Ghislaine Hegerty was born in November 1924 in Courtrai, Belgium. Her childhood was serene prior to the war. She was educated in French schools even though Belgium was bilingual. Both French and Flemish were spoken in her native country. Her father was a diplomat who spent much of his time in the Belgian Congo. He may have died in 1931 due to being unaccustomed to the harsh winter conditions when he returned to his homeland. Hegerty ceased her education after the war began as a result of her education in Flemish being made mandatory. She spoke the language, but her father had wished her to be educated in French. The war started on 11 May 1940. Her mother became very frightened. She remembered the gas warfare of World War 1 and feared it would occur once again.

Ghislaine Hegerty and her family took shelter from the war in a religious building next to their home [Annotator's Note: in Courtrai, Belgium]. The airfield where her brother was stationed was bombed. The airmen were ordered to French Morocco to avoid capture by the Germans. German soldiers entered the country. They were everywhere. Hegerty and her teenage friends would sing in English to aggravate the enemy. In retrospect, she knows that it was not a good idea. Some friends were taken into custody and detained in prison before ultimately being released. That taught the young people to be careful. Hegerty wished to join the Resistance. She began by typing and distributing anti-German propaganda. Her mother feared for her daughter's safety and urged her to cease. Hegerty did not participate with her friends in the Marquis [Annotator's Note: the resistance] as a result. She still hated the Germans and even stopped taking lessons in their language. If she had continued, she may have been able to spy on the Germans more effectively. While food was readily available in the beginning, eventually there were more scarcities. The Black-market came into play. Although she missed her prewar treats, she never went hungry. After the war, she became sick from eating too much chocolate too fast. Her city experienced bombings during the war. Some Belgians became too friendly with the Germans. They were the worst. Hegerty could not stand them but had to be quiet about it. Hegerty's home became a bomb shelter even though her mother stayed next door in a different shelter. Her street escaped damage.

Ghislaine Hegerty hated the German presence in her town [Annotator's Note: Courtrai, Belgium]. It was forbidden by the occupants to listen to the English radio broadcasts. Some, including her mother, did so. When her mother learned of the Americans entering the war, she was noticeably uplifted in spirit. Other local citizens also seemed encouraged. One of Hegerty's cousins was arrested and she went to check on him. He was being kept in a former Red Cross building. When she approached the Belgian traitor who was in charge there, she was rudely asked for her identification papers or passport. Without those papers, a person could be shot on the spot. Despite the official's harshness toward her, Hegerty avoided eye contact to prevent him from seeing her anger. The official allowed her to visit her cousin. Her cousin informed her that he was to be taken to Germany the next day. When Hegerty requested the return of her papers from the same traitorous official, he threw them at her. After the war, he was captured and shot by the Resistance. Hegerty felt vindicated by his execution. She hated the turncoats. The Allies threw thousands of bombs at her city because the Germans had set up V-2 bomb sites there. It was understandable but the bombings were terrible. Everything around her was destroyed. The smell of destruction and death was awful. She ran to a shelter. She saw wounded and hurt people. Wave after wave of bombers flew over and dropped their loads. That was the "bloody bombing of Courtrai." Hegerty lost friends as a result. She becomes emotional remembering it. She cannot watch a war movie because of those memories. She had a frightening experience with Germans in a movie when she showed her distaste for them. She could have lost her life for her negative reactions to a swastika. Hegerty particularly disliked the Hitler Youth. She reacted strongly to the movie "The King's Speech." It brought back memories.

Ghislaine Hegerty and her city [Annotator's Note: Courtrai, Belgium] were liberated by the British after harsh fighting against the retreating Germans. After the combat ended, local citizens mounted the British tanks in celebration. Little flags were waved by everyone. No one went home that night. Hegerty was riding a tank and was very excited. It was the most glorious and unforgettable day of her life. Despite the shortages of goods thereafter, her new freedom was intoxicating. The war made her more resilient. When she lost her home in Katrina [Annotator's Note: Hegerty lived in New Orleans in August 2005 when Hurricane Katrina destroyed large portions of the city including her home], she demolished it and rebuilt. Hegerty is forever grateful to America for entering the war and freeing Europe. She visited The National WWII Museum and saw the sacrifice of the men who fought during the war and the support given to them by their families. America is now her country. She loves it. She returned to Belgium while her mother was alive there. She loved visiting relatives there but most are now gone.

Ghislaine Hegerty did not see any immediate German reactions to the Jews. When she approached a German on the sidewalk and did not defer to him, she was slapped. That really hurt. The Germans eventually took over the family house. Some of the forced inhabitants were alright and decent but others were not. The family alerted each other when the enemy occupants were nearby. The Germans plundered all the brass, copper, and silver in the house. Many young people were sent to Germany. Hegerty was not. She became a member of a kayak club for social activity. Speedboats were not allowed on the local body of water so as to maintain the shoreline. When the Germans occupied the country, they ran speedboats in the water, oblivious to any potential shoreline damages that resulted. When Germans came into the clubhouse, Hegerty and her friends simply left. There were movie houses that she attended infrequently because of the scarcity of money at the end of the war. She found entertaining people at home enjoyable. They played cards or listen to classical music. As a teenager, she had less worries than her mother who had far more responsibilities in providing for her family [Annotator's Note: Hegerty's father had died in 1931]. Coal was hard to obtain even though the weather was very cold. Hegerty worked in a mattress factory that produced products for the Germans. The people in the factory were very good but coarse. Hegerty had a difficult time with the sewing and was reassigned to cut the material. The manager told her that he worried that, with her quality output, the Germans would accuse him of sabotage. [Annotator's Note: Hegerty laughs.] There was no heat so it was very cold in the factory. With the imposed curfew, she had to wear something to indicate that she was working after leaving her work late. She obtained a new job with a book binder closer to home. It had better working conditions but was still without heat. She never complains about the heat today. She worked there until about 1947 when she was hired by Chrysler-Plymouth.

Ghislaine Hegerty married an American Merchant Marine and immigrated to the United States in 1952. She met her husband John through a friend on 15 August 1952 and married by November. They quickly decided to marry despite her desire to travel and help support her mother. John won her agreement to marry by acknowledging that he would support her mother. They were married in Belgium. After obtaining her immigration papers, she left for America. She went through all the correct paperwork to gain admittance to the United States. She feels that there should be controls over immigration rather than just having an open door policy. She resents those who just want to come for the money and better life but do not love America. They should not stay but return home.

Ghislaine Hegerty became more responsible as a result of World War 2. She saw death and destruction during the war. She saw the Germans come in and take over her country. She is very supportive of family life but is concerned with it diminishing in the world. She is satisfied with her personal life and enjoys every day. She lives each day as if it is her last. Her health is very good. She is fortunate to have stamina to do what she desires. She loved volunteering in civic activities. Her father taught her to do that. Hegerty has many friends and enjoys life. She feels The National WWII Museum is important. The institution commemorates what happened during that conflict. She has visited the Museum several times and is impressed with the story of what was done to liberate Europe. When she gets to heaven, she wants to thank Eisenhower [Annotator's Note: Supreme Allied Commander Dwight D. Eisenhower] personally. [Annotator's Note: Hegerty laughs.] Young people must always remember what happened in both world wars. The Holocaust must be remembered. Hegerty has a strong Catholic faith but also maintains many close Jewish friends. She once rebelled against the Church but came to her senses and returned. She feels that all young people should be vigilant of current events and support the United States. Lord Chamberlain talked with Hitler and said all would be fine. [Annotator's Note: After the Munich Agreement of 1938, British Prime Minister Lord Neville Chamberlain stated that there would be "Peace in our time" following his meeting with German dictator Adolf Hitler. Within one year, Hitler invaded Poland and engulfed Europe in war.] Chamberlain was wrong. Each person must trust in themselves. It could happen again. Korea, for instance, is a troubling situation. Each individual should stay informed. Go to The National WWII Museum and reflect on the story that it tells.