THE medals earned by a man who died fighting in the First World War have been reunited with his relatives thanks to an appeal by a Worcester woman.

Beatrice Furlong, who lives on Tolladine Road, has had two medals belonging to Private William 'Bill' Goodwin in her possession for years after they were given to her by her mother, who was engaged to Pte Goodwin when war was declared in 1914.

Although little was known about Mr Goodwin — other than that he lived in either Kempsey or Broadheath and was killed when in his early 20s — Ian Jones, who lives on Bath Road, has since come forward to claim the medals.

Mr Jones, aged 50, said: "I had recently looked in to my stepfather Edward 'Ted' Goodwin's family tree in and around Kempsey and Upton. He is now 74 and has lived all his life in the area.

"When I read the article in the Worcester News, I immediately made the connection and mentioned it to my stepfather. He had no knowledge of a William in the family but I thought I would look into it.

"I found that a William Philip Goodwin was born in Severn Stoke in around 1895 and was subsequently killed in France in 1916.

"I then found that Pte Goodwin's father, William James, and my stepfather's great-grandfather, John, were brothers living in the Severn Stoke area in 1871 to 1881. I called Mrs Furlong and she decided that my stepfather was the best person to have the medals."

When speaking to your Worcester News in July, Mrs Furlong, aged 95, explained that she felt the right thing to do was to return the medals to a relative of Pte Goodwin.

"Mr Goodwin's medals hold no emotional value for my children as they didn't know anything about him, but they will mean something to his family," she said.

"My children have my husband's medals as he fought in the Second World War. He was lucky to come back home."

Mrs Furlong added that she is "happy to have found someone to give the medals to".