From Missing Person Marion Barters facebook page -
In 1980, up this lonely road was the "family business" in southern Luxembourg. It was a small building divided in two. One half lounge furniture, one half small electrical appliances.
Ric's wife, Diane, was the Managing Director for the "family business" in Belgium from 1977 & this included the subsidiary in Luxembourg from 1980. She didn't attend meetings as she was "unable to travel", her signature was absent from documents submitted to the business registers & she was not a signatory on the bank accounts. She was at her new home with a toddler & later another very young baby.
"Casselden : If I may just very briefly return to your time in Luxembourg. Were you working yourself during your stay in Luxembourg for that few years?
Diane : No, I had the two children who were young and I was just at home.
Casselden : Your understanding was that your husband, Ric, was managing a furniture business as part of the Belgium family?
Diane : Yep."
Secondly, the "family business" declared bankruptcy on 1st December, 1983 in Belgium. So, while his young family were nicely tucked away in the English countryside in Burwash, what exactly was Mr Blum doing all week in Continental Europe ? How was he filling in his time until they all returned back to Australia in 1985-86 and he became an invalid pensioner ?
"Casselden : How often would you go away for before you came back?
Ric : I used to go early in the week on like a Monday and come back at the end of the week, I’d spend the weekend and then I’d go back. I did that for three years except when I was going to Gatwick, like I said before, catch a plane to go to exhibition in , in other countries, you know, like Germany, Italy and etc.
Ric : ... and I was then in charge of running the
exhibition. We exhibited in London, I mean in Ireland, in Dublin, and in Scotland and in Paris, in London, in Geneva. I mean all those places."
If you're still with me & thinking about this arrangement, consider the above information in combination with the letter of "infatuation" Ric Blum wrote to Monique Cornelious sitting at the Le Café de Paris in Luxembourg City at this exact time in 1980, sipping his drink. While his new young Australian wife was at home in Itzig, Luxembourg with 3 year old & another baby on the way & Monique's home, where he wrote the second part of the letter, only a two minute walk up the road.
Read the below carefully ...
Casselden : Of all the cities, towns, villages and hamlets in the United Kingdom, why was Burwash chosen to relate to for such a period of time?
Diane de Hedervary : Cause I like the country, I just felt like being in the country. Also, being in England, I could drive which I didn't have when I was in Europe. I could speak the language better, manage - you know, it was - all those things, having some connection for me, for friendship and driving and, yeah, I've - that was the main reason and I - I mean, I like the countryside so we went there.
Think about this in terms of Janet Oldenburg's experience. Overlay it to what we know & suspect of Marion's experience.
Women in strange places, relying on & trusting one other.
More to come. Joni
