Lost photo of father reunited with owner

A house fire in February destroyed one family's possessions, including decades of treasured photographs, but one photo survived.

When Brenda Reed arrived at her residence in late February, a few of her personal possessions lay soaking wet on a tarp in her front yard. Among the items saved by the firefighters battling the blaze was a framed photograph of Reed's deceased father, Arthur "Snookieman" Leo Cherry. The photo was taken at the age of 19 in his Army uniform before he went to fight in the Korean War. It has been a family treasure for years.

Reed picked up the broken frame and removed the water-logged, 1950s-era, sepia-colored photograph from under shattered glass. She dried the photo, trying to salvage it from the smoke and water damage. Later Reed placed the 11x14 photo in the hatch of her car in order to purchase another frame.

"In the midst of moving things to and from storage units and replacing household items lost in the fire, the photo fell out of my hatch," Reed said. "I noticed it was gone the week before Father's Day. I was heartbroken."

Reed searched everywhere for the photograph before resigning herself to the fact the photo was gone.

"I picked up the paper on Father's Day, and there my father was and a story of a found photograph," Reed said. "I wish there were more people out there in the world who would care enough to get a photograph back to its owner. I don't know if it was the age of the photo or the military connection, but someone was giving credit where credit is due. It serves as a recognition to our veterans. My gratitude goes out to the finder."

Reed responded to the story in the paper, and after the first meeting to pick up the photo fell through, she called back.

"The reporter was willing to meet me and come to find out we are neighbors. It is like it was meant to be for the photo to come back to me," Reed said. "I will treasure it always."

Contact Rachel Johnson at rjohnson@aikenstandard.com.