THE stories of four servicemen killed during the Second World War are being retold by churchgoers in south London after the memorial plaque recording them was almost lost.

The four had all lived on the St Helier estate, in Morden, and the memorial was originally in Farm Road Baptist Church, which closed in 2014 and is now derelict. Fearing that the lives of the men would be forgotten, the management committee asked the neighbouring St George’s, Morden, to look after it. The request sparked a history project, in which the community set out to find the servicemen’s descendants and invite them to its formal unveiling in St George’s on Remembrance Sunday.

With just three photos, and some basic biographical information from the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, the parish has managed to find families and publish details of the four men on its website.

St George’s, MordenThe derelict Farm Road Baptist Church, Morden

They are Privates Gerald Rodgers, 19, and Percy Brown, 21, both drivers with the Royal Army Service Corps, who were both killed during the retreat to Dunkirk in 1940; Lawrence Frost, 21, a Flying Officer with the RAF Volunteer Reserve, whose aircraft was shot down in 1944 while attacking a U-boat off Malta; and Trooper Derrick Wood, of the Royal Tank Regiment, who died, aged 24, in North Africa in 1941.

The plaque was originally displayed at the rear of the church, which began as a mission hall in 1937, before it was rebuilt in the 1960s. The bronze plate, on a wooden mount, bears their names and the inscription “In proud memory of those of our number who gave their lives 1939-1945”.

Trevor Taylor, a churchwarden of St George’s, said: “The families of these young men commemorated their lives with a plaque in a local church, a place where they could visit without travelling abroad. But this memorial was nearly lost. I was particularly pleased that we were able to help save it, as we had always enjoyed a close relationship with the congregation at Farm Road Church.

“Our mission was to try and find the families of Private Rogers and friends by Remembrance Sunday. We would like them to know where their relatives are proudly commemorated.”

Members of FO Lawrence’s family plan to attend the unveiling.

Information on the men and updates on the search for their relatives are at: stgm.uk/CommemoratingPrivateRogersAndPals