A Nanaimo man knows what it means for family mementos to be lost and found.
So he含羞草研究社檚 determined to do whatever he can to return 10 photo albums to a family he doesn含羞草研究社檛 know.
Suiker had while moving back to British Columbia from the Prairies in 2015. While the truck was recovered and Abbotsford Police solved the case, Suiker didn含羞草研究社檛 get back everything that was taken.
含羞草研究社淏its of history and little trinkets and items that were passed on from my grandparents,含羞草研究社� he said. 含羞草研究社淭here were a lot of those things that as far as value goes in the marketplace, are worth next to nothing, but they含羞草研究社檙e priceless when you actually consider what they mean to yourself.含羞草研究社�
A couple of years later, a stranger came across more of Suiker含羞草研究社檚 family含羞草研究社檚 belongings which had been separately mislaid 含羞草研究社� photos and letters and documents 含羞草研究社� and ensured the family got them back. Thanks to that kindness, Suiker was able to hold the ship ticket that his grandmother and aunt had used for passage from the Netherlands to Canada in 1928.
含羞草研究社淪omebody made the effort and reached out to somebody in my family to help us retrieve these items and that含羞草研究社檚 in part why it含羞草研究社檚 so important that these photos and documents that I recovered get back to the family含羞草研究社卟菅芯可鐫 he said. 含羞草研究社淚 may not necessarily know what item or picture or document in particular will have that effect on somebody else because it means something different to everybody.含羞草研究社�
Suiker spied the 10 photo albums at an estate sale in Nanaimo in 2018. He was fascinated at the old pictures taken in Latvia at least as far back as the 1930s, and when advised the albums were to be thrown away, he didn含羞草研究社檛 think twice.
含羞草研究社淚 said, 含羞草研究社榯hese are somebody含羞草研究社檚 and they mean something to somebody. I can含羞草研究社檛 let them go to the landfill,含羞草研究社櫤卟菅芯可鐫 Suiker said.
The albums seem to have belonged to Juris Bergins, who died in 2018, and therefore to his daughters Kristine Bergins and Monika Young, but Suiker hasn含羞草研究社檛 had success locating family members. He含羞草研究社檚 made inquiries at a funeral home, followed other leads that fizzled, and even contacted a newspaper in Latvia. Every few months he looks at the albums, he said, and 含羞草研究社淸looks] into it a little bit more, and unfortunately every avenue that I took led to a dead end.含羞草研究社�
More than once he含羞草研究社檚 considered throwing the albums away, but 含羞草研究社渕orally含羞草研究社� can含羞草研究社檛 bring himself to discard something he says is irreplaceable.
含羞草研究社淭here含羞草研究社檚 a story, there含羞草研究社檚 a history, there含羞草研究社檚 culture,含羞草研究社� Suiker said. 含羞草研究社淭here含羞草研究社檚 so much that when you look over it, at times it has almost brought me to tears when I含羞草研究社檓 looking through it because this is somebody含羞草研究社檚 life in picture form.含羞草研究社�
Suiker can be contacted at bms@sasktel.net.
READ ALSO:
editor@nanaimobulletin.com
Like us on and follow us on
