Belgian meets Valley siblings

By Ed Runyan

The visit with his American family was a surprise for the 62-year-old Belgian ‘war baby.’

STRUTHERS — After learning seven years ago from his family in Belgium that his father was Gilbert Stephens — an American GI stationed in Belgium during World War II, William Gillet became determined to visit his father’s grave and meet his American relatives.

But Stephens’ family in Youngstown refused to tell Gillet anything when Gillet and others sent letters to Youngstown seeking information.

As a result, rumors are all that Shirley Torres of Struthers knew about the half brother — Gillet — whom her dad had fathered in Belgium 62 years ago.

But rumor changed to flesh and blood Saturday when Gillet, along with his wife, Christine, and Belgium native Jeanine Beaujot, arrived at Torres’ door and met dozens of his American family members.

The reunion was an emotional experience for the husband and father of three, who was still shaking an hour later as he ate a meal in the garage of his newfound half sister, Torres, on Misty Woods Court.

“He is really relieved to meet the family. He’s going to be able to sleep now,” said Beaujot, now of Philadelphia, translating for the French-speaking Gillet.

Gillet said he was surprised that the large gathering greeted him so warmly.

“I was very surprised in the way I was received,” Beaujot said for Gillet. “It was more than I ever thought. They greeted me with open arms.”

None of that would have been possible if not for Torres and an article in Monday’s Vindicator saying Gillet would be traveling to Belmont Park Cemetery in Liberty on Saturday to visit his father’s grave.

Torres’ mother called her when the article appeared, telling her to read it and saying that Gillet was most likely her half brother.

“I always knew he was there,” Torres said of Gillet. “My mom told me that.” Torres’ mother and aunt knew about the child in Belgium, but they felt it was best if the matter remained private.

Stephens was a young, unmarried American soldier who had fathered a “war baby,” like many other soldiers at the time. He had wanted to bring the baby and his mother to the United States, but Gillet’s maternal grandmother would not let her daughter leave home, Beaujot said.

Stephens cared so much for Gillet’s mother, Armandine Bollen, now deceased, that he deserted his post in Germany when the baby was born in October 1946 to be with them. He was thrown in the brig for the offense, Beaujot said.

Torres said that when she learned about her foreign-born brother, she knew it was right for him to meet his family. That’s because her husband, Hector, had discovered at age 37 that he was one of 13 children. He eventually met his mother and 12 siblings in Puerto Rico, and the experience enriched his life. He has since died.

“I knew exactly the way he felt,” she said of Gillet. “It was a blessing. And we don’t know if we’ll be able to see him again because he’s so far away.”

Torres notified Beaujot of Gillet’s family members here after reading the article, and the two women worked out a surprise reunion at Torres’ house, to which Torres invited her three children, her brother, Larry Stephens of Youngstown, and others.

Torres said her mother was still unsure if she wanted to participate in the reunion right up to the moment when Gillet arrived at Torres’ house. She remained in her car awhile. Then she came into the garage and met him.

“When she saw him, she said, ‘He looks just like you guys,’” Torres said. “There were tears in her eyes.”

Torres said she thinks it was her mother’s way of saying that she was glad Gillet had been welcomed to the family.

Torres planned a big party for Gillet, but she was still not going to be sure that Gillet was her half brother until she got to see him up close.

When she did, she was convinced. For one thing, he looks a lot like her brother, Larry.

“He just looks like us. We see so much in him. It’s exciting,” Torres said.

“I’m glad to see my brother. I didn’t know I had one for the longest time,” Larry Stephens said, adding that Gillet seems to have some of the same mannerisms, same ways of walking and speaking as he has.

It was a whirlwind day for Gillet, first visiting his father’s grave for about an hour, which brought tears, then the surprise meeting with his family, which brought joy.

“I was very pleased,” Beaujot said, translating for Gillet. “This is closure.”

And a new beginning.