Gary Williams- This is your Dorm and Your Number
They gave us a set of pajamas tops and bottoms, and our clothes were left, or they were gone. We don’t know where they went to, destroyed, burned probably. Gave us a set of blankets, bottom and the top blanket and showed us to our dorm. When we got to the dorm there was about, maybe 25-30 beds in there, single beds, steel frame braided beds. There was no bunks at that time. It was just single beds, and I picked my corner there, close to the bathroom and to the showers there. There they had showers, and so we… [background interruption].
They made us stay on our beds, or beside our beds. So it was time for a snack before lunch or dinner, and we did have our lunch, and you’re sitting there not knowing anybody.. or the other 25 people or whatever. And we waited for lunch because we travelled a long way and we were quite hungry at that time. We had our lunch and then they hauled us into a dorm and all together, sort of get together meeting about the rules and everything.
“This is your dorm and your number,” and so and, “this is where you reside until we tell you to move.”
Anyway, we got we got our instruction orders; no swearing, no talking your language. All that sort of thing.
-Gary Williams
Notes:
Oral interview with Gary Williams. Conducted by Peter Dawson at Poundmaker’s Lodge, St Albert, May 4, 2022. Transcribed by Erica Van Vugt and Madisen Hvidberg. University of Calgary, Jan 23, 2024.
