A Northland woman has enlisted the help of broadcaster Hilary Barry in a last-ditch attempt to find the owners of an old wedding photo found about eight years ago in Auckland.
Barry posted the photograph on her Facebook page, asking her followers if they could help track down the family of the young woman photographed in a wedding dress and with a bouquet of flowers. The photo also has “Titchmarsh Studio, Auckland” etched on the corner of it.
While the date it was taken is unknown, Ana Escano, who found it while working at Elwood Village in Manurewa, believes it may have been from about 70 years ago because of the style of the dress.
As an admissions co-ordinator, Escano was tasked with cleaning out and renovating rooms when a resident moved out or died and that’s how she stumbled across the photograph about eight years ago.
“I realised it was an original picture, it was not a copy or something like that ... [if it] was my family member that will be priceless for me.”
She says she tried to reach the family of the resident who had been living in that room, in the Kauri Wing of the village, but they told her it wasn’t theirs.
“I put it in my office. Many people used to come into my office, like family or customers, residents, so I was hoping somebody would recognise her. I asked the caregiver, nobody knew who was it.”
However, she believes the woman pictured did resemble a resident who was at the village at the time she was working, named Helen.
For her, finding the owners who possibly have inherited this “gorgeous” photo has become a personal and important mission.
“That will be amazing for me, mostly in this moment, I will love it if it comes back home to the family.
“I have been here for many years. But actually I came from Spain. All my family is in Spain, so my family is very, very important. When you are away from your family, you realise how important, how precious it is. So I thought well, if this was my grandmother, I would love that somebody return the picture to me.
“And now that two months ago, I lost my son, and I have many dark thoughts and I realise one moment we are here and the next moment we are not here. And I say if something happens to me, this picture probably will be lost forever.”
She couldn’t leave the photo behind when she left her role in 2018, because she was worried it would be binned.
“I think this is my last attempt, the TV [programme Seven Sharp], because I see sometimes Seven Sharp have these kinds of stories.”
Barry told RNZ she wanted to use her platform on social media to help Escano.
“It’s precious to someone, so it’d be good to return it to the family.”
