found a spade and ordered a boy who arrived on a bike to go into the house to find blankets. With the kitchen door blown off she remembers he was worried about going into somebody's house uninvited!
