Kindness of complete stranger means Motherwell soldier’s grave will be tended to in Dutch war cemetery

The generosity of a complete stranger in the Netherlands  means that the grave of a Motherwell teenager, who made the ultimate sacrifice in World War Two, will always be cared for.
Mart BeulenMart Beulen
Mart Beulen

This month an appeal in a paper called De Limburger, that is the counterpart of the Motherwell Times in the Southern Dutch town of Sittard, called for a volunteer army of townspeople to take care of the final resting places of soldier buried in their war cemetery.

More than 230 soldiers – mostly Scots – are buried there after being killed in battle with the Germans nearby.

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And one is Rifleman Robert Moodie, who was in the Sixth Battalion, Cameronians (Scottish Rifles).

Robert died on January 19, 1945 and was just 18 years old. Those familiar with the Motherwell War Memorial will have seen his name etched there for posterity.

Detail on Robert is very scant but it is believed he was a miner before joining up.

The man, who heeded the call to keep the grave pristine, is 29-year-old Mart Beulen.

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Mart said: “I am a teacher in economics and business economics at a secondary school in Nijmegen.

“I just cannot imagine that he was the same age when he died as some of my students.

“I am very interested in World War Two and each year, I attended the Remembrance Day ceremony in Sittard with my dad and my grandmother.

“This impressed me a lot. Especially when an old Lancaster bomber would fly over the cemetery.

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“I thought adopting the grave would be a fantastic way to honour those who fought for our freedom.

“My parents have also adopted the grave of a soldier from Bathgate.”

Relatives of Robert can contact Mart on [email protected].

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