AN appeal has been made all the way from New Zealand to find some family descendants believed to be living in Moffat.
Clare Pengelly Smith, of Auckland, is trying to find Steven Lough, as she believes he is one of only a couple of living descendants of her great uncle by marriage, Harold Telfer of Hexham.
She said: “Uncle Harold’s war service medals have come into my possession by inheritance and as he had no children of his own I decided to see if I could track down any other living relations of his. Hodgson Harold Telfer, who married my great aunt; had a sister Johanna who had a daughter Mary Annette Smith, which then leads us to Steven and his sister Sandra Lough.”
She added: “The medals themselves are standard service issue but I really feel it would be fitting to return them to not only a blood relative, but also back to the UK.
“They came into my possession via my great aunt, grandmother, then my father. He always kept them in his top drawer and when he died a few years back that’s where they stayed. Or so I thought. Then last summer these medals along with their story and provenance to Hodgson Harold Telfer’s life popped up for sale online. I was astounded. Sure enough on investigation, sometime in the last few years they had been unknowingly stolen from my father’s drawers and sold on, finally ending up at a dealers who listed them online.
“The New Zealand police were very helpful as they view the rightful ownership of war medals seriously and they sorted everything out and had them returned to me.
“Hopefully after their eventful story I can get them returned to a family member.”
Anyone who can help trace members of the Lough family are asked to email Clare at [email protected]
