# Midshipman seeks to reunite families with ancestors’ medals

Date: 8 Oct 2026
Released by: New Zealand Defence Force

## MediaRelease.co Summary

Navy Midshipman Jack Higgins, 19, from Te Kuiti, is trying to return researched family medals to descendants of earlier service people. The warfare officer, who joined in January, traces a long military line in his whānau. NZDF said he wants the medals with the families who should hold them.

## Original release

At 19 years old, Midshipman Jack Higgins hasn’t got a medal to his name. But he has quite a collection he’d like to find a home for. Midshipman Higgins, from Te Kuiti, is a warfare officer who joined the Royal New Zealand Navy in January. An enthusiast in family history research, he’s learnt he’s the sixteenth military officer in his family since the mid-18th century, including his great-grandfather who served in the Royal Navy during the Second World War. This passion for military history has led him to collecting antique medals and using his genealogical skills in his spare time to reunite them with families. He says it is a humbling experience to present such an heirloom back to a family. “The first medal I purchased from an antique shop was a New Zealand Memorial Cross to a decorated Royal New Zealand Air Force pilot. He was killed in Germany on the 29th of August 1945, aged just 23.” With the help of Medals Reunited New Zealand founder Major (Rtd) Ian Martyn, he was able to reunite the medal with the pilot’s nephew within 12 days. “He was incredibly grateful. Because of this experience, I’ve sought to reunite more medals over the years. “They are more than simply the metal that you see pinned to a uniform. They are representative of the sacrifice people make every day in service of their country.” Midshipman Higgins has had more success and is making significant progress with other cases, but he has hit plenty of dead ends. “Major Martyn has mentored me since I first became interested in medals, and I am really grateful for what he has taught me, particularly the technical side of researching. “But he has also taught me protocol around medals, and the practicalities of communication with families and getting in contact respectfully. It’s not uncommon that people think you are a scammer.” The research is somewhat opposite to how you would typically trace genealogy, he says. “Normally people work their way back through the ages. But you’re working from a person and going in the other direction, trying to find who is descended from them.” His advice is to take a pause when it feels like you are at a dead end. “Don’t always think you can do this in a matter of days. It could mean waiting a couple of months before having another go. “You might get discouraged and think, I will sell the medal on. “But there is someone out there. They just haven’t seen your message. So there’s always a chance.” Midshipman Higgins says one of the reasons he joined the New Zealand Defence Force was because of his ancestors, most of whom served in the Army. “For me it was the Navy because I grew up fairly close to the sea, with the family bach about an hour away. “Then in Year 13 at Hamilton Boys High School, I went on a voyage aboard the training ship Spirit of New Zealand.” For medals with his own name engraved, Midshipman Higgins will either earn his own operational medals for significant deployments, or wait for his Defence Service Medal, awarded after three years’ service.

## Key details

- Issued by: New Zealand Defence Force
- Published: 8 Oct 2026
- Publisher country: New Zealand
- Original source: https://www.nzdf.mil.nz/media-centre/news/midshipman-seeks-to-reunite-families-with-ancestors-medals/
- MediaRelease.co URL: https://mediarelease.co/nz/mr01517-midshipman-seeks-to-reunite-families-with-ancestors-med-08102026.html

Original source: https://www.nzdf.mil.nz/media-centre/news/midshipman-seeks-to-reunite-families-with-ancestors-medals/
MediaRelease.co canonical URL: https://mediarelease.co/nz/mr01517-midshipman-seeks-to-reunite-families-with-ancestors-med-08102026.html