Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Like so many people across the world during the 2014-2018 Centenary of WW1, I had projects relating to family who had served in wars. As I wrote in a story on this site, my most difficult search regarding family military history was 4174 PTE. John Desmond Hayes. Due to incorrect naming in the family history book this soldier's identity was not found by me until 2016 as he was somehow given his non-serving brother's name.
In October 2018 I received an email from Glyn Llanwarne of Lost Medals Australia Research Team. I did not know this man and had not heard of the research team; lost and unclaimed medals were not something I was aware of. After explaining the family connection of myself to PTE. Hayes, I was asked if I would consider being custodian of the war medals of my father's cousin. This was an amazing moment for me and I felt so honoured to be asked.
The BWM and Victory Medal arrived by mail in Sydney via Glen Llanwarne of ACT, via Grafton RSL, NSW. We were by now a week out from the 100 year Remembrance Day/ Armistice Anniversary. The medals had no ribbons or clasps so the Victory Medal I was able to wear with a strong gold neck chain and the BWM was safe in my pocket. Then on the 11th. hour of the 11th. day of the 11th. month, with my family, I attended the anniversary of the end of WW1 in Sydney's beautifully refurbished War Memorial in Hyde Park.
Thank you Glen Llanwarne of Lost Medals Australia Research Team.

Hello Kay, my hobby is returning lost medals to veterans or their families. I am currently looking for a member of this family to return John's medals to.
Can you please contact me via email on [email protected]
Thank you.
Glyn Llanwarne
Lost Medals Australia

Because it was the centenary of ANZAC in 2015, my husband and I decided to attend the dawn service that year at Long Tan. He is a veteran and I created a book of both his and my family members who had served Australia in theatres of war. There are nine brave men in the album.

Unfortunately the one relative who died at the Western Front was an incomplete entry. All I possessed was a name and photo and had no contact with that branch of family. This army private was the one elusive page in my book. For eighteen months I had tried different avenues to find my second cousin for the album.

As we were travelling to Canberra for the 2016 Vietnam Veterans' 50th Anniversary on the 18th. August, I gathered my papers about our missing soldier. My plan was that the Research Centre at Australian War Memorial may be able to help me solve a mystery. Before leaving Sydney I once again went very carefully over Dad's family history records. There I finally found a tiny clue, an error in labelling. My fathers cousin had indeed died at Pozieres as family history stated but his younger brother's name had been incorrectly written as the man killed in action. Finally I was able to obtain the service number and other information using the correct name of this soldier. A few weeks later when I looked at the Australian War memorial web site to finalise this family history, it showed that my relative's name would be projected on to the Hall of memory Canberra that very evening; Saturday 17th September 2016. This was a coincidence but a second similar occurance was that the day I discovered the true identity of Dad's cousin was on 11th August 2016. Official records show that our army Private died on 11th. August 1916, exactly one hundred years to the day when he reappeared after being lost to time.