A man has remarkably managed to locate the exact World War II uniform his grandfather was wounded in.
Mark Ryan Holmes was just three months old when his grandfather passed away from lung cancer at 59.
He cherishes a single photograph of them together and has always felt a deep connection to him.
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Fascinated by his grandfather’s time in Roi Namur, a part of the Marshall Islands captured by the Japanese during WWII, Mark frequently searched his grandfather’s name, “William Watson Holmes,” on the internet.
One day, his search yielded an unexpected result.
“One night, I was lying in bed browsing Google Earth and thought, ‘I haven’t searched for my grandpa in a while; I should do that,’”
Mark, now 40, told Need To Know. “The search immediately showed images of a shirt labeled W W Holmes and an intriguing story about his life and wartime actions. I was stunned.”
Mark’s first thought was that surely his dad, aunt, and uncles were aware of this. But they had no idea and were full of questions.
Residing in Houston, Texas, Mark messaged the shirt’s owner and, to his surprise, received a response the next day. “The guy, Austin Wideman, turned out to be an incredible person,”
Mark said. “He lives in St. Louis, Missouri, and his passion is collecting UNIS-marked items from the South Pacific. The UNIS is the number and symbol on items indicating the company and division the soldier belonged to.”
Austin had previously matched items with families but had no luck finding William’s relatives. This time, however, it was Mark who found him. “It felt incredible,” Mark said.
Mark booked a flight to meet Austin and see his grandfather’s shirt. The uniform, worn and marked, had holes in the back from a land mine blast on Tinian island.
William ‘Bill’ Holmes had shrapnel removed from his back, with his injury report noting “blast, concussion, land mine atmospheric, shell shocked.” He was sent to a Naval Hospital in Lee Hall, Virginia, where his shirt likely ended up in a pile of personal items.
The shirt remained in the same state for nearly 80 years until Austin found it on an auction site and added it to his collection.
Coincidentally, Mark’s brother lives in St. Louis. Mark arranged the trip so his dad would be there to see the shirt too. They invited Austin over, and Mark’s parents cooked a big dinner. “It was a great time,” Mark recalled.
In a generous gesture, Austin made a wearable replica of the shirt, complete with all the same markings. Mark, a firefighter and paramedic, said, “My dad and uncles have given Austin some other items of my grandpa’s to accompany the shirt on display, including his ribbons, military ID, and some letters.”
When asked why he didn’t take the original shirt, Mark explained, “I didn’t ask for it. I am hugely grateful and honored for what Austin is doing to tell my grandpa’s story and many others. If we had the shirt, it would be hidden away in our home, unseen by others.”
Despite only knowing his grandfather as a newborn, Mark has always felt connected to him. He, his dad, and his sons still camp and hunt on the ranch his grandparents owned. “But to wear that shirt, thinking about what he must have felt being wounded and evacuated amid the chaos of battle, is incredible,” he said.
Praising Austin’s efforts, Mark added, “Austin is preserving history and sharing it with others.”
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