This is a photo taken from approximately 1915-1916 during WW1. The dark complected man in the middle is my great grandfather. His name is Gnat Samsonovich Shevchenko. || || Gnat Samsonovich Shevchenko and fellow soldiers || Photograph

Our only family photograph of a young man now 17 years my junior lost, like many others, in the build up to the Somme Offensive, September 1916. The photo is of one of my heroes and reminds me of how strong a woman my Grandma (his youngest daughter) was. She grew up without a father and lost her husband in 1939. A different breed. much admired, much loved and very much missed. RIP || Front

My grandfather John Graham served with the British army from 1914 until his death in Ypres, Belgium in 1917. Unfortunately, his body was never found. Before the war, he had immigrated to Lancashire, England from Ireland and was subsequently conscripted when the war broke out. He left behind a uniform arm band, a photograph of his regiment and letters. There are two letters from John to my grandmother dated 10th and 27th August, presumably just before he died. I also have a letter from my great-uncle, his brother, that he wrote at the YMCA training station in Youghal, Co. Cork in 1915, before he was to be shipped out to the Dardenelles. He was also killed while on board the HMS Victory, and his body was also never discovered. || The arm band from John's uniform ; A photograph of his regiment and letters ; Two letters from John to my grandmother dated 10th and 27th August ; A letter from his brother that he wrote at the YMCA training station in Youghal, Co. Cork in 1915