MISSING . . . and FOUND!
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.
‘WHEN my husband John and I lived in Chingola, Zambia, in the Sixties, we made good friends with four fellow British expats,’ writes Edna Southey.
‘My photo of our front veranda shows (from left) Terry, Allan (sorry, can’t remember their surnames), Charles Souchotte, who was from Pontypool, and Breda O’Toole, from Ireland. We were also good friends with Vincent Powell, who took many photos of our family.
‘Terry, Allan, Charles and John were teachers at Chingola High School. John taught maths and general science. Another friend, Don Middlemore, was in charge of woodwork. We formed the Chingola Tennis Club and played on the school courts. John and I had a young family and these friends often came to visit to spoil our three children.
‘We left Chingola at the end of 1967 and then lost touch. Now in our 70s, John and I are still happily married after 56 years and live in Hastings, East Sussex.
‘We’d love to get in touch with any of these old friends from our Zambian days.’ IT WILL be a full house at the 60th anniversary reunion of trainee motor transport mechanics.
‘In May 1961, 19 young lads arrived at RAF St Athan to commence training as motor transport mechanics,’ wrote Iain Rowland, 73, of Devon.
‘As part of the 43rd Entry boy entrants, they completed their training and, in December 1962, were posted around the country.
‘Over the years, some met up when their paths crossed, but there was never an occasion when all 19 were together at one time.
‘With perseverance, most were found and 2017 saw our first reunion.
‘The whereabouts of all 19 are known except for one: John Flood. He was last known to be in Cyprus in 1964.
‘We are keen to locate him so we can celebrate our 60th anniversary with a full house in 2021.
‘After training, I was posted to Stradishall in Suffolk, followed by tours in Aden, Germany and Malta. I later joined the police, retiring in 2000, and am a widower.’
Peter Armstrong sent this helpful missive: ‘I have known John Flood since 1968. We left the RAF together in 1970 and were in contact until a few years ago, when he was near Brighton.’
Peter provided John’s last known contact details, and Iain has now been happily reconnected with John.