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A PASSING MIST particularly enjoyable for me! There government to provide for them, the
were a lot more historical details to POW’s could make themselves useful
(Book 3 of the work with on a local level, thanks to and earn wages to pay for their keep.

Ridgely Rails the newspaper articles and interviews They were bussed out daily to farms and
with senior Ridgely residents recorded canneries throughout the area, many of
Legacy Series) in Rampmeyer’s historical booklets. I the prisoners developing friendships
also tied in some elements of personal with the locals they came to know.
By Rebekah Colburn interest to me, such as a woman’s role One such German was Herbert
in society and the identification of
Richard Stoerzer, (on the left in the
verbal and emotional abuse as domestic
When the U.S. enters WW2, Gloria joins violence. accompanying photo) who was held in
the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps in Cambridge and worked at the Phillips

hopes of adventure. Her escape is short- This time period is often studied for a Packing Company. In an article in the
lived, however, and duty calls her back variety of reasons, one of which is our Dorchester Banner, his son Karl said,
to the family farm—but returning to fascination with the arch-villain, Adolph “He was a young, innocent, naïve kid
Ridgely means facing memories she’d Hitler. And a forbidden romance always getting drafted into the Wehrmacht,
rather leave behind. adds a little bit of excitement. When I along with many other poor young
learned that there had been German men, all through no fault of their own…
As she struggles to make peace with her Prisoner of War Camps on the Eastern I do remember a story he told about
past, a new challenge arises. German Shore, and in Caroline County, I knew some of the longer-term POWs in
POWs are hired to help work the farm. I had the basis for a great story! Cambridge who were more ideologists
Gloria never imagined she would fi nd than the younger newly arrived. Th is
love again, and certainly not with a man As our hometown boys either enlisted group, to the dismay of the new arrivals,
on the wrong side of the war. or were draft ed, it created a shortage still believed that Germany would
of hands to work the local farms win the war, and would try to paint a
Having already thrown off feminine and canneries. The Department of
stereotypes, Gloria is used to facing Agriculture decided that the German swastika on the water tower. Of course,
criticism. But a romantic relationship POWs were the solution to this the new POWs disavowed themselves
from this group.”
with a “Nazi soldier”—regardless problem. Rather than merely taking
of his true affiliation—is more than up space waiting for the war to end Annice Ebling Fike wrote her memories
unacceptable, it’s dangerous. In a world and placing additional needs on the of the POW experience (taken from
torn by war and hate, how can they
hope to build a future together?
At Christmas and always, wishing you the
Combining history and fiction is miracle of peace and the joy of His blessings!
always fun, but writing this novel was

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