Betty Skellern, nee Ardern, was born and raised in Taranaki, but after the outbreak of World War Two her life took a rather unexpected turn. After leaving a job in New Plymouth, Betty assumed she would head home to Inglewood, but the need for ' manpower ' to produce munitions meant she was sent to Lower Hutt to work in the Ford factory. The factory produced a whole range of armaments, vehicles and other equipment, including grenades. Betty's role was to stuff grenades with gunpowder, and she remembers being bright yellow by the end of a day's work!

Women were ' manpowered ' by the Government from all over the lower North Island to Lower Hutt. They were housed in hostels specifically built for the purpose. Betty remembers making some wonderful friends during her time there and having a great time visiting Wellington, but it was a big change from her life in Taranaki. Betty worked at the Ford factory from 1943 to 1945 and at the end of the war she, along with the other women who had helped the war effort, were given one of these souvenir grenades to remember their experience.
Grenades like this one are identical to the ones produced for war, except they have had their firing mechanism removed and have been attached to a base for display.