This is a summary of a recent online conversation I had:
Hi Lost Medals Australia, I'm currently helping out a guy who has found some WW2 medals whilst doing a renovation on a home he purchased in 1999.
With research, we have found that the medals belonged to Australian Flight Sergeant John William Houseman service number 424634, born 12.9.1922 and died 21.7.1944. He was seconded to RAF 626 Squadron and was a rear air gunner on a Lancaster bomber (that was attacked by a JU 88) which crashed at Zietenary ou Zoetenaise, Belgium. He was single and childless at the time, aged 22 years.
The medals were forwarded to his sister Betty Estelle Richman, nee Houseman. Betty passed away in 2014. She and her husband adopted two girls and the girls had 3 sons according to her husband's obituary in 1997. We have tried local newspapers, family history sites and local RSL with no success.
Hi and thank you for your message, I can do one better. The daughters are Jennifer Jane and Ann Margaret. Jennifer married Alex. Their son is Ben. Sadly Jennifer died in 2015. The layer who handled both Betty and Jennifer's estate can be contacted on..... Why don't you call and see if they can put you in touch with the family?
Hi Glyn - Just an update re the service medals of Flight Sergeant John William Houseman. With the additional information you supplied, I was able to contact the solicitor you named and now have had contact with the family. They are truly pleased the medals have turned up and are looking forward to their return to the family. I hope to be there when that happens along with a number of others that helped us get to this point. Can't thank you enough for the information you supplied as I had hit a brick wall with my research. The local paper is going to run a follow up story to mark the occasion.
Based on the names I was provided I had quite a bit of difficulty trying to work out the married names of Betty's daughters. There was no published death notice but I did find the probate notice for Betty which gave me Jennifer's married name. This was a bit of a surprise for a death in 2014 but is now a resource I'll use in the future.
The returned medal tally is now 2854
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