Conley Publishing - Special Sections
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6 • C o n l e y M e d i a • M e m o r i a l D a y • 2 0 1 6 2 5 0 2 1 4 0 0 3 262-549-0659 www.churchandchapel.com Church and Chapel Funeral Homes There's One Near You We believe every family deserves exceptional and meaningful funeral service experiences at affordable costs. Families should not have to choose between quality and affordability. At Church and Chapel Funeral Homes we take great pride in offering economical service while providing quality care for all families who place their trust in us. M E M O R I A L D A Y 2 0 1 6 continued from page 5 The first lead chased was Charles, Willie's brother. Charles posted on the page, "Jr. I never got a chance to let you know how much I loved you. I pray for you every day, I will never forget my brother. Love Charles." When the student journalist first contacted Charles Bedford, he was living in Tulsa, hundreds of miles away from his home town. He said that his family had lost all of the photos and mementos of Willie. From there, the student called Carol Shaw. Willie's younger sister. She also had not seen any photos of Willie in years. Carol was young when Willie passed. Her memories could not have been clear after a 45-year absence. They did not know if there were any photos left or where they could be found. Getting a photograph from Willie's family was not an option. The search moved on to institutions that might have a picture. For a young adult that would mean a yearbook picture. Over a phone call, Carol Shaw was asked where her much older brother went to high school. She leaned away from the phone and asked someone in the room with her, "Where did Willie go to school? North Division?" It seemed the details of Willie's life were slowly disappearing too. When asked the same question, Charles said, "Yes [North Division] or Riverside." A visit to Riverside High School unearthed no photograph of Willie Bedford. On to North Division High School. Maidl went to North Division three times. The first she was flat out turned away. She was told that the yearbooks were kept in the archive person's house and that she needed to come on a different day. The second trip, she was told that the archive person did not have the yearbooks between 1966 and 1970. A helpful security guard told her that he thought there were copies in the library. The third time she was able to look at yearbooks. MPS PR manager Tony Tagliavia, was then contacted, and, offering immediate help, he opened up access and even drove to high schools to pore through yearbooks himself. The principal had already looked through the North Division yearbook and said there was no W. Bedford listed. Maidl went back at Tagliavia's offer, and paged through the 1967 yearbook looking for any trace of Willie Bedford. She started by looking through sports teams and clubs in hope that Willie was part of a group photo. There was no mention of him. She started poring through the portraits. There was a freshman named B. Bedford. His siblings had already said he never went by Bill or Billy and he should have been a sophomore. She had to ask one of the siblings if that was Willie, even though it was a long shot. She took a photo and emailed it to Charles. He said immediately that it was Willie. There was no doubt in his mind that it was his brother. Shown the photo, the siblings' love for Willie shone through in the gratitude in their eyes. Willie Bedford almost turned into an invisible man. He was a half century old memory to his family and the nation he fought for. He has his name on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall in Washington D.C. His name is remembered, but nothing connects people like pictures. Now his family can see his face and remember their brother who made the ultimate sacrifice. And his daughter and the mother of his child have another photo. The photo search has united the different branches of Bedford's family after 45 years. Pvt. Willie Beford Found Willie Bedford's daughter, Tonya Scott. Willie's oldest brother, Robert Claybrooks, of Milwaukee, watches as journalism student Rachel Maidl shows a photo of Bedford to his sister. Loretta Scott recently vis- ited the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall. Here she is seen touching the name of Willie Bedford.