Eva Nolan lost one of her only pictures of daughter Keally, who died aged just 10 weeks
Eva Nolan showing a photograph on her phone of one of the missing pictures.(Image: Liverpool Echo)
A heartbroken mum is pleading for the return of one of her only photographs of her late daughter after she lost her purse. Eva Nolan, 55, carried the picture of infant daughter Keally in her purse for decades before losing it last week during a shopping trip.
The photograph was Mrs Nolan’s favourite of her daughter, who tragically died aged just ten weeks in 1990. Mrs Nolan had finished shopping at Lidl in Page Moss on Thursday, December 18, when she realised she was missing her purse.
The purse contained cash as well as the picture of Keally and a photograph of Mrs Nolan’s late mother, Catherine Bell, who died in 2016. Mrs Nolan, from Page Moss, said management at the store had refused to check CCTV to aid in her search.
The ECHO understands that Lidl’s customer care team informed Mrs Nolan that a crime reference number would be required in order for the store to check CCTV footage. Mrs Nolan cannot report a crime to Merseyside Police as she has no knowledge of any crime being committed, and so cannot obtain a crime reference number.
The ECHO understands no purse has been handed into the shop.
Eva Nolan from Page Moss. (Image: Liverpool Echo)
Mrs Nolan was also shopping at the nearby Farmfoods store that day. She realised the purse was missing when she came to pay for goods in Farmfoods.
Mrs Nolan said staff at Farmfoods immediately checked CCTV when she asked, and were “on their hands and knees” searching the shop for the missing purse. Mrs Nolan last remembers having the purse at the checkout at Lidl.
Mrs Nolan’s daughter, Keally died in 1990, before the days of affordable and widespread digital photography. Mrs Nolan has only a handful of photos of her daughter.
She kept her favourite photograph of the infant, taken by Mrs Nolan’s mum Catherine, in her purse so it would always be near to her. The other photograph in the purse was of mum Catherine, from Bootle, as a teenager. Mrs Nolan said of her mum: “She was incredible. I loved everything about her.”
Mrs Nolan said: “We didn’t have cameras properly, so I don’t have many pictures of them. Years ago I had a phone stolen, and it had a clear picture of Keally on the cover.”
Mrs Nolan was shopping with her husband and son at the time, and brought out the purse to pay for her shopping. She said: “When we got in the car I realised that I didn’t have my purse. We went running straight back to Lidl but no purse had been handed in.”
Mrs Nolan said: “I’ve carried those pictures all that time. There’s a little medal in there with a picture of my mum on as well. I can’t get those pictures back, and that kills me.”
The grieving mum has also posted a tearful appeal on Facebook, asking for the purses return. In the short video she says: “I’m just asking if anybody has found a purse in Lidl yesterday (December 18) after 5pm. It had money in it, but it’s got pictures of my daughter who died and of my mum who died.
“I’m just hoping someone might have found it. I don’t know if I’ve dropped it, or if it’s been stolen, but if anybody has found it, please, please get in touch. I just need it back.”