Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
We shall not forget
Honouring police officers who fell in First World War
Chief Inspector Sandy Brodie has investigated the lives of the 24 officers honoured on the Dundee Police War Memorial in Bell Street.
During his inquiries, he found two descendents of the same deceased man who were each unaware the other one was alive – with one living in Dundee and the other in New Zealand.
Chief Inspector Brodie is set to unveil a new seated area at the memorial, with help from the Police Youth Volunteers, with a ceremony planned for October to commemorate the end of the First World War.
He said: “In 2015 I laid the wreath at the memorial. At that time there was only one lady there for the ceremony, and the same in 2016 and then again in 2017 – it was the same lady just turning up each year.
“I spoke to her and it transpired that she was the granddaughter of the first named person on the war memorial. That made me realise that, within the very act of remembrance, we had all but forgotten the people whose names were on the memorial.
“There are 24 names on the memorial and 23 were Dundee police officers who left and volunteered during both world wars.
“There’s one additional name on it who is a police officer who died in a mine incident in Broughty Ferry in 1944.
“That sparked my interest to find out more about these people who are named on the memorial, and I began the slow process of researching these individuals.”
With 2018 being the 100th anniversary of the end of the First World War, the 100th anniversary of the formation of the RAF, and with 2018 being the Year of the Young People, Mr Brodie decided it was appropriate to remember those who died.
He added: “It almost became like I got to know the guys who are named.
“As you go through the stories you start to realise that, like all of us, they had hopes, dreams and aspirations that were cut tragically short.”
The ceremony i n October will involve the British Legion, police officers and Police Scotland Youth Volunteers, but plans are still at an early stage.
Sammy Keith, community development officer with the youth volunteers, said a seated area was planned for construction. She said the volunteers would be involved in building and maintaining the area.
A DUNDEE police officer has managed to connect members of the same family living on opposite sides of the globe while researching the First World War.