David Shay During The Second World War
Written by: Melissa B. and Amanda S.
Mr. Shay spent his days during the war building the Holding Point and delivering
V-mail (victory mail). It was normally a busy job for him and others. For meals, they
ate mostly dehydrated potatoes, eggs, and sea rations. That was normally the only food
supplied for them. He wanted to join the navy, but his mother wouldn’t sign the papers
for him because he couldn’t swim. In 1943, David Shay turned 19 in October went to
Europe, and had the Queen of England wish him a happy birthday. On July 3, 1944, a
German V1 self-propelled “rocket” injured him. The outfit next door had 67 people
killed. The V1 also killed 15 civilians.
After the war, he stayed right in Elmira, and he felt great and relieved that the
war was finally over. Everyone had the chance to eat more, and gas was supplied more.
It was $0.35 per gallon. After the war he also wished to become a history teacher, but
he never had the chance to.
From the Second World War experience, David Shay learned a lot about other
people. He learned that not everybody is like everyone else. Today, we now have the
Holding Point because of their effort that they put into it during the war. We thank them.
David Shay was among one of the many men who were enlisted in the army forces
during World War Two. David Shay worked in the army postal service in England
where he delivered mail to the soldiers at war. He was born on October 16, 1924
and he is now 76 years old. He was 18 years old when he entered the war. From
his experience, he learned that not everybody is like everyone else.
Before he enlisted in the war, Mr. Shay lived in Elmira, New York. He
attended high school in Rochester and then graduated in 1942. During high school he
was editor and worked on the school newspaper. It was at that time when he had
heard about Pearl Harbor. He said that when he heard the news he wasn’t very
interested and he didn’t really care. He was mad however, but it still didn’t affect him
much.