Brendon Hallas of Woodville called the Guardian to say someone in the family had read the story.
"The phone was running red hot - it went crazy."
The Finucane family hotline was in full gear as Sgt Finucane's grandchildren contacted each other.
"We live in Woodville, Feilding, Foxton, Auckland, Whanganui, Hastings, Timaru, Gisborne, and growing," said Brendon.
The call went out and the family rallied and met at their grandfather's grave with the nephew Terry Burch last Sunday.
Another grandson Colin Heap from Halcombe who made the first wooden cross was there.
Brendon said he and his wife Margaret were the other people who laid flowers on his grandfather's grave.
"We were planning on erecting a new cross," he said.
"No one in the family was aware that you could go through the Army to rededicate a headstone."