Wolverhampton brother reunited with the sister he had not seen for 50 years

Sep 6 2010 by Mike Lockley, Sunday Mercury

BILL Scriven waited nervously on the driveway of the small home.

It was the moment the 75 year old had waited 60 long years for.

There in the doorway, was the sister he had searched decades for.

Thanks to detective work by his son Michael, the pensioner had finally found Dorothy, who had walked out of the home they had shared in the South Staffordshire village of Pattingham following a dispute with her stepmother, all those years ago.

Not surprisingly, there were tears during last Tuesday’s meeting in Fareham, Hampshire.

Bill, who now lives in Bradmore, Wolverhampton, said: “It was fantastic. I always missed Dorothy, because I hadn’t got anyone else – there weren’t any other brothers or sisters.

“It was very emotional. She explained why she left and, to be fair, she remembered more about the old days than I did. We spent seven hours together, but it just flew by.

‘‘She hasn’t enjoyed the best of health, but she’s fine now.”

Talk of the old days revolved around memories of their dad Harry’s general store in Pattingham, known locally as Scroggs. It was sold in 1960, a year before Harry’s death.

“The shop sold everything,” recalled Bill, a former telephone engineer. “That’s where we grew up. I remember there were pigs and chickens running around the garden.”

Dorothy, 82, is now preparing to travel to Pattingham to help Bill solve another family mystery.

“Our mother died when I was only two and I’ve been trying to find where she’s buried,” he said.

“Dorothy says she knows the exact spot.”