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Can you finish this war story? - PICTURE
A DUTCH man is hoping to uncover the story behind a photograph – passed on to him by his brother before he died – of a mystery man from Sheffield.
Piet Willemse is appealing through The Star to trace the family of Mr Methley – whose face smiles back from this picture, left, and whose address is inscribed on the back as 101 Paget Street, Attercliffe, but whose first name is not known.
The photo was given to Piet by his brother Ad before he died in 2003, and Piet has now decided to try to find out if he made it back safely to Sheffield.
Ad was 14 years old when the Second World War was drawing to an end, and was very good at speaking English. It was while practising the language that he met and chatted with Mr Methley, who gave him the photo before he left for England.
Piet, aged 59, who lives in the south of the Netherlands, told The Star: "When I looked at the photograph I felt a great admiration towards that person.
"To have a photograph of a person who meant a lot for the country I'm living in raises some questions in my mind.
"It's a photograph of a liberator – you just can't throw a photograph like that away.
"I don't know if Mr Methley got back home safe after the war, I surely hope so!
"It's not my intention to establish contact with his family, but it sure would give me a nice feeling just to know what became of him."
- Contact reporter Sarah Dunn at The Star on 0114 276 7676 extension 3354 or email sarah.dunn@sheffieldnewspapers.co.uk if you know what became of Mr Methley.
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Saturday 26 May 2012
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