Family reunited after forty years
Written by Simon Lennon
Find out how the work of our Genealogy team reunited a family.
Rebecca and Sarah are sisters who grew up together and shared many happy memories. As the sisters grew older, they married and moved to rural New South Wales and Victoria. Sadly, they lost contact over the years.
Donald and Keith were brothers who grew up on a farm with their father, James. James died in the 1970s and Donald and Keith inherited the farm. They both died without leaving a valid Will.
When beneficiaries are unknown in NSW, NSW Trustee and Guardian is entitled to a grant of administration. Our agency took out a grant on Donald and Keith’s estates. We commenced searches to find the persons who would be entitled in their estates.
Donald and Keith never had a spouse or children. Both their parents predeceased them, so we needed to check if their parents had any other children. James was born in England and moved to Australia in his twenties. Searches were conducted to check if he had been married or had other children in England or Australia. It was discovered that James had previously been married and had two daughters, Rebecca and Sarah.
Rebecca and Sarah had passed away, but they both had children who were entitled in the estate. Their families had lost contact for over forty years. The children of Rebecca and Sarah were reunited thanks to the work of NSW Trustee and Guardian.
The families were excited and very appreciative to our agency. This journey had opened up the opportunity for their families to build a new relationship.
*Names and identifying details have been changed to protect the privacy of individuals.