Facebook pixel

Malcolm Reconnects with His Long Lost Daughter

Malcolm F. is an 81 year-old gentleman from Greenville, PA. His Wish of a Lifetime was to go to Devon, England to reunite with his daughter Wendy, whom he hasn’t seen in over 46 years.

Malcolm has lived quite the amazing life. As a boy growing up in London, England he experienced the Blitz bombings first hand. In 1949, he was drafted by the British Royal Air Force where he served a two year term on the Honour Guard stationed in Uxbridge and Bridgenorth. After the war, he pursued a career in telecommunications and worked to repair Britain’s famously faulty phone network. His work focused on installing new long distance exchanges, allowing people to reach their families after the war. In 1966, Malcolm left England after his marriage to Wendy’s mother ended poorly. At that time, Wendy was only 10 years old and Malcolm knew he wouldn’t be able to take her with him, saying, “I didn’t know where I was going to put my head that night, let alone my young daughter’s.” He kissed her goodbye the morning he left but she was fast asleep and never knew it. It was impossible to keep in contact with Wendy whilst in Australia and eventually he lost track of her altogether.

Miraculously, 42 years later, Malcolm’s niece began researching his family tree and was able to locate his long lost daughter. Phone calls were exchanged and soon Malcolm and Wendy were back in contact. They emailed, spoke on the phone, and Skyped. Malcolm has wanted to visit Wendy ever since he found her, but did not have the resources to make such a big trip on his own. On April 6th, 2013, Wish of a Lifetime sent him from Pennsylvania to England with his companion Pat Snyder to spend a week with Wendy. On his visit, Malcolm not only got to see his daughter again, but he also met his grandchildren and great-grandchildren for the first time! Malcolm said that this was his only wish. To say seeing Wendy again after all these years was wonderful would be an understatement. After the trip Wendy said, “He arrived as a stranger and left as my father.” The family already has plans to start saving up to bring Pat and Malcolm back to visit at Christmas.

 

Submit a Comment

Wish Type

Location

Posted on

April 6, 2013