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Antique store owner trying to find family of Canadian soldier behind 102-year-old letter

The owner of an antique store in Manitoba made an interesting discovery recently.

Amanda Kehler, owner of Prairie Pickers Café in Steinbach, bought a box of old papers for $1 while searching for antiques a few days ago.

Inside, she found a letter from a Canadian soldier dated all the way back to May 1917.

The letter was sent by Canadian soldier Earl Sorel, while he was in a British hospital, to a woman in Selkirk, Man.

It explains to the woman that her brother, Gordon, saved Sorel after he was shot and died a hero while serving his country.

"The barrage was like a thunderstorm and we were trotting at a good pace. We had gone about 1,200 yards and then ’Bang!’ I felt a sharp burn in my back and left arm," the letter said.

"The next thing I remember was (Gordon) pulling me in a shell hole and he told me to stay there."

It went on to say: "He died a hero, along with many others that day."

<who>Photo Credit: Canadian Press

Reading the letter gave Kehler chills, she says, as it was a special glimpse into an important part of history.

Now, she’s hoping to reunite the letter with Sorel’s family and has begun her search to find them.

Stephen Davies, project director of the Canadian Letters and Images Project, learned about the letter and quickly started researching the two soldiers.

According to Davies, the man killed in battle was most likely 22-year-old Gordon Rochford from Selkirk, who was killed in action on April 9, 1917.

Kehler has gotten offers from people wanting to buy the piece of history, but she won’t sell the letter as she tries to locate the family.

If she's unsuccessful, she'll donate the letter to a war museum.

With files from the Canadian Press.



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