“As you get older…the story has to be told…”
Paulette Palmer was born in March 1955 in St Elizabeth, Jamaica, and she is the second eldest of six siblings.
“They were working class people, my dad worked in the steelworks in Newport and my mum worked in the Royal Gwent Hospital. My father came was at the late 50s, maybe early 60s.”
“I was brought up with my grandparents, as is the custom in Jamaica… when there’s a number of children in the family, it is not unusual for one to be brought up with grandparents or a family member… My biggest memory of home I suppose of working hard…”
Paulette was the last of her siblings to come to the UK. On the 17th of May 1970, Paulette landed in London on a state-owned airline flight named BOAC. She wore a yellow lace dress.
“The early stage of settling in here, that was a little bit of a culture shock… you can imagine being a teenager growing up with grandparents and then coming over with your parents and siblings, you’ve been away from them…‘What are they going to look like?’”
“I came straight to Newport and from Newport then I came to Cardiff, well, actually, it was Penarth, in 1974, to do my nurses training. I was actually one of the midwives from our community… did my degree nursing after I had six children… It’s always a struggle, and after I qualified as nurse, I did 20 years of [working] nights.”
“I suppose I’m a strong person and my strength is within me. I don’t recall ever being weak, even though life throw me a lot of challenges, but somehow I get over them and, you know, go on.”
“Wrth ichi fynd yn hŷn... mae’n rhaid adrodd yr hanes...”
Ganed Paulette Palmer ym Mawrth 1955 yn St Elizabeth, Jamaica, a hi yw’r ail hynaf o chwech o blant.
“Pobl dosbarth gweithiol oedden nhw, roedd Dad yn gweithio yn y gweithfeydd dur yng Nghasnewydd ac roedd Mam yn gweithio yn Ysbyty Brenhinol Gwent. Daeth fy nhad tua diwedd y 50au, efallai yn gynnar yn y 60au.”
“Cefais fy magu gan fy nain a thaid, mae hynny’n arferol yn Jamaica... os oes nifer o blant yn y teulu, nid yw’n anarferol i un gael ei fagu gyda nain a thaid neu aelod o’r teulu... Fy mhrif atgof o fy nghartref, mae’n debyg, yw gweithio’n galed...”
Paulette oedd yr olaf o’i brodyr a chwiorydd i ddod i’r Deyrnas Unedig. Ar yr 17eg o Fai 1970, glaniodd Paulette yn Llundain ar un o awyrennau’r wladwriaeth, y BOAC, yn gwisgo ffrog les felen.
“Roedd yn dipyn o sioc ddiwylliannol, setlo yma yn y dechrau... allwch chi ddychmygu bod yn eich arddegau, yn cael eich magu gan eich nain a thaid, ac yna dod yma i fod gyda’ch rhieni a’ch brodyr a chwiorydd, ar ôl bod oddi wrthyn nhw... ‘Sut fyddan nhw’n edrych?’”
“Fe ddois i Gasnewydd ar fy union ac yna o Gasnewydd, fe ddois i Gaerdydd, wel, i Benarth a dweud y gwir, yn 1974, i hyfforddi fel nyrs. Roeddwn i’n un o’r bydwragedd o’n cymuned ni... fe wnes i fy ngradd nyrsio ar ôl imi gael chwech o blant... mae’n anodd bob amser, ac ar ôl imi gymhwyso fel nyrs, fe wnes i [weithio] sifftiau nos am 20 mlynedd.”
“Am wn i, rwy’n berson cryf, ac mae fy nerth oddi mewn imi. Nid wy’n cofio bod yn wan erioed, er bod bywyd wedi taflu heriau lu ataf i, ond rhywsut, rwy’n eu goresgyn ac, wyddoch chi, yn cario ’mlaen.”