New here and need some tips

[JohnSharon]

Hi there,
My name is John Esser,I'am 52 years old and live in Kerkrade in the South of the Netherlands.
Me and my wife Sharon were always interested in adopting a grave of a serviceman who gave his life,so that we can live in freedom, it feels a bit like a duty and offcourse it's an honour.
Since a short time we are Sentinel of Memory of 2 British Servicemen.
Trooper John William Roe (27 year)
Service Number 4541202
A Squadron 5th Royal Tank Regiment R.A.C.
Died 28-03-1945
Venray War Cemetery
Plot II.C..2

And

Dale Fred
Servicenumber 11263654
Died 04-02-1945
9th Bn Durham Light Infantry
Nederweert War Cemetery
Graf III F10

Offcourse the main thing is to honour these servicemen by visiting their graves and put flowers on the graves. The other thing is that we would like to find out as lot as possible about these two men. not only where they came in action, but hopefully also about their life before the war. It would be very special for us if we could come in contact with family or relatives.
I think there's a lot of information to find here, but to be honest with you I don't know where and how to start as this is all new for me. It would be very nice if some people here could get me on the way and give me some tips?

Thank you in forward and sorry as my English is not perfect.
Stay Safe!
Greetings from a sunny Kerkrade
John and Sharon

[Lesley Robertson]

Welcome to the British Genealogy Forum.
This is the first time that I have seen the term "Sentinel of Memory". Who organises it? I have often met Dutch people laying flowers in Commonwealth War Graves Cemetaries, especially around 5 May, is it related?

The place to start is at the CWGC website HERE. The information provided is entirely related to the information provided by families, but you can often find the names of spouses or parents. John Roe's parents are named on his entry as John William and Esther Fanny Roe of Derbyshire. Sadly, Fred Dale's parents are not named.

[JohnSharon]

Thank you very much for your warm welcome and your tips, i guess i just have to start haha.
About the term "sentinel of Memory" i guess that's my mistake; the point is i also adopted a grave of an American Serviceman on Belgium Cemetery Henri Chapelle. On the certificate is the term mentioned.
Thank You for your help.
Kind Regards
John

[Lesley Robertson]

We can help with family before the War, and for a while after, but our TOC do not allow the posting of details about (possibly) living people.

For example, I have used he website called FreeBMD (an index for birth, marriage and death certificates) to find the marriage of John William Roe and Esther Fanny Wigley in Ashborne in 1902.
Trooper Roe must have been one of their youngest children with his birth around 1918. You could now find information about the parents and some of their children on the 1911 census.

Pte Fred Dale presents more of a challenge since neither his age nor family is named...

[gilian rowland]

JOHN/SHARON

I just googled John William Roe and up come up a few entries for various people with that name.
However I clicked on the one that says War Memorials online and there is a site showing the
Church where there is a photo of the family headstone for the parents and a headstone on the ground
for John William Roe. It is the correct person using info provided on this site.
I don't know how to copy and paste the photos but I have given you the site and below is info on the
Church which again using google appears to be in Derbyshire which is north England.

TROOPER, JOHN WILLIAM ROEReference WMO/141432
Address:Holy Trinity Church,Church View,jct Chapel Lane Clifton DE6 2GL(jct I assume is Junction)
The photos were taken by Alb Beard and his details with other cemetery photos
" The photo's below were taken by Alf Beard ... Ex Glosters & RUC [ N.I. Vet] .."

let us know how you get on and hope this helps.
Best wishes
Jill

England

[gilian rowland]

PS I just googled Alf Beard and there is this site on which you can send him a message
https://www.forcesreunited.co.uk/m/alf.beard/

[gilian rowland]

Sorry me back again. I just noted that on the War Memorial site one can click on Links which goes to
a register held by the Imperial War Museum and this is the inscription for John and his parents:

Headstone: IN/ LOVING MEMORY OF/ JOHN WILLIAM ROE,/ DIED FEB. 22, 1934,/ AGED 59 YEARS./ ALSO OF ESTHER FANNY,/ BELOVED WIFE OF THE ABOVE/ DIED OCT 6, 1938,/ AGED 63 YEARS./ "IN GOD'S KEEPING." Tablet: ALSO OF THEIR ONLY SON/ JOHN WILLIAM ROE/ 5TH. ROYAL TANK REGIMENT R.A./ DIED OF WOUNDS RECEIVED IN ACTION/ WESTERN EUROPE, 28, MARCH 1945/ AGED 27 YEARS./ INTERRED AT VENRAIG, HOLLAND.

[Lesley Robertson]

I have found a very small amount of extra information on 11263654 Pte Fred Dale. He was born and resident in Lancashire, Killed in Action.
In 1941 he attested for the Royal Artillery, but I can't find out when he switched to the Durham Light Infantry.
There is a graves concentration report that shows that he was originally buried in a field grave in Posterholt, and was moved to Nederweert in 1946.

[JohnSharon]

Thank you very much again for your help. In your first message you mentioned that people lay flowers on the graves of servicemen on the 4th of may in the Netherlands. That's what we call dodenherdenking to honour those who died. On the 5th of may we have Bevrijdingsdag(Liberation Day)
Kind Regards
John

[JohnSharon]

Hi Jill, I'am a bit overwelmed by the kindness and help i find here on this forum. Thank you very very much for your help i appreciate it and i think it brings me a bit further on my search. I'll keep you informed if i find out more.
Kind Regards
JOhn