Description:Page 40 of 'Drake Hall - A War-Time Hostel', a souvenir book produced for staff and residents at the Swynnerton Royal Ordinance Factory hostel at Drake Hall, produced in 1945. Women's Voluntary Services and Council for the Encouragement of Music and the Arts at Drake Hall. The text reads:
"Women's Voluntary Services
National Chairman: The Dowager Lady Reading, G.B.E. Mrs. Damms, Organiser of Drake W.V.S. Group.
In July, 1942, a W.V.S. Group was started at Drake Hall, and for over two years has been doing splendid voluntary work for the war effort. The membership has fluctuated, but there has been a constant band of about forty who have never flagged in their efforts.
The main activities have been knitting, National Savings and Toy-making. Hundreds of beautiful knitted garments have been made for the Services, for Russian children, for the Merchant Navy, for European Relief work and for the W.V.S. County Clothing Depots to distribute to the Bombed-out and to Evacuees. More than one hundred toys have been made and distributed to Day Nurseries. National Savings Groups have been organised in all the houses and between them have collected £20,000.
A good amount of sewing has also been done for the W.V.S. Clothing Depot and some help has been given with Salvage. A few W.V.S. members have done Canteen work at the Front Line Club in Eccleshall, which is staffed by W.V.S. volunteers. Finally, a great deal of money has been collected by the W.V.S. Group for the Prisoners of War, the Merchant Navy and other War Charities.
Drake W.V.S. Group has worked in close collaboration with the County W.V.S. and many speakers have been to the Hostel to talk to the members about different branches of the work. This participation in voluntary service, in addition to their full-time war-work, reflects great credit on the Hostel members. It shows a real sense of citizenship and of service to the community.
C.E.M.A. - Council for the Encouragement of Music and the Arts.
Greetings from Walter Hudd.
To all residents at Drake I send greetings and good wishes. During the past years I have come to regard you as my friends and have looked forward to our meetings, both on the stage and off. In association with my fellow artistes I am proud to think that we have helped to give the words "This is a C.E.M.A. produc-tion" some real significance. To make
them, indeed, the sign of our mutual pleasure and refreshment. You at Drake, and thousands of other all over the country, are now familiar with the declaration printed on the back of our programmes: "C.E.M.A. wishes art to be a vigorous element for the enjoyment of everyone as an essential part of daily life. An annual grant from the Treasury entitles it to take the best in music, drama and the visual arts to those who enjoy them and who find in them relief from the physical and mental strain of the present time." Since that first appeared we have striven to make it something more than a pious wish, and believe that the warmth and kindly enthusiasm with which you have greeted our efforts is an indication of our having achieved this to some extent. Acting is not an abstract art and depends for its success upon the close collaboration of the audience; in this we have been fortunate in experiencing something unique, for you have followed us, and the plays we have brought you, with increasing interest and criticism, encouraging us to do our best always. It has been a happy and mutual enlargement of our experience of life, and none of us are the poorer for that.
This has happened during the grim struggle against Fascism, a monstrous creed that is the very antithesis of development and progress. Now, at last, as I am writing this message, we can see the victorious end of the struggle. In the future, when you return to happier and normal peace-time living, I hope you will number among the pleasantest memories of your residence at Drake the evenings spent at the Drama. I hope, also, that you will carry with you wherever you may go a determination that the Drama shall be a necessary part of your peace-time recreation, just as it has been during the strain and stress of war. You may ask "How can we do this ?" I suggest the most practical way is to lend your support, through the best available organisation, to any post-war plans for a National Theatre, or a Civic Theatre in your own locality.
Good luck to you all.
As a happy reminder I add the plays with which we have been associated:
"Village Wooing" G. Bernard Shaw
"Man of Destiny" G. Bernard Shaw
"Hedda Gabler" Henrik Ibsen
"Twelfth Night" William Shakespeare
"Shoemaker's Holiday" Thomas Dekker
"You Never Can Tell" G. Bernard Shaw
"Candida" G. Bernard Shaw
"Mine Hostess" Carlo Goldini. "