It’s been just over eight decades since the mysterious passing of U.S. Army Private Joseph A.W. Betts that left his Sullivan County family scratching their heads with an unexplained, painful void in their hearts. After all, the 23-year-old soldier died a non-battle death in Germany on May 11, 1945, mere days after World War II concluded in Europe.

With very little to go off other than a blunt “died non-battle” fate on a casualty list and an overwhelming lack of information, the young soldier’s family was very much left in the dark for over 80 years. That was until the meticulous, dedicated efforts of his grand-niece Margaret Bruetsch, pivotal assistance from congressional staff and a bevy of intact wartime letters led his family to finally get the closure they had yearned for.

“It really broke the family apart,” Bruetsch told the Democrat. “He was only 23 years old, and we just wanted to close that chapter and find something.”

Everything started when Bruetsch began doing her own preservation efforts by typing up just about 80 letters that her grandmother, Betts’ sister, had preserved. Throughout this effort, Bruetsch was able to retroactively “meet” a relative she came to find was funny, a talented writer and smart. She learned that Betts spent most of his military tenure stateside teaching anti-aircraft operations prior to his February 1945 European deployment.

As Bruetsch made it to an Air Mail letter written from somewhere in Germany—Betts’ final note—things got serious.

The young soldier urged his mother to keep him in her prayers, knowing that he “was going to need them.” Then came the sympathy card for the family a month later from an elementary school.

“I just cried for like half an hour,” Bruetsch recounted. “That was the one that made me realize we had to keep going.”

The sympathy note only reinvigorated Bruetsch and her mother, Eileen. The two scoured online data bases time and time again, only to be met with a brick wall. They then turned to a mobile office hour held by New York District 19 Congressman Josh Riley’s office at the Western Sullivan Public Library in Narrowsburg.

Eager to help, staff members Grace McMahon and Eric Ball lent their assistance as they took extensive notes and navigated the official process to submit formal inquiries to the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) at the National Archives on behalf of Betts’ family. Riley’s office offers constituent assistance with federal agencies, including military and veterans’ matters.

Another hurdle presented itself as the agency acknowledged that a deadly 1973 fire at the military records facility destroyed or damaged a large number of Army personnel files spanning the relevant period. The National Archives estimates that approximately 80 percent of Army personnel files for those discharged between November 1, 1912, and January 1, 1960, were destroyed.

This didn’t stop archivists from recovering partially burned and charred documents chronicling Betts’ decorations and service history, while officially solidifying his passing in Germany.

The history kept coming as the records also showed that Betts was entitled to the World War II Victory Medal, the European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with a bronze service star, the Good Conduct Medal and a Marksman Badge.

“It gave closure, definitely,” Margaret assured. “It answered some of the questions. We know at least what country he was killed in and that he received some type of acknowledgment.”

This monumental reveal sparked the family to look into another relative’s story: Betts’ uncle, Staff Sgt. Edward J. Redline, who was killed in action in Normandy on August 1, 1944, and awarded a Purple Heart.

The family tried to register Redline with the National Purple Heart Hall of Honor in New Windsor but were informed that they didn’t have the official military documentation needed for inclusion. Returning to Riley’s office, staff were able to successfully submit the relevant paperwork to obtain Redline’s military records to verify his honors.

To the Bruetsch family, the arduous path to success stands as a tale of persistence, utilizing public resources and, especially, honoring military service.

Are you inspired by Margaret and Eileen’s success to do some of your own digging? If so, Margaret encourages you to go ahead and “ask for the help.”

“Your elected officials are there... Don’t give up.”