MISSING . . .
THE DAILY MAIL offers readers a unique opportunity to re-establish contact with long-lost relatives and friends. Each week, MONICA PORTER features the story of someone trying to find a missing loved one, as well as a tale of people reunited. This column is produced in conjunction with the voluntary tracing service, Searching For A Memory, run by Gill and John Whitley.
‘Would it be possible for you to help me find my brother, who I have never seen?’ asks Mandy Mitchell (nee Bird) of Feltham, Middlesex.
‘I was born in 1967 and at the age of 16 was told that my dad had a son called Stephen douglas Bird, born in 1957, from a previous marriage. His mum Jean took him, as a five‑year‑old, to Australia.
‘I’ve tried to find Stephen, but without success.
‘I managed to acquire his birth certificate, as well as one for Jean and for Jean’s brother, Kenneth Goodman, who I believe lives in the UK.
‘As far as I’m aware, Stephen doesn’t know I exist.
‘The marriage between his mum and my dad was dissolved, and my dad later remarried and had three daughters.
‘I would love to trace my half‑brother Stephen, as our f ather passed away l ast october and had always refused to speak of the situa‑ tion. Finding Stephen is very important to me; I’ve always wondered what he is like. I heard bits of the story from my mum and wished I’d asked more, but she’s no longer with us, having passed away at the age of 65.
‘Stephen is all I have left of my dad and words cannot describe how I’d feel just to be able to talk to him.
‘ He is a part o f my f amily, and I’d l ove i t to be complete.’