Kind-hearted readers offered to purchase or replace a pair of stolen war medals after reading a plea from an Orkney widow – but the 98-year-old remains determined to take on the UK’s defence chiefs.
Shelagh Connor, who lives in Stromness, wants to replace her late husband’s Second World War service medals.
He received The Defence Medal and The War Medal for his time in the Royal Army Medical Corps, but only a decade later they were stolen while the couple were living in East Africa.
She now wants to have the medals replaced so her grandson, who is also serving in the Royal Army Medical Corps, can wear them himself.
The Press and Journal then highlighted her uphill battle with the MoD, who say they cannot replace them because there is no police record of them going missing.
Now two Press and Journal readers have offered to pay to replace these stolen war medals – and one has managed to track down an original pair from a local collector.
‘No one should be deprived of their medals’
The generous readers both have a military background, and one even served in the exact same regiment as Mr Connor and his grandson.
Another, who lives in Inverness and served in the Royal Engineers, has managed to track down a pair and hopes to get them to Mrs Connor shortly.
He said: “No one should be deprived of their medals.”
“She deserves them, and I hope when she sees them she will see they are exactly the same as her husband’s ones that were stolen.
“They are in great condition and are ready to be worn by her grandson to represent the person who has died.”
Vow to continue fight with the MoD
Mrs Connor said she is overwhelmed by the response to her plea, but has vowed to continue taking on the MoD over the matter.
She said: “I need to give a big thanks to these readers.
“But what I really need is for the MoD to give us the medals so they are official.
“My grandson cannot wear the medals if we get them from someone else unfortunately.”
Her plea has been taken up by Orkney and Shetland MP Alistair Carmichael who has raised the issue in Westminster.
He is now planning to raise the issue again at defence questions in the House of Commons on June 13.
Mrs Connor added: “Mr Carmichael is making lots of inquiries for me.
“Three of my children have also written to their MPs asking for them to support Mr Carmichael in parliament on this too.”
We asked the MoD for an update to Mrs Connor’s situation, but did not receive a response.
Previously the MoD told us while they recognise the “significance and sentimental value” of military medals, they need to ensure each medal’s integrity is protected and they therefore can’t replace her late husband’s original medals.
What happened to the medals?
After the war, the couple moved to colonial Tanganyika in East Africa to become teachers.
Mrs Connor lived in the country, in territory now part of Tanzania, with her husband for 16 years and had all five of her children there.
When the medals were stolen in 1956, the couple didn’t receive an official police report and didn’t file an insurance claim.
Mrs Connor – originally from Lancashire – said her husband had an office in a little outbuilding.
One day they check and noticed a suitcase with the medals inside had been stolen.
Local police caught the thief but he refused to say what he had done with the medals.