1945 Second World War letter found at Ancaster Value Village returned to Grimsby family //
A long lost love letter from the Second World War has been returned to the family of its sender.
The five-page letter was handed over to the McIsaac family Friday at the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders of Canada’s mess at the John W. Foote VC Armoury.
The July 10, 1945, letter — from Argylls soldier Pte. Don McIsaac, to his wife (who he called “Scoop”) and young son, Don. Jr. — surfaced in a donation box at the Value Village in Ancaster in mid August, among a bunch of newspapers.
Employees at the store were unable to trace the donor or find a family member, so they asked the Argylls for assistance.
Argyll regimental historian Robert Fraser said he found the letter “incredibly compelling, a wonderful glimpse at a love story from nearly 75 years ago.”
He went through records to try to find relatives without success and then approached The Spectator, which published a story on Sept. 17.
“It proves the power of the press is still with us,” Fraser said. “I tried everything to find the family. But within a short time of the article being published, we were in contact with the family.”
He said the first contact was someone emailing him a copy of a family obituary. That pointed to relatives in Grimsby. He started phoning ones listed on Canada 411 and by then other relatives were trying to contact him and The Spectator.
“I was shocked, I had no idea the letter even existed,” said Don McIsaac Jr., now 74 years old, of Grimsby.
The letter captures the excitement of a young soldier who just learned he will be returning home from serving overseas in the final months of the Second World War.
It closes by saying, “So long for now Scoop darling, see you soon. All my love darling and I will be on pins & needles until I get you in my arms.”
Interestingly, Don Jr. doesn’t remember his dad ever calling his mom Scoop. Her name was Katherine Isobel, but she was better known as “Jenny,” he said.
Don Jr. says “the war wasn’t really something that dad ever talked about. Maybe he did when he was out with friends. I don’t know.”
Both father and son did “factory work” at Grimsby Stove and Furnace among various other similar jobs.
Don Sr. died in May 2009. Katherine died the previous December.
The couple had two other children, Gloria, who died in 1943 at the age of two, and Patricia, who was born in 1947 and died last December.
Fraser says, after talking to various relatives, it’s still not clear how the letter ended up at the Value Village in Ancaster.
Grandson Dale McIsaac, 52, said he found the letter heartwarming.
“The love my grandparents had for each other was astounding. I got pretty choked up when I read the letter,” he said.
“It’s like one of the stories you see on television about families having military memorabilia returned to them after years and years. You don’t think it could happen to you.”