10 February 2023 , 17:24
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A man who spent most of his adult life searching for his sisters has told of his joy at being reunited after seven decades apart.
Alfred Ardener was put in touch with his sister Margaret following the tragic death of their sibling, Mabel.
She died in Sussex in August 2021 having never married or had children and without leaving a will.
Genealogy firm Finders International was brought in to track down Mabel’s living relatives.
And it was during this search that Alfred and Margaret reconnected.
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It emerged they had been trying to locate each other – and Mabel – for most of their lives. And last June, the siblings met for the first time since 1951.
(Glen Minikin)Alfred, 82, said: “It was like we had always known each other. We talked and cried, shared photos and talked some more. It was a magical day.”
Margaret, who was 86, sadly passed away a few weeks after the reunion.
But Alfred, from Leigh-on-Sea, Essex, said: “I feel very lucky that we managed to find each other at all. Also, Margaret’s son, my newfound nephew Peter, made a video of us meeting. We’ve watched it a lot.”
The Ardener family was torn apart when mum Mabel, 35, died of pneumonia in 1942, just 17 days after Alfred was born.
(Glen Minikin)The newborn was left with his father William and sisters Margaret, six, Mabel, five, and Violet, then three.
Violet died two years later, aged five, and the siblings’ father was jailed for abusing young Mabel.
She was sent to an asylum, while Margaret and Alfred were “scattered” between family members and lost touch.
But Alfred never gave up hope of seeing his sisters again.
Danny Curran, from Finders International – which features on BBC show Heir Hunters – said: “This case was incredibly bittersweet. For Alfred, it has now closed the chapter on his endless quest to find his sisters.”
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