The world feels a little bit smaller for one Vancouver Island resident after 13 family films were returned to their rightful owner a decade after they were accidentally sold during a yard sale in 91大黄鸭.
Chris Wallinger was at his parents鈥� house for Mother鈥檚 Day and learned of a box of old Super 8 reels. The recordings, with the name Thompson and a Victoria address written on them, were included in a projector box that Wallinger鈥檚 grandmother bought 鈥�10 or 11 years ago鈥� at a garage sale in 91大黄鸭. And, while the Wallinger family had always wanted to return the films, they never had the chance.
鈥淏ecause of quarantine life right now and having some extra time, [my mom] started going through boxes and that jogged her memory,鈥� Chris Wallinger says.
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Wallinger snapped a couple of photos and posted his story on Reddit, where a someone quickly suggest he post it in a Facebook group called Old Victoria.
| These Super8 Tapes have been in the hands of the Wallinger family for the past decade after they were purchased with a projector at a yard sale in 91大黄鸭. (Courtesy of Chris Wallinger) |
鈥淚 put it on Facebook at 1:30 p.m. on Monday and it just kind of blew up from there,鈥� he says. 鈥淏y 7 p.m. I was talking to two of the [daughters] of the parents who owned these tapes originally.鈥�
Taryn Jones, an archivist involved in genealogy research for almost 20 years, saw the post and thought, 鈥淚鈥檒l just take a look and see if I can find anything.鈥�
Within half an hour, Jones found the death registration of Mr. and Mrs. Thompson. Through Ancestry.com, Jones tracked down a relative who put Wallinger in contact with the family members on the Island.
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鈥淚 just think about if someone had film from my family and they were trying to track me down, how I would feel if they contacted me,鈥� Jones says. 鈥淪o it was really exciting to confirm it was the right people and they were interested and that the films could go back.鈥�
Marion Baker was one of those family members. Her parent鈥檚 names were on the tapes and she says she was amazed to get the call from Wallinger.
鈥淚 just couldn鈥檛 believe that somebody would go to that much trouble to get them back to us and I鈥檓 so thankful,鈥� says Baker.
On Wednesday evening, outside of Wallinger鈥檚 parents鈥� home in north Nanaimo, both families met to hand back the films.
Baker鈥檚 parents were living in Enderby when her mother died in 1990. In the years following, her father moved back to Victoria but sold several items at a garage sale before his move. The recordings, which have videos of family vacations, Christmases and weddings from 1967 to 1981, are even more special to Baker as a lot of her family photos were lost to a fire at her sister鈥檚 house.
鈥淚鈥檓 excited because I know one of my sister鈥檚 wedding is on there and I missed it because we weren鈥檛 in the country at the time and one of my sister鈥檚 graduation and all these family trips that we heard about but had never seen any of the pictures,鈥� says Baker.
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What makes this story even more unbelievable, is the cousin who Jones found on Ancestry.com, lives in Winnipeg and was doing his own research.
鈥淸Our] cousin 鈥� we just discovered, or he discovered us 鈥� about 10 years ago,鈥� says Baker. 鈥淗e had all this [family information] on Ancestry or we would have never have been found because none of us has the Thompson name anymore, we鈥檙e all girls.鈥�
Baker says her son is working on tracking down a Super 8 projector so the family can view the films before meeting with her other sister who lives on the Island as well. She says she can鈥檛 wait to share the films were her three other sisters, who live in Vernon.
鈥淲e鈥檙e sort of cursing this virus that鈥檚 going around right now or I鈥檇 probably be on my way to Vernon,鈥� she says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a very small world when it comes down to it.鈥�
kendra.crighton@blackpress.ca
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