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Sports and Recreation

The principal sports in Junkers were swimming in the camp pool, volley ball, soccer, and ping pong. Basket ball was added in December shortly after the camp had taken over the large wooden building until then used by an army ordnance unit.

In early December, arrangements were made by the local Mil. Gov. Detachment to show movies in the camp twice weekly, and one showing was also arranged for the ambulatory patients in the camp hospital.

A library was established in October, and about the same time a games room was opened up equipped with material received from the Army Special Service Branch and was supplemented in December by equipment from the YMCA.

Welfare

Mr. R. W. Collins wrote in his report mentioned above as follows:

"Miss Portman serves both as welfare officer and supply officer, however, she says that she has delegated a part of the latter function to another officer and that she spends very little time on the supply work. One does not get the feeling however that she spends too much time on welfare work. The general clothing inventory has not yet been done. She says that residents of the camp rarely come to her with personal or welfare individual problems as these matters are all handled by the National Relief Committees."

Hospital

One day after the arrival of the MMLA team on July 3rd., Dr. Cecile van Ackere, a Belgian physician, arrived to take over the duties of team Medical Officer. She had served with great distinction with the Belgian Red Cross, and when the American troops withdrew from Malmedy, she remained behind and carried on her work of caring for the sick and wounded and organized a new hospital under constant shell fire and bombing. She has recently been awarded the Medal of Freedom for this and other services.

Dr. van Ackere, who had been transferred from UNRRA Team No. 35

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This content transcribes an original report of the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration (UNRRA), a separate copy of which is filed in the United Nations Archives (UNA), Reference number: S-1021-0081-05, Title: Monographs - DP-US 20 - Displaced Persons - United States Zone (Germany) - Histories of Individual Camps - History Report No. 30, Report: Baltin Camp in Bettenhausen, Kassel by D. F. McGonigal, Date: April 13, 1945. The UNA grants rights to reproduce with attribution. Additionally, this content is protected as a derivative work under Latvian Copyright Law Chapter 2 § 5 ¶ 3 and as part of a collection under Chapter 3 § 5 ¶ 1.2.
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