If you’re from this area, it’s highly likely you’ll be familiar with someone from the Davidson family.
Last week, a First World War memorial medal lost for decades was returned, reconnecting them with a deeply personal piece of their history and the sacrifice of two brothers who never came home.
The medal, known as the Silver Cross, was discovered in early spring 2024 by Brandon metal detecting enthusiast Mitch Cuthbert while searching what is now the Odikia playpark at the north end of town near the Personal Care Home.
“I was in Russell for work and I thought, rather than sitting in my hotel room at night I’d take out my metal detector and see what I could find,”
Due to how the signal appeared on his machine, Cuthbert thought he had most likely found a silver dollar but what initially appeared to be a coin quickly turned into something far more significant.
“I thought it might be a silver dollar at first,” Cuthbert said. “But once I cleaned it up, I realized it was a war medal. That’s when I knew it was something special.”

Read more of this heartwarming story on pages 1 & 8 of this week's Russell Banner.