Exhibition: "My childhood, 1939-1945" at Juno Beach Centre

The exhibition “My Childhood, 1939-1945” explores the daily lives of French and Canadian children during the Second World War and the war’s impact on civilian populations, particularly on youth.

How did youth navigate this era, how were they transformed by the war, and how, for French children, did they experience the Occupation, the liberation, the battles, and the post-war reconstruction?

Through immersive modules and testimonies, the exhibition compares the realities of the Occupation in France and the impact of the war on children in Canada.

Visitors will better understand how childhoods were disrupted, their adaptations to new daily routines and how they experienced grief, gratitude toward Canadian soldiers, and regained freedom.

The stories will be presented through several key themes:

• The Weight of Occupation (1940–1944) at school and at home

• D-Day (June 6, 1944)

• The Battle of Normandy (June–September 1944)

• Liberation and the scars of war (1944 to today)

• The “absences” experienced by French and Canadian children

Learn more here: https://www.junobeach.org/exhibitions/my-childhood-1939-1945/