Why I Love My Job

My long to-do list didn't get dealt with today, but a lot of lovely things happened that made it a great day. To start with, we had a visit from a couple who donated some artifacts from the 1950s, including a child's tea set in perfect condition. It was donated by the woman who owned it as a child, and it was in its original box. The china tea set was made in Occupied Japan, which makes it even more interesting. She also donated a few other things, including Better Homes and Gardens magazines from 1944 and 1956.

Then the mail arrived, and with it, a package from Eugenia Howson Brown of California, who was born in Revelstoke in the 1920s to Len and Irene Howson. Len was one of the first children born in Revelstoke, in 1890. Len's home and his parents' home (now Minto Manor) are two of the very fine heritage homes on Mackenzie Avenue in Revelstoke. Eugenia sent her mother's and her grandmother's visiting purses - small sterling silver purses in which they put their visiting cards. When they went to visit a friend, they would present one of their cards. Also included was a Visiting Book, in which Mrs. Irene Howson recorded the days on which each of her friends received guests. These are great artifacts representing the social history of the community.

Later this afternoon, we were holding a birthday party for a seven-year-old girl and her friends. I was just beginning a tour for the children when I was asked to help a visitor. I turned the tour over to our capable summer student, Andrew, and went to assist the visitor. She was visiting from California and was looking for information on her great-uncle, who lived in Revelstoke until his death in 1948. After checking on the internet, we discovered that her great-uncle's wife died in Revelstoke in 1988, and when we found the obituary in the newspaper, I recognized the name of the daughter. The daughter and her husband still live in town, so I gave them a call, and discovered that they were having their 55th Wedding Anniversary party at that very moment! They were delighted to hear from their new relative, and immediately invited her to the party. The visitor from California was absolutely thrilled, and quickly went off to visit her new-found family!