Communications Officer
We were very sad to learn of the death of FANY SOE veteran Barbara Bunce, who passed away last week aged 101.
Barbara joined the FANY in 1944 and served in England as a wireless telegrapher at SOE headquarters in Baker Street, receiving messages from SOE agents deployed in the field. After VE Day, she was posted to Germany, working for the General in charge of British Control in Berlin. It was there that she met her future husband, Tom, who was serving with the US 82nd Airborne Division. Following their marriage, Barbara moved to the United States, where she built her life and raised her family.
We were honoured that Barbara flew over to the UK with her daughter, Elizabeth, in May to take part in the VE80 commemorations. Throughout the week, Barbara inspected the FANY squad before they took part in the VE 80 Day National Parade and watched the parade; attended a celebratory tea party at the US Embassy; was a guest at the reception marking the installation of ceramic poppies at the Tower of London; and visited both Fawley Court (the SOE training school where Barbara completed her training) and Baker Street.
The highlight of Barbara’s visit was the National Service of Commemoration and Thanksgiving at Westminster Abbey, where she met our Commandant-in-Chief, HRH The Princess Royal, and ‘C’, the Head of MI6. But it was spending time once again with her “beloved” FANYs that truly brought a smile to Barbara’s face.
During Barbara's visit to London, she shared with us pages from her wartime diary that she was very keen to be seen by the widest possible audience. In it, at the end of the war, Barbara wrote:
"It's really a dreadful wrench to leave. Being in the Service has been one of the completest, busiest and happiest of my life".
Writing about what she and her colleagues had done during the war, Barbara went on to say
"I hope the truth about us will someday be revealed".
Barbara's wish was eventually fulfilled. Today, we know just how much we owe to Barbara and her generation, who so perfectly embodied the FANY spirit of "public duty, hidden service"
Thank you for your service, Barbara. We will remember you with love and pride.