"The Wallet"

Dana Roth, an artist, was sorting through a box of old, abandoned photos.  Suddenly, a worn leather wallet surfaced.  She carefully opened it and what she found not only was mysterious, but very sad.  "I am a storyteller through handmade/hand bound journals. I buy vintage photos by the boxes almost every month. Most times I don’t even look through them. I happen to come across this tiny wallet and inside of it was a picture of a little boy with a locket of his hair and his obituary," said Dana.  She continued, "When I found that wallet in the big box of stuff I had it was like I couldn’t let it out of my hands. And I was pulled to the computer to try to find answers."

Dana reached out to a Facebook group that I belong to called "Cemetery Enthusiasts" and posted the mystery, asking for assistance in finding the family of this wallet and its contents.  I looked at the photos of the beautiful children and then zeroed in on the obituary.  As it turns out, the baby, Marcell Slash, had tragically died in the very town in which I live.  I have my own methods and the way my mind works may not be how other genealogists' minds work.  I started my search on Facebook by looking up the surname "Slash."  A list came up of people in Huntington and I then scoured through to see if I had any mutual friends with these potential relatives of baby Marcell.

I made a post with the baby's photo and the story from the Facebook group and tagged the mutual friends who knew anyone in the Slash family.  I am not shy, so I started to send private messages to some of these individuals, as well.  This isn't always successful because people are justifiably leery of strangers just messaging them out of nowhere.  I didn't get any replies, immediately, so I turned to my resources that I have access to so I could get some names.  I had come to an early conclusion that Marcell had no living siblings, but was hopeful that he may have a niece or a nephew who may be interested in the mementos.  Then, I found information that indicated that he had a living sibling.  Thankfully, she had a social media presence, so I messaged her and asked her if the screenshot of the baby boy was her brother.

Within an hour, I heard a notification chime from Marie, "Omg, yes it is!! And the boy and girl are my cousins. Do you have anymore?? I am crying my eyes out!!"  What she revealed next blew my mind, "You are a blessing!  I am younger than he was, and he passed before I was born. I have a picture of him in his casket and another one but not the one she has.  And my two cousins are both deceased.  I bet it was my dad's wallet!"  Marie surmised that the lock of hair was her brother, Marcell's, as her father always kept each curl from his children's first haircuts. 

Her parents, Clayborne Marcell and Alice Bessie Schneider Slash, were hardworking and loving parents.  Her mother was a dedicated homemaker and stay-at-home mom.  Her father worked at INCO (also known as "the nickel plant" here in Huntington, WV) and walked 1-2 miles every day in all seasons to make a living for his family.  They suffered the tragic loss of their baby boy in the spring of 1950 after he choked on a peanut and got it lodged in his left lung.  The doctors tried fervently to save him, but he passed away on March 11, 1950 from complications of surgery.  Marcell rests in Highland Cemetery in Huntington, WV. 

Marie's story, unfortunately, went even further, "I always did hear my mom say you aren't supposed to bury your children they are supposed to outlive the parents, and they lost a total of six before they passed.  One was 10 days old, one died at birth, then Marcell, then one brother at 19 years old and my sisters 9 months apart from each other, ages 34 and 49."

Meanwhile, in Sharpsville, Pennsylvania, Dana was preparing Marcell and his daddy's wallet for the long trip home.  "She (Marie) is the sweetest. She tells me that when she holds it, she cries. I tell her don’t cry. It made it back to her for a reason. When I found that wallet in the big box of stuff I had it was like I couldn’t let it out of my hands. And I was pulled to the computer to try to find answers. And how amazing is it that the Facebook group “Cemetery Enthusiasts” found her in less than five hours. I think it may have actually been within three hours. Absolutely incredible. And when I spoke to her for the first time, it was like we’ve been old pals since forever. She may not have felt that way, but I sure did," Dana recounts.

I got to know Marie, as well, who only lives over the hill from me.  I started doing some of her genealogy to help her answer questions and ended up with family!  As it turns out, Marie and I are distant cousins!  We plan on meeting for lunch one day soon and get to know one another better. 

Dana is the real hero of the story.  She could have easily tossed the wallet aside and forgotten about it.  Her compassion and love for a child tucked, lovingly, inside his daddy's wallet transcended time, miles, and the odds.  Memories are like echoes...if they aren't captured when the moment presents itself, they fade and disappear.  

Please visit Dana Roth's Etsy page to see her striking and unique artwork "4Keepsy."  If you have a mystery you would like solved about your family, please reach out to us at info@echoingmemories.net 

Written by: Alice Means, genealogist, www.echoingmemories.net