However, he did not know anything about the mysterious Private James.

Decades after the chance find we can tell Mr Jones and others that Private James was a man who was proud to serve his county, a hard worker and a person committed to his family.

Following a recent story in the South Coast Register we met Private James’s daughter Ruth Campbell who lives in Berry.

Mrs Campbell is proud of her father Claude Clifford James and is happy that a complete stranger saved a certificate once owned by this World War One veteran.

Decades ago Mr Jones found the certificate Private James received from the Imperial School of Instruction - Egypt Signalling Course and dated 1/12/1917 at the Berry tip.

Mr Jones, a century on, wondered what sort of man Private James was?

After talking to Mrs Campbell we can tell people Mr James was a man to be admired and respected.

Mr James was born on January 7 1896 in Dubbo and then the family moved to Huskisson before moving to Wollongong.

Mr James joined the Australian Light Horse from Wollongong and served with the  Sixth Light Horse Regiment.

“He put his age up like a lot of men did,” Mrs Campbell said.

She is not sure how old her father would had been when he signed up but he was not over 18-years-of-age.

Mrs Campbell, after reading the initial article in the South Coast Register, wondered how the certificate ended up in the Berry tip?

Her father married a second time, 30 years after his first wife Mabel  (Mrs Thompson’s mother), passed away.

Mrs Campbell thinks the certificate was taken to tip by accident by people who did not realise its significance.

She has an impressive collection of her father’s medals and a stack of photos of him in uniform and also photos from when he had a business in Berry.

She would like to get a copy of the certificate back to put in the family collection and would even like to meet Mr Jones for a talk.

“He (Daniel Jones) seems to be keen on history,” Mrs  Campbell said

The 94-year-old joked that if Mr Jones liked history that he would like her.

Mrs Campbell was an only children but she had two daughters - Naomi Rasmus who lives in Cairns Lynne Symonds who lives in Gerringong and now has many grand and great grandchildren.

Mrs Campbell was born in Berry and her mother was born in Broughton Vale .

Mr James came to Berry when he was in his 20s and worked for AF Hale in a store that sold things like boots.

“He came down to help Mr Hale from Wollongong for two weeks but he never left,” she said.

Her many fond memories of her dad includes when she was only five-years-of-age and she was sitting on her father’s lap and he let her change the gears in their car.

“He was very determined and he did not have much education and left school when he was 12 and at 14 in Huskisson he even had a bullock team to look after,” she said.

“He was a brainy man considering he did not have much of an education and he was a determined man who was self taught.”

Mr James also set a car repair and car hire business in Berry

While determined to do well in Mr James also wanted to spend time with his family.

Mr James did not talk a lot about this WWI experience and in WW II was in the catering corp.