Lillian Chetcuti Riolo enjoys helping Maltese families reconnect with long-lost loved ones living abroad.
But when it came to her own family, she hit a snag and sought the assistance of police officers nearly 15,000 kilometres away.
Ms Riolo was born in Sydney but has lived in Malta for 30 years, where she runs social media pages sharing life on the Mediterranean island.
She also has a page dedicated to helping Maltese residents find long-lost family and friends, and has been able to reunite numerous families.
So when one of her uncles died, she was asked by her Australian relatives "to check on the last living brother in Malta".
"This is how I got involved to care for the brother Allessio in Malta," she said.
Allessio told her about a long-lost brother in South Australia that no-one had heard from in 20 years.
"Before they would correspond by letters but the letters stopped," she said.
Ms Riolo used her vast social media contacts to see if anyone lived in Port Augusta or knew of the brother, named Freddy.
"But no-one did," she said.
Experienced in helping other Maltese families reconnect with their loved ones, Ms Riolo turned her amateur detective skills on her own family.
"I did my research like I do when I help many around the world [and] volunteer finding missing or biological parents," she said.
After finding her uncle's home address, Ms Riolo emailed the local council and police station in Port Augusta hoping for assistance.
An hour later she received a response from SA Police, complete with a photo of two smiling officers and her long-lost uncle.
"I was so happy and over the moon with excitement that I cried all day," Ms Riolo said.
She said she was "amazed" that the two officers involved "went out of their way" for her family.
Officers praised for quick response
SA Police confirmed two officers were called to a Port Augusta house on November 18, to check on the welfare of a man.
"The gentleman was found to be safe and well, and the trio posed for a photo to send back to his relatives overseas," a spokesperson said.
"On some occasions, police are tasked to contact family members by interstate or overseas relatives who need to contact them.
"Members of the public outside of South Australia can call 131 444 — the Police Assistance Line — to arrange a patrol to check the welfare of family members."
Social media users praised the quick actions of the SA officers after Ms Chetcuti Riolo posted the photo online.
"Also how awesome are the police to follow up so promptly on your concern of a family member," wrote one user.
"Oh my god! That is absolutely incredible," wrote another.
