https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/family-secrets-revealed--7196562
We delve into compelling real-life narratives of long-lost relatives, unexpected inheritances, adoption mysteries, and clandestine pasts that redefine entire family trees. From untold stories of betrayal to heartwarming reunions, each episode explores the profound impact these concealed histories have on individuals and generations.

New episodes arrive daily, Monday through Sunday, promptly at 9:00 AM, offering a fresh dose of intrigue and emotional depth. You'll hear firsthand accounts and expert analysis, piecing together intricate puzzles that challenge perceptions of identity and belonging.

This podcast is for anyone fascinated by the complexities of human relationships, the power of untold stories, and the enduring quest for truth within family dynamics. If you've ever wondered what secrets your own lineage might hold, you've found your community here. Subscribe now to Family Secrets Revealed and prepare to uncover the unbelievable.]]>enTrue Crime© 2026 OBOMEDIA Creatorshttps://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/25c05a3b77c4fefb47e703c5f3729df2.jpghttps://www.spreaker.com/podcast/family-secrets-revealed--7196562Thu, 08 Oct 2026 13:01:00 +0000Creator at ObomediaCreator at Obomediacreators@obomedia.comEvery family holds its secrets, but some are too explosive to stay hidden. Welcome to Family Secrets Revealed, the podcast that unearths the hidden truths, unexpected twists, and shocking revelations lurking beneath the surface of seemingly ordinary...
We delve into compelling real-life narratives of long-lost relatives, unexpected inheritances, adoption mysteries, and clandestine pasts that redefine entire family trees. From untold stories of betrayal to heartwarming reunions, each episode explores the profound impact these concealed histories have on individuals and generations.

New episodes arrive daily, Monday through Sunday, promptly at 9:00 AM, offering a fresh dose of intrigue and emotional depth. You'll hear firsthand accounts and expert analysis, piecing together intricate puzzles that challenge perceptions of identity and belonging.

This podcast is for anyone fascinated by the complexities of human relationships, the power of untold stories, and the enduring quest for truth within family dynamics. If you've ever wondered what secrets your own lineage might hold, you've found your community here. Subscribe now to Family Secrets Revealed and prepare to uncover the unbelievable.]]>falsed74caa9d-84c7-5039-b25d-d3b24f0eb84aepisodichttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/a-septic-contractor-drops-a-box-and-thirty-six-years-of-silence-fall-out-with-it--73105173
The discovery of a cardboard box beside a septic tank shattered decades of ordinary quiet: a 1983 phone bill with 312 calls to one Renner County number and a child's drawing labeled "Nadine, age six, 1961" fell onto the yard. Who was Nadine Weber, and why did Lloyd Vaughn place that box against his house for thirty-six years?

In this episode, the story follows Christine Weber as she sorts her great-grandfather's estate and uncovers a thread that connects a hundred phone calls, a 1983 marriage record, and a long-hidden family link-what began as routine estate work becomes a search for answers about Nadine and Lloyd.

Person: Lloyd Vaughn
Date: April 11, 2019
Event: Phone bill found with billing period October-December 1983 listing 312 calls
Person: Christine Weber
Date: December 2018 (Lloyd's death at age 81)

- The cardboard box sat next to a septic tank on Pittard Mill Road for 36 years before April 11, 2019.
- The phone bill found inside covered October through December 1983 and listed 312 calls to a single Renner County number.
- The calls on the bill began December 3, 1983 and ended December 29, 1983, a span of 26 days.
- A child's drawing in the box was labeled "Nadine, age six, 1961" and had been kept for 58 years.
- Christine Weber, age 23, hired genealogical researcher Peggy Aldman in late April 2019 after discovering the box.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105173Fri, 09 Oct 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaA septic contractor drops a box, and thirty-six years of silence fall out with it The discovery of a cardboard box beside a septic tank shattered decades of ordinary quiet: a 1983 phone bill with 312 calls to one Renner County number and a child's...
The discovery of a cardboard box beside a septic tank shattered decades of ordinary quiet: a 1983 phone bill with 312 calls to one Renner County number and a child's drawing labeled "Nadine, age six, 1961" fell onto the yard. Who was Nadine Weber, and why did Lloyd Vaughn place that box against his house for thirty-six years?

In this episode, the story follows Christine Weber as she sorts her great-grandfather's estate and uncovers a thread that connects a hundred phone calls, a 1983 marriage record, and a long-hidden family link-what began as routine estate work becomes a search for answers about Nadine and Lloyd.

Person: Lloyd Vaughn
Date: April 11, 2019
Event: Phone bill found with billing period October-December 1983 listing 312 calls
Person: Christine Weber
Date: December 2018 (Lloyd's death at age 81)

- The cardboard box sat next to a septic tank on Pittard Mill Road for 36 years before April 11, 2019.
- The phone bill found inside covered October through December 1983 and listed 312 calls to a single Renner County number.
- The calls on the bill began December 3, 1983 and ended December 29, 1983, a span of 26 days.
- A child's drawing in the box was labeled "Nadine, age six, 1961" and had been kept for 58 years.
- Christine Weber, age 23, hired genealogical researcher Peggy Aldman in late April 2019 after discovering the box.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1337falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-woman-who-died-in-1983-her-family-was-lied-to--73105172
A woman who was officially dead appears in a 1983 school photo taken six weeks after her reported drowning - and a single index card postmarked September 1984 bears her handwriting saying only, "I am well. Please don't. - D." Who signed the death certificate, why no relative viewed a body, and what did Diane Mercer mean by "Please don't"?

In this episode, we follow how a plain envelope and a casual school picture set one woman on a path through death certificates, property records, and family shoeboxes to confront a thirty-six-year-old family story. What Pamela Taylor uncovers about the name on the death certificate, the vanished landlord, and Diane's own notes forces a new question: was Diane really dead?

Person: Diane Mercer
Date: February 1983 (reported death)
Location: Hollow Fork Creek
Person: Pamela Taylor
Document: Death certificate (identified by Douglas Hatch)

- Diane Mercer was reported pulled from Hollow Fork Creek at age 24 in February 1983.
- The school photograph was mailed in early March 2019 and shows a woman matching Diane in the background.
- Pamela Taylor was 38 in 2019 and worked as a title examiner in Crestfield, Kentucky.
- The death certificate lists the manner as undetermined and names Douglas Hatch, described as Diane's landlord, as the identifier.
- A shoebox held an index card postmarked Harlan, Kentucky, September 1984 with Diane's handwriting: "I am well. Please don't. - D."

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105172Thu, 08 Oct 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Woman Who "Died" in 1983-Her Family Was Lied To A woman who was officially dead appears in a 1983 school photo taken six weeks after her reported drowning - and a single index card postmarked September 1984 bears her handwriting saying only, "I...
A woman who was officially dead appears in a 1983 school photo taken six weeks after her reported drowning - and a single index card postmarked September 1984 bears her handwriting saying only, "I am well. Please don't. - D." Who signed the death certificate, why no relative viewed a body, and what did Diane Mercer mean by "Please don't"?

In this episode, we follow how a plain envelope and a casual school picture set one woman on a path through death certificates, property records, and family shoeboxes to confront a thirty-six-year-old family story. What Pamela Taylor uncovers about the name on the death certificate, the vanished landlord, and Diane's own notes forces a new question: was Diane really dead?

Person: Diane Mercer
Date: February 1983 (reported death)
Location: Hollow Fork Creek
Person: Pamela Taylor
Document: Death certificate (identified by Douglas Hatch)

- Diane Mercer was reported pulled from Hollow Fork Creek at age 24 in February 1983.
- The school photograph was mailed in early March 2019 and shows a woman matching Diane in the background.
- Pamela Taylor was 38 in 2019 and worked as a title examiner in Crestfield, Kentucky.
- The death certificate lists the manner as undetermined and names Douglas Hatch, described as Diane's landlord, as the identifier.
- A shoebox held an index card postmarked Harlan, Kentucky, September 1984 with Diane's handwriting: "I am well. Please don't. - D."

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1154falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/she-left-a-locket-on-the-doorstep-the-dorothy-price-secret--73105171
Fear and curiosity collide when a silver locket appears perfectly placed at the base of a mailbox post in Harlow Falls - its chain coiled beneath it, as if set down by careful hands. The photograph inside shows a woman who will link three people who never knew they were family; why would someone leave that single object instead of a letter, and what did it mean to the people who held it?

In this episode, we tell the sequence of events from the discovery of the locket to the revelations it carried across decades, following Dorothy Marsh’s secret, the daughter she surrendered, and the two sons who never knew they shared her. How does one small object reframe a lifetime of silence and choices?

Person: Dorothy Marsh
Person: Pauline Henderson
Person: Donald Fitch
Location: 44 Ashton Terrace, Harlow Falls, Indiana
Date: February 8, 2011

- A sixteen-year-old paper carrier named William Harris found the silver locket in the snow on February 8, 2011.
- The locket lay at the base of a mailbox post at 44 Ashton Terrace with its chain coiled neatly beneath it.
- Donald Fitch, who had run Fitch's Pawnshop on Meridian Street for 22 years, paid William Harris eight dollars for the locket.
- Dorothy Marsh was born around 1926 and gave birth to a daughter, Pauline, in 1952 in Renslow; the baby was surrendered for adoption the same day.
- Dorothy and Pauline met nine times between 1998 and 2001, and Dorothy gave Pauline the locket in autumn 1999.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105171Wed, 07 Oct 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaShe Left a Locket on the Doorstep: The Dorothy Price Secret Fear and curiosity collide when a silver locket appears perfectly placed at the base of a mailbox post in Harlow Falls - its chain coiled beneath it, as if set down by careful hands. The...
Fear and curiosity collide when a silver locket appears perfectly placed at the base of a mailbox post in Harlow Falls - its chain coiled beneath it, as if set down by careful hands. The photograph inside shows a woman who will link three people who never knew they were family; why would someone leave that single object instead of a letter, and what did it mean to the people who held it?

In this episode, we tell the sequence of events from the discovery of the locket to the revelations it carried across decades, following Dorothy Marsh’s secret, the daughter she surrendered, and the two sons who never knew they shared her. How does one small object reframe a lifetime of silence and choices?

Person: Dorothy Marsh
Person: Pauline Henderson
Person: Donald Fitch
Location: 44 Ashton Terrace, Harlow Falls, Indiana
Date: February 8, 2011

- A sixteen-year-old paper carrier named William Harris found the silver locket in the snow on February 8, 2011.
- The locket lay at the base of a mailbox post at 44 Ashton Terrace with its chain coiled neatly beneath it.
- Donald Fitch, who had run Fitch's Pawnshop on Meridian Street for 22 years, paid William Harris eight dollars for the locket.
- Dorothy Marsh was born around 1926 and gave birth to a daughter, Pauline, in 1952 in Renslow; the baby was surrendered for adoption the same day.
- Dorothy and Pauline met nine times between 1998 and 2001, and Dorothy gave Pauline the locket in autumn 1999.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1255falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/a-frozen-folder-reveals-a-family-s-hidden-child-the-marcus-bishop-secret--73105168
Cold evidence in a snowdrift exposed a biologically impossible fact: a pediatric form dated from 1993 lists a dead child's blood type as AB while his mother Donna and sister Teresa are both type O. That two-letter entry survived a house fire, three decades of silence, and a grandmother's locked attic-so what did those blue-ink initials really mean for a family that thought it had already survived the worst? Who will they hold accountable for the truth?

In this episode, we follow how a found medical form set off calls between a county deputy and a clerk, led a 24-year-old daughter to the Varner Street substation, and forced a family to confront whether Marcus Bishop was biologically theirs. What Teresa discovers standing at the counter reshapes everything she believed about her family.

Date: January 9, 2019
Location: Kellner Road, Maren County, Indiana
Person: Marcus Bishop
Age at death: 7 years old
Event: Pediatric intake form lists blood type AB

- The folder containing the pediatric form was found upright in frozen slush by snowplow operator Dale Gardner at 6:40 AM.
- Marcus Bishop was born June 1993 and died in February 2001 from an accidental electrical fire.
- The medical form’s blood type field was filled in with the two letters "AB" in blue ballpoint ink.
- Donna Bishop and her daughter Teresa are both blood type O, which cannot biologically produce an AB child.
- Frances Kowalski, the grandmother, kept the folder in an unlabeled attic box for 23 years and died in 2016.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105168Tue, 06 Oct 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaA Frozen Folder Reveals a Family's Hidden Child: The Marcus Bishop Secret Cold evidence in a snowdrift exposed a biologically impossible fact: a pediatric form dated from 1993 lists a dead child's blood type as AB while his mother Donna and sister...
Cold evidence in a snowdrift exposed a biologically impossible fact: a pediatric form dated from 1993 lists a dead child's blood type as AB while his mother Donna and sister Teresa are both type O. That two-letter entry survived a house fire, three decades of silence, and a grandmother's locked attic-so what did those blue-ink initials really mean for a family that thought it had already survived the worst? Who will they hold accountable for the truth?

In this episode, we follow how a found medical form set off calls between a county deputy and a clerk, led a 24-year-old daughter to the Varner Street substation, and forced a family to confront whether Marcus Bishop was biologically theirs. What Teresa discovers standing at the counter reshapes everything she believed about her family.

Date: January 9, 2019
Location: Kellner Road, Maren County, Indiana
Person: Marcus Bishop
Age at death: 7 years old
Event: Pediatric intake form lists blood type AB

- The folder containing the pediatric form was found upright in frozen slush by snowplow operator Dale Gardner at 6:40 AM.
- Marcus Bishop was born June 1993 and died in February 2001 from an accidental electrical fire.
- The medical form’s blood type field was filled in with the two letters "AB" in blue ballpoint ink.
- Donna Bishop and her daughter Teresa are both blood type O, which cannot biologically produce an AB child.
- Frances Kowalski, the grandmother, kept the folder in an unlabeled attic box for 23 years and died in 2016.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1309falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/neighbor-finds-a-deed-that-rewrites-a-family-the-callahan-secret--73105164
A county utility worker opened a meter box in Bracken County, Indiana on December 9, 2019 and found a 1961 land deed nailed inside - signed by Raymond Arthur Callahan "also known as Raymond Arthur Briggs." How did a deed folded into a metal box for nearly sixty years point to a hidden child and a family address that appears on a death certificate decades later?

In this episode, we follow how a neighbor’s photograph, a quick search of the Bracken County Register of Deeds, and a death certificate pulled from 1994 begin to change everything a family believed about itself. What did the deed and the death certificate reveal, and who in the family already knew?

Person: Raymond Arthur Callahan, also known as Raymond Arthur Briggs
Date: June 1961 (deed); December 9, 2019 (discovery); December 1994 (death certificate)
Location: Bracken County, Indiana; Millhaven (address on death certificate)
Event: 40-acre family conveyance deed found folded and nailed inside a meter box

- The deed was folded twice and nailed to the interior panel of a meter box with a single roofing nail.
- The deed transferred a forty-acre parcel from Raymond Arthur Callahan to Sylvia Briggs and was classified as a family conveyance.
- The deed was dated June 1961, seven years after Raymond’s 1954 marriage to Marie.
- The 1960 census listed a child named Carl Briggs as a dependent in Sylvia Briggs’s Bracken County household.
- Raymond’s 1994 death certificate listed Dennis Callahan as the informant and gave a Millhaven address associated with the Briggs Family Trust.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105164Mon, 05 Oct 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaNeighbor Finds a Deed That Rewrites a Family: The Callahan Secret A county utility worker opened a meter box in Bracken County, Indiana on December 9, 2019 and found a 1961 land deed nailed inside - signed by Raymond Arthur Callahan "also known as...
A county utility worker opened a meter box in Bracken County, Indiana on December 9, 2019 and found a 1961 land deed nailed inside - signed by Raymond Arthur Callahan "also known as Raymond Arthur Briggs." How did a deed folded into a metal box for nearly sixty years point to a hidden child and a family address that appears on a death certificate decades later?

In this episode, we follow how a neighbor’s photograph, a quick search of the Bracken County Register of Deeds, and a death certificate pulled from 1994 begin to change everything a family believed about itself. What did the deed and the death certificate reveal, and who in the family already knew?

Person: Raymond Arthur Callahan, also known as Raymond Arthur Briggs
Date: June 1961 (deed); December 9, 2019 (discovery); December 1994 (death certificate)
Location: Bracken County, Indiana; Millhaven (address on death certificate)
Event: 40-acre family conveyance deed found folded and nailed inside a meter box

- The deed was folded twice and nailed to the interior panel of a meter box with a single roofing nail.
- The deed transferred a forty-acre parcel from Raymond Arthur Callahan to Sylvia Briggs and was classified as a family conveyance.
- The deed was dated June 1961, seven years after Raymond’s 1954 marriage to Marie.
- The 1960 census listed a child named Carl Briggs as a dependent in Sylvia Briggs’s Bracken County household.
- Raymond’s 1994 death certificate listed Dennis Callahan as the informant and gave a Millhaven address associated with the Briggs Family Trust.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1173falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-bible-that-revealed-a-daughter-hidden-for-fifty-eight-years--73105162
Fear and astonishment meet at the edge of a rainy road: a run finds a waterlogged Bible with handwriting visible from ten feet away, and inside is a note naming a daughter no living family member had ever been told existed-why did that message wait fifty-eight years to be read? Who wrote the deliberate marginal entry in the Gospel of Luke, and what did an eighty-one-year-old man's judgment keep secret for decades?

In this episode, we follow how a dental hygienist found a rain-soaked King James Bible in November 2019, how that book was returned to the Stewart family, and how a single marginal note changed everything for three generations; what happens when a family discovers an unacknowledged child in their own record?

Person: Patricia Stewart, age 64 in autumn 2019
Person: Margaret Dunbar, deceased before 1990s (mother of Patricia)
Person: Dale, Patricia’s son, age 32 in 2019
Date: early November 2019 (Tuesday morning)
Location: Canfield Road, Merritt Township, Dekalb County, Indiana

- Julie Powell, a dental hygienist, found the Bible on a Tuesday morning during a six-fifteen run, three miles east of Route Nine.
- The Bible was a black leatherette King James printed 1951 with family records on the front endpaper listing eight births and six deaths.
- The marginal note read eight words, followed by an address and a church name, and named "Celia, born August 1961."
- Patricia, Gene, and Dale reunited to open the forwarded Bible on a Monday after a deputy called and Dale drove 3.5 hours on the second Saturday of November 2019.
- Harold Dunbar died in 1978; Gene was born in 1951 and was ten years older than Patricia.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105162Sun, 04 Oct 2026 13:00:03 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Bible That Revealed a Daughter Hidden for Fifty-Eight Years Fear and astonishment meet at the edge of a rainy road: a run finds a waterlogged Bible with handwriting visible from ten feet away, and inside is a note naming a daughter no living...
Fear and astonishment meet at the edge of a rainy road: a run finds a waterlogged Bible with handwriting visible from ten feet away, and inside is a note naming a daughter no living family member had ever been told existed-why did that message wait fifty-eight years to be read? Who wrote the deliberate marginal entry in the Gospel of Luke, and what did an eighty-one-year-old man's judgment keep secret for decades?

In this episode, we follow how a dental hygienist found a rain-soaked King James Bible in November 2019, how that book was returned to the Stewart family, and how a single marginal note changed everything for three generations; what happens when a family discovers an unacknowledged child in their own record?

Person: Patricia Stewart, age 64 in autumn 2019
Person: Margaret Dunbar, deceased before 1990s (mother of Patricia)
Person: Dale, Patricia’s son, age 32 in 2019
Date: early November 2019 (Tuesday morning)
Location: Canfield Road, Merritt Township, Dekalb County, Indiana

- Julie Powell, a dental hygienist, found the Bible on a Tuesday morning during a six-fifteen run, three miles east of Route Nine.
- The Bible was a black leatherette King James printed 1951 with family records on the front endpaper listing eight births and six deaths.
- The marginal note read eight words, followed by an address and a church name, and named "Celia, born August 1961."
- Patricia, Gene, and Dale reunited to open the forwarded Bible on a Monday after a deputy called and Dale drove 3.5 hours on the second Saturday of November 2019.
- Harold Dunbar died in 1978; Gene was born in 1951 and was ten years older than Patricia.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1342falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/dead-man-s-checks-keep-arriving-the-bernard-calloway-secret--73105160
A steady $412 pension kept arriving for twenty-two years after its owner died, routed through a widow who collected every deposit until her own death - then the money quietly diverted to a stranger named Amy Jensen. What deliberate steps, paperwork, and choices allowed monthly OPERS checks to flow from Bernard Calloway to a woman no one in the family recognized?

In this episode, we follow the chain of mail, bank records, and estate files that reveal how pension payments kept moving despite Bernard's death and the house sitting empty; we ask how Vivian redirected the funds and why Amy Jensen received them for nearly five years without the family knowing.

Person: Bernard James Calloway
Date: November 1997 (death)
Location: Millhaven, Ohio
Amount: $412 per month
Case: OPERS pension redirects

- Bernard James Calloway died of cardiac causes in November 1997 at age 56.
- The Ohio Public Employees Retirement System issued a $412 monthly pension to Bernard from December 1997 onward.
- Vivian Calloway deposited Bernard’s pension checks into her Millhaven bank account for seventeen years, from 1997 until spring 2014.
- After Vivian’s death in spring 2014 the deposits stopped clearing at her branch and were redirected to Amy Jensen for nearly five years.
- Mail carrier Russell Morris found eleven pieces of mail, including four pension checks dated the same week, on Fenwick Drive in March 2019.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105160Sat, 03 Oct 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaDead Man's Checks Keep Arriving: The Bernard Calloway Secret A steady $412 pension kept arriving for twenty-two years after its owner died, routed through a widow who collected every deposit until her own death - then the money quietly diverted to...
A steady $412 pension kept arriving for twenty-two years after its owner died, routed through a widow who collected every deposit until her own death - then the money quietly diverted to a stranger named Amy Jensen. What deliberate steps, paperwork, and choices allowed monthly OPERS checks to flow from Bernard Calloway to a woman no one in the family recognized?

In this episode, we follow the chain of mail, bank records, and estate files that reveal how pension payments kept moving despite Bernard's death and the house sitting empty; we ask how Vivian redirected the funds and why Amy Jensen received them for nearly five years without the family knowing.

Person: Bernard James Calloway
Date: November 1997 (death)
Location: Millhaven, Ohio
Amount: $412 per month
Case: OPERS pension redirects

- Bernard James Calloway died of cardiac causes in November 1997 at age 56.
- The Ohio Public Employees Retirement System issued a $412 monthly pension to Bernard from December 1997 onward.
- Vivian Calloway deposited Bernard’s pension checks into her Millhaven bank account for seventeen years, from 1997 until spring 2014.
- After Vivian’s death in spring 2014 the deposits stopped clearing at her branch and were redirected to Amy Jensen for nearly five years.
- Mail carrier Russell Morris found eleven pieces of mail, including four pension checks dated the same week, on Fenwick Drive in March 2019.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1426falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-handkerchief-under-the-floorboard-a-secret-birth-certificate-revealed--73105156
Fear and curiosity collide the moment a craftsman bungalow gives up a tea-colored handkerchief holding a thin gold ring and a birth certificate dated September 2, 1951 - with the father line left blank. How did a document survive four property sales, a death, and decades of silence hidden under a floorboard, and who is Jeffrey Thomas Gallagher?

In this episode, we follow the discovery and the people it touches: Paul Hutchinson, the man who pried up the board; Nancy Jenkins, who recognized the name; and Connie Weaver, who must confront what her mother’s hidden past means for her family. What choices led Elaine Gallagher to hide the certificate, and what happens when the secret is finally revealed?

Person: Paul Hutchinson
Person: Nancy Jenkins
Person: Connie Weaver
Event: Discovery on September 8, 2009
Document: Birth certificate for Jeffrey Thomas Gallagher, born September 2, 1951

- The floorboard pried up was the third from the east wall and had been re-nailed with modern screws in a 1942 house.
- The recess under the board measured no deeper than four inches and contained a folded cotton handkerchief smelling faintly of cedar.
- Inside the handkerchief were one thin gold ring and a folded birth certificate naming Jeffrey Thomas Gallagher.
- The birth certificate lists Mother: Elaine Marie Gallagher and leaves the father line blank.
- The document had survived four property sales and the death of Elaine Gallagher before being found on a refrigerator in 2009.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105156Fri, 02 Oct 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Handkerchief Under the Floorboard: A Secret Birth Certificate Revealed Fear and curiosity collide the moment a craftsman bungalow gives up a tea-colored handkerchief holding a thin gold ring and a birth certificate dated September 2, 1951 -...
Fear and curiosity collide the moment a craftsman bungalow gives up a tea-colored handkerchief holding a thin gold ring and a birth certificate dated September 2, 1951 - with the father line left blank. How did a document survive four property sales, a death, and decades of silence hidden under a floorboard, and who is Jeffrey Thomas Gallagher?

In this episode, we follow the discovery and the people it touches: Paul Hutchinson, the man who pried up the board; Nancy Jenkins, who recognized the name; and Connie Weaver, who must confront what her mother’s hidden past means for her family. What choices led Elaine Gallagher to hide the certificate, and what happens when the secret is finally revealed?

Person: Paul Hutchinson
Person: Nancy Jenkins
Person: Connie Weaver
Event: Discovery on September 8, 2009
Document: Birth certificate for Jeffrey Thomas Gallagher, born September 2, 1951

- The floorboard pried up was the third from the east wall and had been re-nailed with modern screws in a 1942 house.
- The recess under the board measured no deeper than four inches and contained a folded cotton handkerchief smelling faintly of cedar.
- Inside the handkerchief were one thin gold ring and a folded birth certificate naming Jeffrey Thomas Gallagher.
- The birth certificate lists Mother: Elaine Marie Gallagher and leaves the father line blank.
- The document had survived four property sales and the death of Elaine Gallagher before being found on a refrigerator in 2009.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1239falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/a-dog-finds-a-dead-man-s-face-the-thomas-christensen-substitution--73105154
A dog stopped at a drainage ditch and unearthed a laminated World War Two-style military card that named THOMAS R. CHRISTENSEN with an address on Beech Creek Road - yet the photograph on the card did not match the family portrait on the mantel. How could two different faces share one name, one grave, and nearly eighty years of lives in Millhaven without anyone noticing?

In this episode, we follow the sequence of discoveries that begin with a dog named Cleo and lead a dental hygienist to question her family's history; we trace the military records, two headstones in Millhaven Township Cemetery, and a sixty-year-old letter signed Martin Hollis that might explain the substitution. Which of the two men was the real Thomas R. Christensen, and how did a substitution take hold across decades?

Person: Thomas Randall Christensen
Date (birth): 1924
Event: Death in France, summer 1944
Person (discoverer): Susan Christensen, 28 years old
Document: Letter signed Martin Hollis found by Kevin Graham in 2014

- A laminated military ID card bearing THOMAS R. CHRISTENSEN was found in a drainage ditch on Ridgeback Loop in Sutter Bluff State Park in August 2022.
- Susan recognized the Beech Creek Road address and compared the ID photo to a family mantel portrait, finding two different faces attributed to the same name.
- Military records show Thomas served and was reported killed in France in summer 1944, while discharge papers later appearing in Millhaven list height 5'9" and brown hair.
- A man arrived in Millhaven in late 1945 carrying Thomas's discharge papers, married Helen Poole, ran a hardware business, and lived as Thomas R. Christensen until his death in 1994.
- A handwritten letter signed Martin Hollis, addressed to Helen Poole and explaining everything, was found sealed among her papers after her death in 2014 by her grandson Kevin Graham.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105154Thu, 01 Oct 2026 13:00:03 +0000Creator at ObomediaA Dog Finds a Dead Man's Face: The Thomas Christensen Substitution A dog stopped at a drainage ditch and unearthed a laminated World War Two-style military card that named THOMAS R. CHRISTENSEN with an address on Beech Creek Road - yet the...
A dog stopped at a drainage ditch and unearthed a laminated World War Two-style military card that named THOMAS R. CHRISTENSEN with an address on Beech Creek Road - yet the photograph on the card did not match the family portrait on the mantel. How could two different faces share one name, one grave, and nearly eighty years of lives in Millhaven without anyone noticing?

In this episode, we follow the sequence of discoveries that begin with a dog named Cleo and lead a dental hygienist to question her family's history; we trace the military records, two headstones in Millhaven Township Cemetery, and a sixty-year-old letter signed Martin Hollis that might explain the substitution. Which of the two men was the real Thomas R. Christensen, and how did a substitution take hold across decades?

Person: Thomas Randall Christensen
Date (birth): 1924
Event: Death in France, summer 1944
Person (discoverer): Susan Christensen, 28 years old
Document: Letter signed Martin Hollis found by Kevin Graham in 2014

- A laminated military ID card bearing THOMAS R. CHRISTENSEN was found in a drainage ditch on Ridgeback Loop in Sutter Bluff State Park in August 2022.
- Susan recognized the Beech Creek Road address and compared the ID photo to a family mantel portrait, finding two different faces attributed to the same name.
- Military records show Thomas served and was reported killed in France in summer 1944, while discharge papers later appearing in Millhaven list height 5'9" and brown hair.
- A man arrived in Millhaven in late 1945 carrying Thomas's discharge papers, married Helen Poole, ran a hardware business, and lived as Thomas R. Christensen until his death in 1994.
- A handwritten letter signed Martin Hollis, addressed to Helen Poole and explaining everything, was found sealed among her papers after her death in 2014 by her grandson Kevin Graham.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1246falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/a-badge-surfaces-in-the-river-the-michelle-york-secret--73105152
A laminated child-services badge washed up face-up in the Sable River on July 9, 2011 - the photo still legible, the date printed 1984, and the woman pictured already dead for eleven days. How did a badge issued by Carver-Blaine Children's Services in Holt County travel sixty miles to a trotline float and what secret did it finally expose?

In this episode, we follow the chain of small, precise discoveries: a yellowed envelope labeled WENDY - PLACEMENT, a DNA test submitted by a middle-school teacher, and a found-item log at the Sable Township sheriff's annex that linked a river badge to an obituary. What hidden connection spanned fifty-four years and tied Wendy Bowers to Michelle York?

Person: Wendy Bowers
Person: Michelle York
Date: July 9, 2011
Location: Sable River below Haddock Road bridge
Agency: Carver-Blaine Children's Services

- Badge recovered by Julie West from a trotline float on July 9, 2011 at approximately early morning.
- Badge photograph and name read “Michelle York” with an issuance date of 1984.
- Wendy Bowers found a manila envelope labeled “WENDY - PLACEMENT” after her mother’s death in 2008 containing a one-page summary from Carver-Blaine.
- Wendy submitted a consumer DNA saliva sample in May 2011 after a colleague mentioned testing; the platform later matched her to a profile named M. York.
- Michelle York died June 28, 2011 in Paston, Ohio; her obituary ran the same day and services were private.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105152Wed, 30 Sep 2026 13:00:03 +0000Creator at ObomediaA Badge Surfaces in the River: The Michelle York Secret A laminated child-services badge washed up face-up in the Sable River on July 9, 2011 - the photo still legible, the date printed 1984, and the woman pictured already dead for eleven days. How...
A laminated child-services badge washed up face-up in the Sable River on July 9, 2011 - the photo still legible, the date printed 1984, and the woman pictured already dead for eleven days. How did a badge issued by Carver-Blaine Children's Services in Holt County travel sixty miles to a trotline float and what secret did it finally expose?

In this episode, we follow the chain of small, precise discoveries: a yellowed envelope labeled WENDY - PLACEMENT, a DNA test submitted by a middle-school teacher, and a found-item log at the Sable Township sheriff's annex that linked a river badge to an obituary. What hidden connection spanned fifty-four years and tied Wendy Bowers to Michelle York?

Person: Wendy Bowers
Person: Michelle York
Date: July 9, 2011
Location: Sable River below Haddock Road bridge
Agency: Carver-Blaine Children's Services

- Badge recovered by Julie West from a trotline float on July 9, 2011 at approximately early morning.
- Badge photograph and name read “Michelle York” with an issuance date of 1984.
- Wendy Bowers found a manila envelope labeled “WENDY - PLACEMENT” after her mother’s death in 2008 containing a one-page summary from Carver-Blaine.
- Wendy submitted a consumer DNA saliva sample in May 2011 after a colleague mentioned testing; the platform later matched her to a profile named M. York.
- Michelle York died June 28, 2011 in Paston, Ohio; her obituary ran the same day and services were private.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1398falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-license-in-the-fishing-box-did-her-father-fake-his-death--73105149
A rusted fishing box buried along a collapsed fence line held a laminated Ohio driver's license from 1991 that used the name Todd Meyer - a name belonging to an infant who died in 1960. That single card linked a Varnell mechanic, a vanished identity, and a woman who had long accepted her father drowned; what secret was that fishing box protecting?

In this episode, we tell how a land surveyor's discovery led investigators to an identity that existed for only a brief moment in 1991 and then disappeared, and how that trace connects two towns, a headstone, and a twenty-three-year-old who never expected to look for her father. Could the license be the key to whether a death was real or staged?

Date: June 15, 2022
Location: Pickett County, Ohio
Person: Megan Roberts
Person: Patrick Selle
Event: discovery of a 1991 Ohio driver's license

- A land surveyor, Denise Donnelly, found a rusted metal fishing box while measuring a boundary on the third Tuesday of June 2022.
- Inside the box was a laminated Ohio driver's license issued in 1991 bearing the name Todd Meyer and an address in Haddock.
- Todd Meyer had been an infant who died in 1960, making the license identity a "ghost" created decades later.
- Investigator Susan Kraft received the case two days after the discovery and found no social security activity, tax filings, or vehicle registrations after 1991 for that name.
- Megan Roberts, born Megan Selle, was 23 in summer 2022 and had been told her father, Patrick Selle, drowned in Sycamore Creek in June 1992.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105149Tue, 29 Sep 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe License in the Fishing Box: Did Her Father Fake His Death? A rusted fishing box buried along a collapsed fence line held a laminated Ohio driver's license from 1991 that used the name Todd Meyer - a name belonging to an infant who died in 1960....
A rusted fishing box buried along a collapsed fence line held a laminated Ohio driver's license from 1991 that used the name Todd Meyer - a name belonging to an infant who died in 1960. That single card linked a Varnell mechanic, a vanished identity, and a woman who had long accepted her father drowned; what secret was that fishing box protecting?

In this episode, we tell how a land surveyor's discovery led investigators to an identity that existed for only a brief moment in 1991 and then disappeared, and how that trace connects two towns, a headstone, and a twenty-three-year-old who never expected to look for her father. Could the license be the key to whether a death was real or staged?

Date: June 15, 2022
Location: Pickett County, Ohio
Person: Megan Roberts
Person: Patrick Selle
Event: discovery of a 1991 Ohio driver's license

- A land surveyor, Denise Donnelly, found a rusted metal fishing box while measuring a boundary on the third Tuesday of June 2022.
- Inside the box was a laminated Ohio driver's license issued in 1991 bearing the name Todd Meyer and an address in Haddock.
- Todd Meyer had been an infant who died in 1960, making the license identity a "ghost" created decades later.
- Investigator Susan Kraft received the case two days after the discovery and found no social security activity, tax filings, or vehicle registrations after 1991 for that name.
- Megan Roberts, born Megan Selle, was 23 in summer 2022 and had been told her father, Patrick Selle, drowned in Sycamore Creek in June 1992.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1256falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-forgotten-marriage-certificate-that-rewrote-a-family-s-past--73105146
A hidden marriage certificate dated June 14, 1979, surfaced in a Hatchfield window well weighted with a river stone - the groom had been dead for 31 years and his family believed he had never married. Who placed that box where a septic tech would find it, and why did Beverly Dalton arrange this secret to be revealed years after the wedding?

In this episode, we follow the chain of discovery and the documents that disrupted two families' histories, from a sealed State of Ohio certificate to handwritten letters and a child's drawing that names Nora. What the box contained and who it connects will keep you listening.

Person: Raymond Allen Perry
Person: Beverly Ann Hooper
Person: Harvey Perry
Date: June 14, 1979
Location: Courier Road, Hatchfield, Ohio

- The marriage certificate lists Raymond Allen Perry, age 18, and Beverly Ann Hooper, age 26.
- The certificate was found on May 9, 2019, in a small wooden box in a window well.
- Beverly Dalton moved into memory care in June 2018 at age 82 and left the window open four inches.
- Donna Norris, a septic tank technician, discovered the box while clearing the window well.
- The box contained letters from Raymond to Beverly dated June-November 1979 and a child's drawing labeled "NORA."

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105146Mon, 28 Sep 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Forgotten Marriage Certificate That Rewrote a Family's Past A hidden marriage certificate dated June 14, 1979, surfaced in a Hatchfield window well weighted with a river stone - the groom had been dead for 31 years and his family believed he...
A hidden marriage certificate dated June 14, 1979, surfaced in a Hatchfield window well weighted with a river stone - the groom had been dead for 31 years and his family believed he had never married. Who placed that box where a septic tech would find it, and why did Beverly Dalton arrange this secret to be revealed years after the wedding?

In this episode, we follow the chain of discovery and the documents that disrupted two families' histories, from a sealed State of Ohio certificate to handwritten letters and a child's drawing that names Nora. What the box contained and who it connects will keep you listening.

Person: Raymond Allen Perry
Person: Beverly Ann Hooper
Person: Harvey Perry
Date: June 14, 1979
Location: Courier Road, Hatchfield, Ohio

- The marriage certificate lists Raymond Allen Perry, age 18, and Beverly Ann Hooper, age 26.
- The certificate was found on May 9, 2019, in a small wooden box in a window well.
- Beverly Dalton moved into memory care in June 2018 at age 82 and left the window open four inches.
- Donna Norris, a septic tank technician, discovered the box while clearing the window well.
- The box contained letters from Raymond to Beverly dated June-November 1979 and a child's drawing labeled "NORA."

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1372falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-tattoo-that-kept-two-brothers-from-knowing-their-own-names--73105145
A single accidental photograph captured a forearm tattoo that had been a secret for sixty-two years: a cardinal on a bare branch with the left talon slightly open - the same ink worn by three men across generations. How did that small, specific image link a retired surveyor, a parts manager, and a wooden box that no one thought to open?

In this episode, we tell how a birdwatching photo posted on April 14, 2019, led two half-brothers to confront a hidden past and a pattern of daily routines that hid a deeper truth. What did the cardinal tattoo mean, and why did it keep two men from asking the question that would change everything?

Person: Gary Riley
Person: Philip Foster
Date: April 14, 2019
Event: Photograph of forearm posted to regional birdwatching forum
Location: Calhoun Reservoir observation deck

- Gary Riley turned 62 in April 2019 and drove 22 miles every Wednesday morning to the Sunrise Grill in Braden.
- Philip Foster was 78 in 2019 and had the cardinal tattoo on his right forearm, inked in summer 1979 by an artist called Teddy.
- Harold Greer was born in 1951, died in 2009, and had the identical cardinal tattoo he got the same summer as Philip.
- Scott Greer, Harold’s son, was 43 in 2019 and had the tattoo replicated on his forearm after Harold died.
- The forearm photograph that started the thread was taken by retired art teacher Karen Clark at Calhoun Reservoir on April 14, 2019.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105145Sun, 27 Sep 2026 13:00:03 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Tattoo That Kept Two Brothers From Knowing Their Own Names A single accidental photograph captured a forearm tattoo that had been a secret for sixty-two years: a cardinal on a bare branch with the left talon slightly open - the same ink worn by...
A single accidental photograph captured a forearm tattoo that had been a secret for sixty-two years: a cardinal on a bare branch with the left talon slightly open - the same ink worn by three men across generations. How did that small, specific image link a retired surveyor, a parts manager, and a wooden box that no one thought to open?

In this episode, we tell how a birdwatching photo posted on April 14, 2019, led two half-brothers to confront a hidden past and a pattern of daily routines that hid a deeper truth. What did the cardinal tattoo mean, and why did it keep two men from asking the question that would change everything?

Person: Gary Riley
Person: Philip Foster
Date: April 14, 2019
Event: Photograph of forearm posted to regional birdwatching forum
Location: Calhoun Reservoir observation deck

- Gary Riley turned 62 in April 2019 and drove 22 miles every Wednesday morning to the Sunrise Grill in Braden.
- Philip Foster was 78 in 2019 and had the cardinal tattoo on his right forearm, inked in summer 1979 by an artist called Teddy.
- Harold Greer was born in 1951, died in 2009, and had the identical cardinal tattoo he got the same summer as Philip.
- Scott Greer, Harold’s son, was 43 in 2019 and had the tattoo replicated on his forearm after Harold died.
- The forearm photograph that started the thread was taken by retired art teacher Karen Clark at Calhoun Reservoir on April 14, 2019.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1174falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/a-photograph-arrives-forty-years-too-late-the-linda-fitch-secret--73105144
A framed wedding photo arrived at 41 Ashford Terrace the night of March 3, 2019, and sat on the second porch step the next morning-exactly forty years after the date written on its border. Who mailed an unsigned note saying "She died last year. I thought someone in her family should have this," and why did the photograph vanish without being logged as evidence?

In this episode, we follow how a paper-route discovery led a 24-year-old archival student back into her family's hidden past, and how a stroke patient’s half-remembered words reopened a four-decade-old secret. What links the name on the photo, the March 4, 1979 date, and the child named Linda to the Watson-Edwards family?

Person: Edward Watson
Person: Vicki Edwards
Person: Lorraine Watson
Person: Deb Fitch
Event: Photograph delivered March 3, 2019

- Megan Cook, age 15, found the framed photograph propped against the second porch step on March 4, 2019.
- The unsigned note enclosed with the photograph read: "She died last year. I thought someone in her family should have this."
- The photograph’s border was inscribed in blue ballpoint ink with a woman's last name that sounded like Edwards and the date March 4, 1979.
- Edward Watson, age 81, suffered a stroke sometime around 2 a.m. on March 4, 2019, and was found alive on his kitchen floor when Megan entered his unlocked house.
- The photograph was never logged as evidence after paramedics responded, and by the time Vicki Edwards investigated five weeks later the frame itself was missing, leaving a pale rectangle on the second porch step.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105144Sat, 26 Sep 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaA Photograph Arrives Forty Years Too Late: The Linda Fitch Secret A framed wedding photo arrived at 41 Ashford Terrace the night of March 3, 2019, and sat on the second porch step the next morning-exactly forty years after the date written on its...
A framed wedding photo arrived at 41 Ashford Terrace the night of March 3, 2019, and sat on the second porch step the next morning-exactly forty years after the date written on its border. Who mailed an unsigned note saying "She died last year. I thought someone in her family should have this," and why did the photograph vanish without being logged as evidence?

In this episode, we follow how a paper-route discovery led a 24-year-old archival student back into her family's hidden past, and how a stroke patient’s half-remembered words reopened a four-decade-old secret. What links the name on the photo, the March 4, 1979 date, and the child named Linda to the Watson-Edwards family?

Person: Edward Watson
Person: Vicki Edwards
Person: Lorraine Watson
Person: Deb Fitch
Event: Photograph delivered March 3, 2019

- Megan Cook, age 15, found the framed photograph propped against the second porch step on March 4, 2019.
- The unsigned note enclosed with the photograph read: "She died last year. I thought someone in her family should have this."
- The photograph’s border was inscribed in blue ballpoint ink with a woman's last name that sounded like Edwards and the date March 4, 1979.
- Edward Watson, age 81, suffered a stroke sometime around 2 a.m. on March 4, 2019, and was found alive on his kitchen floor when Megan entered his unlocked house.
- The photograph was never logged as evidence after paramedics responded, and by the time Vicki Edwards investigated five weeks later the frame itself was missing, leaving a pale rectangle on the second porch step.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1152falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/she-never-knew-the-letters-in-the-lath--73105139
Fear and curiosity collide when a snowplow operator finds a shoebox of letters tied with kitchen string addressed to Edna Sheridan - letters postmarked 1951-1959 that reveal a sixty-three-year secret about a child, a maternity home and two women who kept silent. Who wrote them, who saved them, and what truth did those pages conceal that no Sheridan ever knew?

In this episode, we follow how a found tin box set off a chain of discovery: the box contents, the people named in the letters, and the paper trail from a Wheeling, West Virginia maternity home to a family on Whitmore Lane in Kettle Fork. What do the letters say about the little girl who arrived in Kettle Fork in 1946, and why did the correspondence stop?

Person: Edna Sheridan
Person: Loretta Vance
Location: Whitmore Lane, Kettle Fork, Ohio
Event: Letters dated March 1951 through August 1959
Location: St. Agatha's Home for Young Women, Wheeling, West Virginia

- The tin box was found at 4:00 a.m. on February 11, 2019 behind storage units on the east side of Kettle Fork.
- The letters were tied with kitchen string and spanned postmarks from March 1951 through August 1959.
- A photograph dated June 1946 shows Loretta holding an unnamed infant at St. Agatha's maternity home.
- A transfer record three months after June 1946 shows a baby girl left St. Agatha's and arrived in Kettle Fork placed with the Sheridan family.
- Nadine Sheridan, the adopted daughter, died in 2004 at age 57 without, as far as anyone can confirm, knowing the full truth of her origin.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105139Fri, 25 Sep 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaShe Never Knew: The Letters in the Lath Fear and curiosity collide when a snowplow operator finds a shoebox of letters tied with kitchen string addressed to Edna Sheridan - letters postmarked 1951-1959 that reveal a sixty-three-year secret about a...
Fear and curiosity collide when a snowplow operator finds a shoebox of letters tied with kitchen string addressed to Edna Sheridan - letters postmarked 1951-1959 that reveal a sixty-three-year secret about a child, a maternity home and two women who kept silent. Who wrote them, who saved them, and what truth did those pages conceal that no Sheridan ever knew?

In this episode, we follow how a found tin box set off a chain of discovery: the box contents, the people named in the letters, and the paper trail from a Wheeling, West Virginia maternity home to a family on Whitmore Lane in Kettle Fork. What do the letters say about the little girl who arrived in Kettle Fork in 1946, and why did the correspondence stop?

Person: Edna Sheridan
Person: Loretta Vance
Location: Whitmore Lane, Kettle Fork, Ohio
Event: Letters dated March 1951 through August 1959
Location: St. Agatha's Home for Young Women, Wheeling, West Virginia

- The tin box was found at 4:00 a.m. on February 11, 2019 behind storage units on the east side of Kettle Fork.
- The letters were tied with kitchen string and spanned postmarks from March 1951 through August 1959.
- A photograph dated June 1946 shows Loretta holding an unnamed infant at St. Agatha's maternity home.
- A transfer record three months after June 1946 shows a baby girl left St. Agatha's and arrived in Kettle Fork placed with the Sheridan family.
- Nadine Sheridan, the adopted daughter, died in 2004 at age 57 without, as far as anyone can confirm, knowing the full truth of her origin.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1332falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-orange-chair-how-a-dry-seat-unraveled-a-60-year-secret--73105136
A dry folding chair on an icy porch and an unexpected first-degree DNA match set off a chain reaction that peeled back six decades of silence about one man's origins. How did a utility lineman's passing observation and a thirty-two-year-old student's lab result converge to reveal a name that had been hidden for sixty years?

In this episode, we follow how a simple lab report, a preserved letter, and a cramped baptismal entry intersect to connect a man who never knew his biological family with the people who carried that secret. What choices did they make, and why did this private history resurface now?

Person: Douglas Evans
Date: April 14, 1957
Location: Shelton County
Person: Norma Evans
Person: Christine Mason

- An orange folding chair with a dry seat was seen on a porch on January 9, 2019, despite ice covering every surrounding surface.
- Marvin Erickson, a utility lineman, noticed the chair and mentioned it to a neighbor, starting local gossip that reached Christine Mason within 48 hours.
- Douglas Evans was born April 14, 1957; his birth certificate lists his mother as Lois Evans and leaves the father line blank.
- A baptismal register dated April 27, 1957, recorded him as "Warren Douglas, son of Lois E.," though the name Warren was never used afterward.
- Norma Evans, aged 83 and the sister-in-law of Lois Evans, sent Douglas a letter about his family roughly a month before her death in March 2018.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105136Thu, 24 Sep 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Orange Chair: How a Dry Seat Unraveled a 60-Year Secret A dry folding chair on an icy porch and an unexpected first-degree DNA match set off a chain reaction that peeled back six decades of silence about one man's origins. How did a utility...
A dry folding chair on an icy porch and an unexpected first-degree DNA match set off a chain reaction that peeled back six decades of silence about one man's origins. How did a utility lineman's passing observation and a thirty-two-year-old student's lab result converge to reveal a name that had been hidden for sixty years?

In this episode, we follow how a simple lab report, a preserved letter, and a cramped baptismal entry intersect to connect a man who never knew his biological family with the people who carried that secret. What choices did they make, and why did this private history resurface now?

Person: Douglas Evans
Date: April 14, 1957
Location: Shelton County
Person: Norma Evans
Person: Christine Mason

- An orange folding chair with a dry seat was seen on a porch on January 9, 2019, despite ice covering every surrounding surface.
- Marvin Erickson, a utility lineman, noticed the chair and mentioned it to a neighbor, starting local gossip that reached Christine Mason within 48 hours.
- Douglas Evans was born April 14, 1957; his birth certificate lists his mother as Lois Evans and leaves the father line blank.
- A baptismal register dated April 27, 1957, recorded him as "Warren Douglas, son of Lois E.," though the name Warren was never used afterward.
- Norma Evans, aged 83 and the sister-in-law of Lois Evans, sent Douglas a letter about his family roughly a month before her death in March 2018.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1285falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-boy-left-behind-a-crate-five-letters-one-vanished-name--73105135
Cold frost, an empty three-mile loop, and a fifty-eight-year-old shipping label led to a wooden crate that held a photographic record of a child everyone else had erased - a photograph labeled "Dov, 1965" and five Lithuanian letters dated 1961-1967. Why did Irena Vasik Thompson keep that picture and then never speak the name Dov aloud again?

In this episode, we follow how a runner found a crate behind the Dunmore co-op on December 4, 2019, and how the contents - ledger books, a ship manifest, forty-one negatives and a clutch of slit-open letters - reveal a family split between Lithuania and Pennsylvania. What do the five letters and a single English note tell us about the boy who did not emigrate with his mother?

Person: Irena Vasik Thompson
Date: December 4, 2019 (crate discovery)
Location: Dunmore Pike, behind the old grain co-op, Kellsford, PA
Event: Passenger manifest for October 14, 1961, page 11 lists Irena and three children; Dov did not board
Case: Five Lithuanian letters dated 1961-1967 and one English note signed M.M.; photograph labeled "Dov, 1965"

- The crate was found 40 yards from the nearest road with no tire tracks or footprints approaching it.
- The shipping label on the crate was dated November 1961, fifty-eight years before its 2019 discovery.
- The passenger manifest lists Irena age 34, Marta age 9, Lena age 6, and Dov age 4 on October 14, 1961, but only three of the four boarded.
- Inside the ledger were five slit-open letters initialed A.N. dated from 1961 to 1967, plus one English note and a photograph.
- The photograph of the boy has "Dov, 1965" penciled on the back and was kept in Irena's ledger for fifty-four years.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105135Wed, 23 Sep 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Boy Left Behind: A Crate, Five Letters, One Vanished Name Cold frost, an empty three-mile loop, and a fifty-eight-year-old shipping label led to a wooden crate that held a photographic record of a child everyone else had erased - a photograph...
Cold frost, an empty three-mile loop, and a fifty-eight-year-old shipping label led to a wooden crate that held a photographic record of a child everyone else had erased - a photograph labeled "Dov, 1965" and five Lithuanian letters dated 1961-1967. Why did Irena Vasik Thompson keep that picture and then never speak the name Dov aloud again?

In this episode, we follow how a runner found a crate behind the Dunmore co-op on December 4, 2019, and how the contents - ledger books, a ship manifest, forty-one negatives and a clutch of slit-open letters - reveal a family split between Lithuania and Pennsylvania. What do the five letters and a single English note tell us about the boy who did not emigrate with his mother?

Person: Irena Vasik Thompson
Date: December 4, 2019 (crate discovery)
Location: Dunmore Pike, behind the old grain co-op, Kellsford, PA
Event: Passenger manifest for October 14, 1961, page 11 lists Irena and three children; Dov did not board
Case: Five Lithuanian letters dated 1961-1967 and one English note signed M.M.; photograph labeled "Dov, 1965"

- The crate was found 40 yards from the nearest road with no tire tracks or footprints approaching it.
- The shipping label on the crate was dated November 1961, fifty-eight years before its 2019 discovery.
- The passenger manifest lists Irena age 34, Marta age 9, Lena age 6, and Dov age 4 on October 14, 1961, but only three of the four boarded.
- Inside the ledger were five slit-open letters initialed A.N. dated from 1961 to 1967, plus one English note and a photograph.
- The photograph of the boy has "Dov, 1965" penciled on the back and was kept in Irena's ledger for fifty-four years.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1290falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/daughter-finds-her-birth-mother-through-a-30-year-old-lost-letter--73105134
Fear tightens when a single sealed envelope can rewrite a family’s past: a letter postmarked October 14, 1993 spent thirty years inside a metal water-meter housing before a utility worker found it, and the sealed page inside named a daughter born in April 1964. Who waited, who never knew, and what happens when a secret delivered three decades late finally reaches its intended house?

In this episode, we follow the discovery of the envelope on a Tuesday morning in November 2023 and the chain of people who handled it, from utility worker Leon Clark to postal supervisor Anita Morse, to the woman who received the letter at Putnam Drive - and the family it changed. How did a handwritten page folded twice, written by a man who believed he was dying, end up reconnecting lives after thirty years?

Person: Leon Clark
Person: Anita Morse
Person: Dennis Colby
Date: October 14, 1993 (postmark)
Event: Letter delivered to Putnam Drive in November 2023

- The envelope was found in a water meter housing on Putnam Drive in Kellerton, Ohio, after spending thirty years inside metal housing.
- The letter’s postmark date was October 14, 1993, and it was written from Box 114 in Harlan, Kentucky.
- The writer, Dennis Colby, said he was 62 and diagnosed with congestive heart failure when he wrote the single-page letter.
- The daughter named in the letter, Catherine, was born in Erie County, Ohio, and the adoption paperwork was finalized in April 1964.
- Tammy Wells, age 44 in 2023, photographed both sides of the sealed envelope before opening it and called her brother Curtis after reading the letter.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105134Tue, 22 Sep 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaDaughter Finds Her Birth Mother Through a 30-Year-Old Lost Letter Fear tightens when a single sealed envelope can rewrite a family’s past: a letter postmarked October 14, 1993 spent thirty years inside a metal water-meter housing before a utility...
Fear tightens when a single sealed envelope can rewrite a family’s past: a letter postmarked October 14, 1993 spent thirty years inside a metal water-meter housing before a utility worker found it, and the sealed page inside named a daughter born in April 1964. Who waited, who never knew, and what happens when a secret delivered three decades late finally reaches its intended house?

In this episode, we follow the discovery of the envelope on a Tuesday morning in November 2023 and the chain of people who handled it, from utility worker Leon Clark to postal supervisor Anita Morse, to the woman who received the letter at Putnam Drive - and the family it changed. How did a handwritten page folded twice, written by a man who believed he was dying, end up reconnecting lives after thirty years?

Person: Leon Clark
Person: Anita Morse
Person: Dennis Colby
Date: October 14, 1993 (postmark)
Event: Letter delivered to Putnam Drive in November 2023

- The envelope was found in a water meter housing on Putnam Drive in Kellerton, Ohio, after spending thirty years inside metal housing.
- The letter’s postmark date was October 14, 1993, and it was written from Box 114 in Harlan, Kentucky.
- The writer, Dennis Colby, said he was 62 and diagnosed with congestive heart failure when he wrote the single-page letter.
- The daughter named in the letter, Catherine, was born in Erie County, Ohio, and the adoption paperwork was finalized in April 1964.
- Tammy Wells, age 44 in 2023, photographed both sides of the sealed envelope before opening it and called her brother Curtis after reading the letter.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1379falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/son-finds-hidden-bracelet-that-reveals-his-mother-s-secret-twin--73105133
A thrift-store discovery exposes a secret stitched into a coat pocket for decades: a brittle hospital bracelet naming Donna Rae Ramsie with DOB March 14, 1963, the same date as the finder’s mother. How did two women born together, registered at the same hospital, spend fifty-six years apart with only one letter and one phone call between them?

In this episode, you will hear the sequence of events from the bracelet’s discovery to the family histories it connected, and how a single folded ID shifted what a son thought he knew about his mother. What does a snapped pocket and a yellowed bracelet tell us about choices made in 1963-and kept for a lifetime?

Person: Donna Ramsey
Person: Donna Rae Sutter
Date: March 14, 1963
Location: Kellerman Memorial
Event: Bracelet found at Calvary Thrift on Moreland Drive

- Bracelet name: DONNA RAE RAMSIE, thermal print yellowed and brittle
- Bracelet DOB: March 14, 1963 (same as Donna Ramsey)
- Donation timing: coat reached Calvary Thrift in the third week of October 2019
- Donna Ramsey death: February 2016, left instruction not to look for twin
- Donna Rae Sutter death: March 2019, age 56, died of a cardiac event

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105133Mon, 21 Sep 2026 13:00:03 +0000Creator at ObomediaSon Finds Hidden Bracelet That Reveals His Mother's Secret Twin A thrift-store discovery exposes a secret stitched into a coat pocket for decades: a brittle hospital bracelet naming Donna Rae Ramsie with DOB March 14, 1963, the same date as the...
A thrift-store discovery exposes a secret stitched into a coat pocket for decades: a brittle hospital bracelet naming Donna Rae Ramsie with DOB March 14, 1963, the same date as the finder’s mother. How did two women born together, registered at the same hospital, spend fifty-six years apart with only one letter and one phone call between them?

In this episode, you will hear the sequence of events from the bracelet’s discovery to the family histories it connected, and how a single folded ID shifted what a son thought he knew about his mother. What does a snapped pocket and a yellowed bracelet tell us about choices made in 1963-and kept for a lifetime?

Person: Donna Ramsey
Person: Donna Rae Sutter
Date: March 14, 1963
Location: Kellerman Memorial
Event: Bracelet found at Calvary Thrift on Moreland Drive

- Bracelet name: DONNA RAE RAMSIE, thermal print yellowed and brittle
- Bracelet DOB: March 14, 1963 (same as Donna Ramsey)
- Donation timing: coat reached Calvary Thrift in the third week of October 2019
- Donna Ramsey death: February 2016, left instruction not to look for twin
- Donna Rae Sutter death: March 2019, age 56, died of a cardiac event

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1156falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-envelope-with-no-stamp-the-sibling-they-buried-alive--73105131
A man finds an unstamped envelope stuck in a fence post behind a water treatment plant with a hand-drawn figure labelled "Bumblebee" - the nickname his father used for a baby his family was told died in 1968. Fifty-six years later that child drove five hours to leave a drawing and a sealed secret; what did their father do that no one else ever knew?

In this episode, we follow the chain of documents, travel logs and memories that reconnect a family split across Ohio and Kentucky, tracing the moment one decision in July 1968 reshaped three lives. How did a notarized letter, a sealed envelope and a single trip finally bring the truth to light?

Person: Keith Schultz
Person: Diane Schultz
Person: Raymond Earl Schultz
Person: Clara Ann Schultz
Event: Raymond's July 1968 trip to Harlan, Kentucky

- The baby Clara Ann Schultz was born March 14, 1968, weighing 6 pounds 2 ounces at Westin County General in Ridgeport, Ohio.
- Raymond logged a "personal trip" to Harlan, Kentucky in July 1968 and handed Clara to Frances Crain Arnett.
- Frances Arnett raised Clara in Harlan, Kentucky and died when Clara was 32, leaving a notarized letter about Clara's origins.
- Keith found the yellowed, unstamped business-size envelope in a fence post behind a Lacklin, Ohio water treatment plant in the second week of September.
- Keith was 54 and had worked 31 years as an agricultural claims adjuster; Clara was 56 when she drove five hours to leave the envelope herself.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105131Sun, 20 Sep 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Envelope with No Stamp: The Sibling They Buried Alive A man finds an unstamped envelope stuck in a fence post behind a water treatment plant with a hand-drawn figure labelled "Bumblebee" - the nickname his father used for a baby his family was...
A man finds an unstamped envelope stuck in a fence post behind a water treatment plant with a hand-drawn figure labelled "Bumblebee" - the nickname his father used for a baby his family was told died in 1968. Fifty-six years later that child drove five hours to leave a drawing and a sealed secret; what did their father do that no one else ever knew?

In this episode, we follow the chain of documents, travel logs and memories that reconnect a family split across Ohio and Kentucky, tracing the moment one decision in July 1968 reshaped three lives. How did a notarized letter, a sealed envelope and a single trip finally bring the truth to light?

Person: Keith Schultz
Person: Diane Schultz
Person: Raymond Earl Schultz
Person: Clara Ann Schultz
Event: Raymond's July 1968 trip to Harlan, Kentucky

- The baby Clara Ann Schultz was born March 14, 1968, weighing 6 pounds 2 ounces at Westin County General in Ridgeport, Ohio.
- Raymond logged a "personal trip" to Harlan, Kentucky in July 1968 and handed Clara to Frances Crain Arnett.
- Frances Arnett raised Clara in Harlan, Kentucky and died when Clara was 32, leaving a notarized letter about Clara's origins.
- Keith found the yellowed, unstamped business-size envelope in a fence post behind a Lacklin, Ohio water treatment plant in the second week of September.
- Keith was 54 and had worked 31 years as an agricultural claims adjuster; Clara was 56 when she drove five hours to leave the envelope herself.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1396falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/a-dead-man-s-loyalty-card-leads-to-a-55-year-secret-the-philip-jones-story--73105130
A single waterlogged grocery loyalty card zip-tied to a fishing float led a granddaughter to a hand-drawn map and a secret that spanned decades. Philip Jones died on July 27, 2019, yet his Hensley's card was found tied to float number seven in the Alcott River four miles east of Dunnmore-why had he been driving twenty minutes past nearer stores every Friday for years, and what was tied to that river spot? What did Philip intend the float and the number seven to mean?

In this episode, we follow how a found property report, a wallet map, and archived purchase records connect a private man's Friday routines to a distant store and a specific river float. Listen as the timeline, locations, and the people involved reveal a pattern that only the details can explain.

Person: Philip Jones
Date of death: July 27, 2019
Location: Alcott River float number seven, four miles east of Dunnmore
Finder: Gordon Walsh (found morning of August 9, 2019)
Executor: Karen Cooper (granddaughter)

- Philip Jones was 78 years old when he died of a pulmonary infection on July 27, 2019.
- A laminated Hensley's grocery loyalty card belonging to Philip was found zip-tied to float number seven on August 9, 2019.
- Philip had lived alone on Candler Street since 2010 after his wife Vera died in 2010.
- A hand-drawn pencil map in Philip’s wallet marked a route from Candler Street to the river with an X at the river and the number seven next to it.
- A Hensley's receipt from June 2008 showed Philip’s loyalty account linked to the Millrace Road store in Eastwick, twenty minutes from his home.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105130Sat, 19 Sep 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaA Dead Man's Loyalty Card Leads to a 55-Year Secret: The Philip Jones Story A single waterlogged grocery loyalty card zip-tied to a fishing float led a granddaughter to a hand-drawn map and a secret that spanned decades. Philip Jones died on July...
A single waterlogged grocery loyalty card zip-tied to a fishing float led a granddaughter to a hand-drawn map and a secret that spanned decades. Philip Jones died on July 27, 2019, yet his Hensley's card was found tied to float number seven in the Alcott River four miles east of Dunnmore-why had he been driving twenty minutes past nearer stores every Friday for years, and what was tied to that river spot? What did Philip intend the float and the number seven to mean?

In this episode, we follow how a found property report, a wallet map, and archived purchase records connect a private man's Friday routines to a distant store and a specific river float. Listen as the timeline, locations, and the people involved reveal a pattern that only the details can explain.

Person: Philip Jones
Date of death: July 27, 2019
Location: Alcott River float number seven, four miles east of Dunnmore
Finder: Gordon Walsh (found morning of August 9, 2019)
Executor: Karen Cooper (granddaughter)

- Philip Jones was 78 years old when he died of a pulmonary infection on July 27, 2019.
- A laminated Hensley's grocery loyalty card belonging to Philip was found zip-tied to float number seven on August 9, 2019.
- Philip had lived alone on Candler Street since 2010 after his wife Vera died in 2010.
- A hand-drawn pencil map in Philip’s wallet marked a route from Candler Street to the river with an X at the river and the number seven next to it.
- A Hensley's receipt from June 2008 showed Philip’s loyalty account linked to the Millrace Road store in Eastwick, twenty minutes from his home.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1071falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-two-graves-of-earl-fleming-a-family-s-long-concealed-swap--73105127
A county surveyor photographed a grave in Garfield Township, Illinois in summer 1991 showing Earl D. Flemming from Dearborn County, Indiana - a photo that sat untouched for 32 years while a different grave in Peoria marked the same name with one M. Two graves, same name and birth/death years, and a secret the family never questioned: who was buried in Peoria and why did the real Earl list Indiana as home on his 1940s discharge papers?

In this episode, we follow how a box of family papers and a careful reading of military records sent a high school history teacher down a path that upended decades of family memory. What did Paul Fleming discover in discharge papers, probate files, and a photograph that no one had looked at for three decades?

Person: Paul Fleming
Person: Earl D. Flemming
Date: summer 1991 (photograph taken)
Location: Garfield Township, Dearborn County, Indiana
Event: discovery of conflicting grave markers

- The surveyor Amanda Brown photographed a grave marker in Garfield Township in summer 1991 and filed the image, which went unexamined for 32 years.
- Earl D. Flemming (two M's) was born in 1922 and died in 1988 according to the stone photographed in Dearborn County.
- Paul Fleming is thirty-eight and a high school history teacher living in Normal, Illinois when he opens a box of family papers in July 2023.
- Earl enlisted in 1942 and his draft registration listed a Griswold Street address in Peoria but named Mrs. Carol Dixon in Lawrenceburg, Indiana as his emergency contact.
- The man buried in Peoria in 1988 had a headstone reading Earl D. Fleming (one M) despite not being the man who returned to Dearborn County after World War II.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105127Fri, 18 Sep 2026 13:00:03 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Two Graves of Earl Fleming: A Family's Long-Concealed Swap A county surveyor photographed a grave in Garfield Township, Illinois in summer 1991 showing Earl D. Flemming from Dearborn County, Indiana - a photo that sat untouched for 32 years...
A county surveyor photographed a grave in Garfield Township, Illinois in summer 1991 showing Earl D. Flemming from Dearborn County, Indiana - a photo that sat untouched for 32 years while a different grave in Peoria marked the same name with one M. Two graves, same name and birth/death years, and a secret the family never questioned: who was buried in Peoria and why did the real Earl list Indiana as home on his 1940s discharge papers?

In this episode, we follow how a box of family papers and a careful reading of military records sent a high school history teacher down a path that upended decades of family memory. What did Paul Fleming discover in discharge papers, probate files, and a photograph that no one had looked at for three decades?

Person: Paul Fleming
Person: Earl D. Flemming
Date: summer 1991 (photograph taken)
Location: Garfield Township, Dearborn County, Indiana
Event: discovery of conflicting grave markers

- The surveyor Amanda Brown photographed a grave marker in Garfield Township in summer 1991 and filed the image, which went unexamined for 32 years.
- Earl D. Flemming (two M's) was born in 1922 and died in 1988 according to the stone photographed in Dearborn County.
- Paul Fleming is thirty-eight and a high school history teacher living in Normal, Illinois when he opens a box of family papers in July 2023.
- Earl enlisted in 1942 and his draft registration listed a Griswold Street address in Peoria but named Mrs. Carol Dixon in Lawrenceburg, Indiana as his emergency contact.
- The man buried in Peoria in 1988 had a headstone reading Earl D. Fleming (one M) despite not being the man who returned to Dearborn County after World War II.

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© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1430falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-wedding-binder-that-hid-a-brother-it-was-time-signature-revealed--73105125
A discovery in a vacant house-an untouched guest registry from June 14, 1986-unravels a hidden family line and a five-word note: "so happy for you, Patty - it was time." How did a signature with Lori's mother's maiden name point to a brother she never knew, and why had a family secret been sealed inside a gallon zip-lock for decades?

In this episode, we follow Lori Wagner as she opens a binder that upends everything she believed about her family, hires a genealogical researcher, and uncovers a birth record that raises a new, painful question about her mother’s past. Could the man who signed page eleven be the sibling Lori never knew?

Person: Lori Wagner
Person: Patricia (sister)
Person: Daniel Marsh Fowler
Date: June 14, 1986
Event: Wedding guest registry found in June 2014

- The binder was found beneath a vacant house on Ferris Creek Road on the second Tuesday of June, 2014.
- The cover of the white three-ring binder read "Guest Registry - The Wedding of Patricia and Glenn Fowler - June Fourteenth, Nineteen Eighty-Six."
- Page eleven contained the signature "Daniel Marsh Fowler" with a Columbus address and the inscription "so happy for you, Patty - it was time."
- Lori Wagner was 61 years old when she found the binder and had worked 23 years managing medical records at Cavanaugh Regional Hospital.
- Genealogist Lauren Stein found a birth record in three days: Daniel Marsh Fowler, born February 1952, Franklin County; mother listed as Cecelia Ann Marsh.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105125Thu, 17 Sep 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Wedding Binder That Hid a Brother-"It Was Time" Signature Revealed A discovery in a vacant house-an untouched guest registry from June 14, 1986-unravels a hidden family line and a five-word note: "so happy for you, Patty - it was time." How did...
A discovery in a vacant house-an untouched guest registry from June 14, 1986-unravels a hidden family line and a five-word note: "so happy for you, Patty - it was time." How did a signature with Lori's mother's maiden name point to a brother she never knew, and why had a family secret been sealed inside a gallon zip-lock for decades?

In this episode, we follow Lori Wagner as she opens a binder that upends everything she believed about her family, hires a genealogical researcher, and uncovers a birth record that raises a new, painful question about her mother’s past. Could the man who signed page eleven be the sibling Lori never knew?

Person: Lori Wagner
Person: Patricia (sister)
Person: Daniel Marsh Fowler
Date: June 14, 1986
Event: Wedding guest registry found in June 2014

- The binder was found beneath a vacant house on Ferris Creek Road on the second Tuesday of June, 2014.
- The cover of the white three-ring binder read "Guest Registry - The Wedding of Patricia and Glenn Fowler - June Fourteenth, Nineteen Eighty-Six."
- Page eleven contained the signature "Daniel Marsh Fowler" with a Columbus address and the inscription "so happy for you, Patty - it was time."
- Lori Wagner was 61 years old when she found the binder and had worked 23 years managing medical records at Cavanaugh Regional Hospital.
- Genealogist Lauren Stein found a birth record in three days: Daniel Marsh Fowler, born February 1952, Franklin County; mother listed as Cecelia Ann Marsh.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1335falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/a-stranger-finds-the-stone-that-was-never-a-grave--73105122
Curiosity turned into a crack in a family secret when a passerby photographed a small granite marker that had stood since April 1967 and noticed a fresh second engraving dated 2021 - one stone, two dates, and a mystery that reaches from a sealed DCFS file to an adoption five decades later. Who added the new line, and why did the plot exist three months before the infant was born?

In this episode, we follow how a roadside discovery in Harwick Township unfolded into questions about a 1967 cemetery plot, a voluntary relinquishment to the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services, and a lifelong search by an adoptee - all tied to the single phrase left in a cedar chest: "She will know, when it is right." What did that note mean, and how did a single photograph set these stories in motion?

Person: Kimberly Parker Voss
Date: April 1967
Location: Millford Rest cemetery, Harwick Township, Illinois
Event: Voluntary relinquishment to DCFS, September 1967
Case: Patricia Elaine Elaine (born July 1967), later adopted in Rockford

- The cemetery plot at Millford Rest was purchased by Thomas Voss in April 1967 for $40 and listed as "Parker infant" with no interment date.
- A small granite marker reading "Baby Parker - Beloved - 1967" stood at Millford Rest since 1967, with a second engraving added reading "Gone Too Soon, 2021."
- Patricia Elaine Elaine was born in July 1967 in Galford, Illinois; a DCFS voluntary relinquishment was signed by Kimberly Parker Voss in September 1967 when Patricia was about three months old.
- Kimberly kept a cedar chest containing the DCFS document, two unidentified photographs, a small savings book, and letters; these items were found in her bedroom after her death in February 2021.
- By 2022 Patricia (age 55) had been searching for her biological family for at least three years and was living in a suburb of Indianapolis.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105122Wed, 16 Sep 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaA Stranger Finds the Stone That Was Never a Grave Curiosity turned into a crack in a family secret when a passerby photographed a small granite marker that had stood since April 1967 and noticed a fresh second engraving dated 2021 - one stone, two...
Curiosity turned into a crack in a family secret when a passerby photographed a small granite marker that had stood since April 1967 and noticed a fresh second engraving dated 2021 - one stone, two dates, and a mystery that reaches from a sealed DCFS file to an adoption five decades later. Who added the new line, and why did the plot exist three months before the infant was born?

In this episode, we follow how a roadside discovery in Harwick Township unfolded into questions about a 1967 cemetery plot, a voluntary relinquishment to the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services, and a lifelong search by an adoptee - all tied to the single phrase left in a cedar chest: "She will know, when it is right." What did that note mean, and how did a single photograph set these stories in motion?

Person: Kimberly Parker Voss
Date: April 1967
Location: Millford Rest cemetery, Harwick Township, Illinois
Event: Voluntary relinquishment to DCFS, September 1967
Case: Patricia Elaine Elaine (born July 1967), later adopted in Rockford

- The cemetery plot at Millford Rest was purchased by Thomas Voss in April 1967 for $40 and listed as "Parker infant" with no interment date.
- A small granite marker reading "Baby Parker - Beloved - 1967" stood at Millford Rest since 1967, with a second engraving added reading "Gone Too Soon, 2021."
- Patricia Elaine Elaine was born in July 1967 in Galford, Illinois; a DCFS voluntary relinquishment was signed by Kimberly Parker Voss in September 1967 when Patricia was about three months old.
- Kimberly kept a cedar chest containing the DCFS document, two unidentified photographs, a small savings book, and letters; these items were found in her bedroom after her death in February 2021.
- By 2022 Patricia (age 55) had been searching for her biological family for at least three years and was living in a suburb of Indianapolis.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1418falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-314-calls-why-dad-secretly-phoned-his-first-wife-nightly--73105118
A 15-year-old finds a paper bag in a dead man’s basement containing a phone bill from April 1991 with 314 outgoing calls-all to the same number-and a shoebox of 41 sealed birthday cards addressed to the same name. How did four pages and forty-one envelopes hide a forty-year secret that rewrote Rebecca Doyle’s understanding of her father?

In this episode, we follow the discovery that brought Rebecca back to Millhaven, Ohio to settle her father’s estate and confront documents he left behind. Listen as the bill, the cards, and the gaps between them raise the question: who was Terry Collins and why did Frank Doyle call Margaret L. 314 times in one month?

Person: Frank Doyle
Date: April 1991
Location: Creekside Avenue, Millhaven, Ohio
Event: 314 outgoing calls in one month
Item: 41 sealed birthday cards dated 1984-2024

- A fifteen-year-old named Gloria Johnson found a paper bag under a folding table containing the phone bill.
- The bill contains four pages recording 314 outgoing calls, all to "Margaret L., Doyle, Pinebury, Ohio."
- The calls occurred each evening between 7:00 and 10:00, ranging from 2 to 47 minutes, with the longest on Sundays.
- Frank Doyle died in February 2023 at approximately eighty years old and was a widower since 1983.
- The shoebox in Frank’s bedroom closet held 41 stamped, addressed, sealed birthday cards to "Terry Collins" dated from 1984 through 2024, each signed "Love, Dad."

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105118Tue, 15 Sep 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe 314 Calls: Why Dad Secretly Phoned His First Wife Nightly A 15-year-old finds a paper bag in a dead man’s basement containing a phone bill from April 1991 with 314 outgoing calls-all to the same number-and a shoebox of 41 sealed birthday cards...
A 15-year-old finds a paper bag in a dead man’s basement containing a phone bill from April 1991 with 314 outgoing calls-all to the same number-and a shoebox of 41 sealed birthday cards addressed to the same name. How did four pages and forty-one envelopes hide a forty-year secret that rewrote Rebecca Doyle’s understanding of her father?

In this episode, we follow the discovery that brought Rebecca back to Millhaven, Ohio to settle her father’s estate and confront documents he left behind. Listen as the bill, the cards, and the gaps between them raise the question: who was Terry Collins and why did Frank Doyle call Margaret L. 314 times in one month?

Person: Frank Doyle
Date: April 1991
Location: Creekside Avenue, Millhaven, Ohio
Event: 314 outgoing calls in one month
Item: 41 sealed birthday cards dated 1984-2024

- A fifteen-year-old named Gloria Johnson found a paper bag under a folding table containing the phone bill.
- The bill contains four pages recording 314 outgoing calls, all to "Margaret L., Doyle, Pinebury, Ohio."
- The calls occurred each evening between 7:00 and 10:00, ranging from 2 to 47 minutes, with the longest on Sundays.
- Frank Doyle died in February 2023 at approximately eighty years old and was a widower since 1983.
- The shoebox in Frank’s bedroom closet held 41 stamped, addressed, sealed birthday cards to "Terry Collins" dated from 1984 through 2024, each signed "Love, Dad."

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1249falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/a-face-at-the-window-reveals-her-mother-s-secret-life--73105116
Fear and a single clue collide: a photocopy mailed as a joke in 2019 shows a school portrait with a face at the gym window that Megan Allen instantly recognizes as her mother, missing since 1991 - why had no one seen it for decades, and what does the name on the enrollment record mean for the life Sandra led after she vanished?

In this episode, we follow the trace from a studio code on a photocopy to a small Missouri elementary school, the binder that names a transfer student, and the discovery that places Sandra Allen standing at a gym window in 1996 - could that photograph finally answer where she went and why she never returned?

Person: Megan Allen
Date: March 3, 2019
Location: Carbondale, Illinois
Event: Photocopy of school portrait arrives in mailbox
School: Grange Hill Elementary, Grange Hill, Missouri

- The photocopy arrived in Megan Allen’s apartment mailbox on March 3, 2019.
- Sandra Allen disappeared from Murphysboro, Illinois in November 1991 when Megan was four.
- Megan was thirty-two years old when she received the photocopy in 2019.
- The original portrait studio code read “Havermill Photo, Grange Hill Elementary” and matched spring 1996.
- School enrollment recorded “Amy Briggs, transfer student, enrolled September 1992” with parents listed as Neil and Sandra Briggs, address Rural Route Four, Grange Hill, Missouri.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105116Mon, 14 Sep 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaA Face at the Window Reveals Her Mother's Secret Life Fear and a single clue collide: a photocopy mailed as a joke in 2019 shows a school portrait with a face at the gym window that Megan Allen instantly recognizes as her mother, missing since 1991...
Fear and a single clue collide: a photocopy mailed as a joke in 2019 shows a school portrait with a face at the gym window that Megan Allen instantly recognizes as her mother, missing since 1991 - why had no one seen it for decades, and what does the name on the enrollment record mean for the life Sandra led after she vanished?

In this episode, we follow the trace from a studio code on a photocopy to a small Missouri elementary school, the binder that names a transfer student, and the discovery that places Sandra Allen standing at a gym window in 1996 - could that photograph finally answer where she went and why she never returned?

Person: Megan Allen
Date: March 3, 2019
Location: Carbondale, Illinois
Event: Photocopy of school portrait arrives in mailbox
School: Grange Hill Elementary, Grange Hill, Missouri

- The photocopy arrived in Megan Allen’s apartment mailbox on March 3, 2019.
- Sandra Allen disappeared from Murphysboro, Illinois in November 1991 when Megan was four.
- Megan was thirty-two years old when she received the photocopy in 2019.
- The original portrait studio code read “Havermill Photo, Grange Hill Elementary” and matched spring 1996.
- School enrollment recorded “Amy Briggs, transfer student, enrolled September 1992” with parents listed as Neil and Sandra Briggs, address Rural Route Four, Grange Hill, Missouri.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1329falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-locket-two-sons-and-the-call-sandra-kept-for-46-years--73105113
A cold February morning, a lineman finds a silver locket containing his mother's photo six feet above the street - she had been dead for ten years and had been calling another woman at 2 a.m. every February night for 46 years. Who was the second son no one in town ever acknowledged, and why did Sandra keep a secret that rewrites a family's history?

In this episode, you will hear the sequence of discoveries that followed the locket: the pregnancy and births in August 1963, a formal adoption in January 1964, decades of a midnight phone call ending at Sandra's death in March 2009 - and the questions those facts leave open about identity and silence. How did a locket, an unsigned letter, and a box under a bed connect a mother to two sons separated by law and distance?

Person: Sandra Mercer (later Sandra Hall)
Date: February 2019 (locket found)
Date: August 1963 (birth of twins)
Date: January 1964 (legal adoption of second son)
Date: March 2009 (Sandra's death)

- The locket was found hanging from a rusted nail on a transformer housing six feet above the ground.
- Robert Hall was 47 years old when he found the locket on a Tuesday in the second week of February 2019.
- Sandra made a phone call at 2 a.m. in February on a Wednesday night for roughly 46 years to Helen Quinn in Altoona, Pennsylvania.
- Both infants born in August 1963 survived; one left the hospital the same day with Helen Quinn, who later legally adopted him in January 1964.
- Sandra died in March 2009 at a nursing facility near Columbus; Helen Quinn's name appeared on the funeral sign-in sheet.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105113Sun, 13 Sep 2026 13:00:03 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Locket, Two Sons, and the Call Sandra Kept for 46 Years A cold February morning, a lineman finds a silver locket containing his mother's photo six feet above the street - she had been dead for ten years and had been calling another woman at 2...
A cold February morning, a lineman finds a silver locket containing his mother's photo six feet above the street - she had been dead for ten years and had been calling another woman at 2 a.m. every February night for 46 years. Who was the second son no one in town ever acknowledged, and why did Sandra keep a secret that rewrites a family's history?

In this episode, you will hear the sequence of discoveries that followed the locket: the pregnancy and births in August 1963, a formal adoption in January 1964, decades of a midnight phone call ending at Sandra's death in March 2009 - and the questions those facts leave open about identity and silence. How did a locket, an unsigned letter, and a box under a bed connect a mother to two sons separated by law and distance?

Person: Sandra Mercer (later Sandra Hall)
Date: February 2019 (locket found)
Date: August 1963 (birth of twins)
Date: January 1964 (legal adoption of second son)
Date: March 2009 (Sandra's death)

- The locket was found hanging from a rusted nail on a transformer housing six feet above the ground.
- Robert Hall was 47 years old when he found the locket on a Tuesday in the second week of February 2019.
- Sandra made a phone call at 2 a.m. in February on a Wednesday night for roughly 46 years to Helen Quinn in Altoona, Pennsylvania.
- Both infants born in August 1963 survived; one left the hospital the same day with Helen Quinn, who later legally adopted him in January 1964.
- Sandra died in March 2009 at a nursing facility near Columbus; Helen Quinn's name appeared on the funeral sign-in sheet.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1256falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-paper-that-revealed-a-family-no-one-knew-existed--73105112
A faded pediatric intake form, found blowing across a storage‑unit parking lot in January 2019, carried a blood type-AB-that did not fit the family story and upended nearly four decades of silence; what happens when a single blue‑ballpoint note exposes a hidden parentage? Who did Thomas R. Alderman's B allele come from, and what should relatives do when the person it was meant for is already dead?

In this episode, we follow the chain of discovery from a cardboard box at Cloverfield self‑storage to a kitchen counter in Linden County, Ohio, as a photograph of the form posted online leads family members to reexamine long‑held assumptions and confront the question of truth after loss.

Person: Thomas R. Alderman
Date: February 7, 1983
Location: Tullard Memorial, Tullard, Ohio
Event: Pediatric intake form found January 9, 2019
Status: Tommy died at age 29 from a stroke in 2008

- The paper was found stuck to Nancy Dalton’s shin at 9:14 AM on January 9, 2019.
- The intake form lists patient Thomas R. Alderman, age 4, with blood type AB written in blue ballpoint.
- The form had spent 11 years inside a cardboard box at Cloverfield self‑storage before being scattered by wind.
- Thomas R. Alderman died in 2008 at age 29 from a stroke.
- Melvin Peterson viewed the posted photograph around January 17 and received the original paper by mail on January 18.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105112Sat, 12 Sep 2026 13:00:03 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Paper That Revealed a Family No One Knew Existed A faded pediatric intake form, found blowing across a storage‑unit parking lot in January 2019, carried a blood type-AB-that did not fit the family story and upended nearly four decades of...
A faded pediatric intake form, found blowing across a storage‑unit parking lot in January 2019, carried a blood type-AB-that did not fit the family story and upended nearly four decades of silence; what happens when a single blue‑ballpoint note exposes a hidden parentage? Who did Thomas R. Alderman's B allele come from, and what should relatives do when the person it was meant for is already dead?

In this episode, we follow the chain of discovery from a cardboard box at Cloverfield self‑storage to a kitchen counter in Linden County, Ohio, as a photograph of the form posted online leads family members to reexamine long‑held assumptions and confront the question of truth after loss.

Person: Thomas R. Alderman
Date: February 7, 1983
Location: Tullard Memorial, Tullard, Ohio
Event: Pediatric intake form found January 9, 2019
Status: Tommy died at age 29 from a stroke in 2008

- The paper was found stuck to Nancy Dalton’s shin at 9:14 AM on January 9, 2019.
- The intake form lists patient Thomas R. Alderman, age 4, with blood type AB written in blue ballpoint.
- The form had spent 11 years inside a cardboard box at Cloverfield self‑storage before being scattered by wind.
- Thomas R. Alderman died in 2008 at age 29 from a stroke.
- Melvin Peterson viewed the posted photograph around January 17 and received the original paper by mail on January 18.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1187falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-hidden-deed-why-my-grandfather-bought-land-under-another-name--73105109
Fear that a hidden life will unravel in plain sight: a deed dated September 1971 reveals Arthur Calloway signing as Calloway-Hess for 14 acres six miles east of Fenwick, a paper wedged behind clapboard for 48 years-what secret tied his two names together?

In this episode, we follow how a pale green deed found in December 2019 forced a family to reconcile two surnames and decades of silence, as Tracy Morgan pieces together why Arthur used a hyphenated name and who "Keith" might have been.

Person: Arthur Calloway (born Arthur Hess)
Date: September 1971 (deed); December 2019 (discovery); March 2018 (Arthur's death)
Location: Fourteen acres, six miles east of Fenwick town, Fenwick County
Finder: Marvin Barnes, Dellfield Gas and Electric meter reader
Estate handler: Tracy Morgan, bookkeeper; attorney Bill Cooke

- The deed was dated September 1971 and recorded in the Fenwick County Recorder's format on pale green paper.
- The property described comprised fourteen acres located six miles east of Fenwick town.
- The deed bore the hyphenated name "Arthur Calloway-Hess" linking both surnames.
- Marvin Barnes found the folded deed in December 2019 wedged between a gas meter housing and warped clapboard siding at Fourteen Orchard Spur Road.
- Arthur was born in Fenwick County in 1934, left around 1952 at age eighteen, and died in March 2018.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105109Fri, 11 Sep 2026 13:00:03 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Hidden Deed: Why My Grandfather Bought Land Under Another Name Fear that a hidden life will unravel in plain sight: a deed dated September 1971 reveals Arthur Calloway signing as Calloway-Hess for 14 acres six miles east of Fenwick, a paper...
Fear that a hidden life will unravel in plain sight: a deed dated September 1971 reveals Arthur Calloway signing as Calloway-Hess for 14 acres six miles east of Fenwick, a paper wedged behind clapboard for 48 years-what secret tied his two names together?

In this episode, we follow how a pale green deed found in December 2019 forced a family to reconcile two surnames and decades of silence, as Tracy Morgan pieces together why Arthur used a hyphenated name and who "Keith" might have been.

Person: Arthur Calloway (born Arthur Hess)
Date: September 1971 (deed); December 2019 (discovery); March 2018 (Arthur's death)
Location: Fourteen acres, six miles east of Fenwick town, Fenwick County
Finder: Marvin Barnes, Dellfield Gas and Electric meter reader
Estate handler: Tracy Morgan, bookkeeper; attorney Bill Cooke

- The deed was dated September 1971 and recorded in the Fenwick County Recorder's format on pale green paper.
- The property described comprised fourteen acres located six miles east of Fenwick town.
- The deed bore the hyphenated name "Arthur Calloway-Hess" linking both surnames.
- Marvin Barnes found the folded deed in December 2019 wedged between a gas meter housing and warped clapboard siding at Fourteen Orchard Spur Road.
- Arthur was born in Fenwick County in 1934, left around 1952 at age eighteen, and died in March 2018.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1108falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/she-died-not-knowing-the-secret-life-of-loretta-schell--73105106
Fear and curiosity collide when a black leather Bible turns up with a single margin note: "Loretta, born March 9, 1951. God keep her." Who was Loretta Schell, why was there no official record of her birth, and what family secret had been buried for sixty-eight years?

In this episode, we follow how a retired postal worker found the Bible in a church donation, how a daughter named Brenda connected the note to her elderly mother Ruth, and how a single photograph in a closet confirmed a hidden family story - but left the central question open: what happened to Loretta after she was placed with another family?

Person: Norma Schell
Date: March 9, 1951
Event: Birth of a girl named Loretta
Location: Pettis Township / Decatur County area
Discovery: Bible found November 4, 2019

- The Bible was a black leather King James with "DALTON" in gilt on the cover.
- The margin note "Loretta, born March 9, 1951. God keep her." was written in small compressed left-leaning handwriting.
- No birth record for any Loretta appeared in Pettis Township or Millford county seat records for the first six months of 1951.
- A three-by-five black-and-white photograph labeled on the back "N. and baby, June 1951" was found in an envelope marked "1950s misc."
- Norma Schell died in 1994 and had never married; the baby was placed informally with a family in Decatur County with no paperwork.

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© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105106Thu, 10 Sep 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaShe Died Not Knowing: The Secret Life of Loretta Schell Fear and curiosity collide when a black leather Bible turns up with a single margin note: "Loretta, born March 9, 1951. God keep her." Who was Loretta Schell, why was there no official record...
Fear and curiosity collide when a black leather Bible turns up with a single margin note: "Loretta, born March 9, 1951. God keep her." Who was Loretta Schell, why was there no official record of her birth, and what family secret had been buried for sixty-eight years?

In this episode, we follow how a retired postal worker found the Bible in a church donation, how a daughter named Brenda connected the note to her elderly mother Ruth, and how a single photograph in a closet confirmed a hidden family story - but left the central question open: what happened to Loretta after she was placed with another family?

Person: Norma Schell
Date: March 9, 1951
Event: Birth of a girl named Loretta
Location: Pettis Township / Decatur County area
Discovery: Bible found November 4, 2019

- The Bible was a black leather King James with "DALTON" in gilt on the cover.
- The margin note "Loretta, born March 9, 1951. God keep her." was written in small compressed left-leaning handwriting.
- No birth record for any Loretta appeared in Pettis Township or Millford county seat records for the first six months of 1951.
- A three-by-five black-and-white photograph labeled on the back "N. and baby, June 1951" was found in an envelope marked "1950s misc."
- Norma Schell died in 1994 and had never married; the baby was placed informally with a family in Decatur County with no paperwork.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1181falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-man-buried-twice-who-cashed-a-surveyor-s-pension-for-22-years--73105103
Fear that someone you trusted quietly erased a life and collected $108,000 in pension checks for two decades - that shock is the first thing you feel when a basset hound noses a $ check from a drainage ditch. The pension sequence shows payments from 2001 through 2022 to a man buried in Dellworth Municipal Cemetery; who kept the fraud alive, and why did no one stop it sooner?

In this episode, we tell how routine records, a retiring doctor, and a family’s private coping created a decades-long paper trail that let a supposed death turn into steady income, and we ask whether the loose ends the county left behind can ever be tied up.

Person: Raymond Allen Cutler
Event: Pension payments from 2001 to 2022
Amount: $108,000
Location: Dellworth Municipal Cemetery, plot fourteen
Witness: Russell Farrell

- A check found in October 2022 matched a continuous sequence of pension payments dating back to 2001.
- Raymond Cutler was listed as deceased on a death certificate signed by Dr. Howard Vass in February 2000.
- A bank account opened in March 2001 at Dellworth Savings used Raymond T. Cutler’s Social Security number and valid identification.
- A headstone for Raymond was ordered from Ketterman Memorials in March 2003 and paid in cash.
- Bette Cutler, Raymond’s wife, died in 2007 and Dr. Howard Vass died in 2009, after which the pension continued to be paid.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105103Wed, 09 Sep 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Man Buried Twice: Who Cashed a Surveyor's Pension for 22 Years? Fear that someone you trusted quietly erased a life and collected $108,000 in pension checks for two decades - that shock is the first thing you feel when a basset hound noses a $...
Fear that someone you trusted quietly erased a life and collected $108,000 in pension checks for two decades - that shock is the first thing you feel when a basset hound noses a $ check from a drainage ditch. The pension sequence shows payments from 2001 through 2022 to a man buried in Dellworth Municipal Cemetery; who kept the fraud alive, and why did no one stop it sooner?

In this episode, we tell how routine records, a retiring doctor, and a family’s private coping created a decades-long paper trail that let a supposed death turn into steady income, and we ask whether the loose ends the county left behind can ever be tied up.

Person: Raymond Allen Cutler
Event: Pension payments from 2001 to 2022
Amount: $108,000
Location: Dellworth Municipal Cemetery, plot fourteen
Witness: Russell Farrell

- A check found in October 2022 matched a continuous sequence of pension payments dating back to 2001.
- Raymond Cutler was listed as deceased on a death certificate signed by Dr. Howard Vass in February 2000.
- A bank account opened in March 2001 at Dellworth Savings used Raymond T. Cutler’s Social Security number and valid identification.
- A headstone for Raymond was ordered from Ketterman Memorials in March 2003 and paid in cash.
- Bette Cutler, Raymond’s wife, died in 2007 and Dr. Howard Vass died in 2009, after which the pension continued to be paid.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1405falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/two-sealed-birth-certificates-two-missing-siblings-one-family-secret--73105102
A mason jar pulled from Aucoin Creek in 2019 held a perfectly dry birth certificate for Diane Lewis dated September 3, 1978 - and three weeks earlier a second sealed jar under a nearby subfloor contained a matching certificate for Robert Lewis. How did two authentic-seeming county birth certificates for children nobody in Garnett County ever recorded end up preserved in glass across the same property, and who put them there?

In this episode, we follow Denise Miller as she takes two mysterious documents from her mother’s kitchen table to the Garnett County recorder, tracing every odd detail from the creek to the registrar’s files and asking whether a paper trail can reveal a hidden family history. What the records - and the people who remember the land - can and cannot tell her becomes the central question she must answer.

Person: Denise Miller
Person: Cheryl (Miller’s mother)
Event: Jar found in Aucoin Creek on September 14, 2019
Event: Second jar found beneath rear bedroom subfloor in late August 2019
Date: Birth certificates dated September 3, 1978

- A mason jar recovered from Aucoin Creek on September 14, 2019 contained a sealed, dry birth certificate naming Diane Lewis.
- A second sealed mason jar found under a rear bedroom subfloor less than 600 yards from the creek contained a birth certificate for Robert Lewis with the same birth date.
- Forensic analysis in St. Louis confirmed the paper, typeface, and county seal on the documents were consistent with the period.
- Garnett County registrar Paul Ingram reported that neither Diane nor Robert Lewis appears in any birth register for 1978, nor for August or September of that year.
- Denise Miller, a 38-year-old insurance adjuster, began the inquiry after her mother Cheryl, age 61, received word of the jars and had never before known of any siblings.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105102Tue, 08 Sep 2026 13:00:03 +0000Creator at ObomediaTwo Sealed Birth Certificates, Two Missing Siblings, One Family Secret A mason jar pulled from Aucoin Creek in 2019 held a perfectly dry birth certificate for Diane Lewis dated September 3, 1978 - and three weeks earlier a second sealed jar under a...
A mason jar pulled from Aucoin Creek in 2019 held a perfectly dry birth certificate for Diane Lewis dated September 3, 1978 - and three weeks earlier a second sealed jar under a nearby subfloor contained a matching certificate for Robert Lewis. How did two authentic-seeming county birth certificates for children nobody in Garnett County ever recorded end up preserved in glass across the same property, and who put them there?

In this episode, we follow Denise Miller as she takes two mysterious documents from her mother’s kitchen table to the Garnett County recorder, tracing every odd detail from the creek to the registrar’s files and asking whether a paper trail can reveal a hidden family history. What the records - and the people who remember the land - can and cannot tell her becomes the central question she must answer.

Person: Denise Miller
Person: Cheryl (Miller’s mother)
Event: Jar found in Aucoin Creek on September 14, 2019
Event: Second jar found beneath rear bedroom subfloor in late August 2019
Date: Birth certificates dated September 3, 1978

- A mason jar recovered from Aucoin Creek on September 14, 2019 contained a sealed, dry birth certificate naming Diane Lewis.
- A second sealed mason jar found under a rear bedroom subfloor less than 600 yards from the creek contained a birth certificate for Robert Lewis with the same birth date.
- Forensic analysis in St. Louis confirmed the paper, typeface, and county seal on the documents were consistent with the period.
- Garnett County registrar Paul Ingram reported that neither Diane nor Robert Lewis appears in any birth register for 1978, nor for August or September of that year.
- Denise Miller, a 38-year-old insurance adjuster, began the inquiry after her mother Cheryl, age 61, received word of the jars and had never before known of any siblings.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1206falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-photograph-buried-in-concrete-that-rewrote-a-family-s-past--73105100
A four-inch-by-three photograph sealed in concrete for seventy-three years turned up with a folded letter and a stopped wristwatch - and the pencil inscription on the back read "Sal, August 1944, for Mom." Who was the young man in the uniform, why did the handwriting belong to Ralph Russo's grandfather, and what did those items mean for a family story that suddenly didn't fit?

In this episode, we follow how a county surveyor's routine boundary correction led a Harlen hardware-store owner to open a package that challenged decades of family memory. Listen to how a recovered photograph, a woman's handwritten note, and a military watch force Ralph to question who his grandfather really was and where a name like Louise Crane belongs in the family history.

Person: Ralph Russo
Person: Sal Russo
Person: Diane Russo
Event: Boundary correction recovery
Date: August 2019

- The photograph measured four inches by three on cream-colored paper stock.
- The photograph had been sealed inside concrete for seventy-three years.
- The pencil inscription on the back read "Sal, August 1944, for Mom."
- Ralph Russo was sixty-two years old in the summer of 2019.
- Everett Powell was killed in action at age twenty-four in the Pacific Theater.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105100Mon, 07 Sep 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Photograph Buried in Concrete That Rewrote a Family's Past A four-inch-by-three photograph sealed in concrete for seventy-three years turned up with a folded letter and a stopped wristwatch - and the pencil inscription on the back read "Sal,...
A four-inch-by-three photograph sealed in concrete for seventy-three years turned up with a folded letter and a stopped wristwatch - and the pencil inscription on the back read "Sal, August 1944, for Mom." Who was the young man in the uniform, why did the handwriting belong to Ralph Russo's grandfather, and what did those items mean for a family story that suddenly didn't fit?

In this episode, we follow how a county surveyor's routine boundary correction led a Harlen hardware-store owner to open a package that challenged decades of family memory. Listen to how a recovered photograph, a woman's handwritten note, and a military watch force Ralph to question who his grandfather really was and where a name like Louise Crane belongs in the family history.

Person: Ralph Russo
Person: Sal Russo
Person: Diane Russo
Event: Boundary correction recovery
Date: August 2019

- The photograph measured four inches by three on cream-colored paper stock.
- The photograph had been sealed inside concrete for seventy-three years.
- The pencil inscription on the back read "Sal, August 1944, for Mom."
- Ralph Russo was sixty-two years old in the summer of 2019.
- Everett Powell was killed in action at age twenty-four in the Pacific Theater.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1415falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-hidden-father-envelope-photograph-and-a-lie-that-lasted-decades--73105096
A sealed envelope taped to a cinderblock wall for decades contained a single handwritten name and a directive in a will - and it quietly held the key to a closed adoption that connected three neighbors across Harwick. How did an envelope labeled "Dennis White. Personal." survive half-peeled tape and twenty-four years of deliberate silence, and who decided to keep that secret?

In this episode, we follow the discovery of the envelope and the threads it unravels: the adoptee Dennis White, the retired machinist Curtis Rice who left the envelope, and the birth family decision that placed Dennis with Louise White - a childhood neighbor of his birth mother. What does the envelope reveal about choices made in 1994 and the loyalties that kept them hidden?

Person: Dennis White
Person: Curtis Rice
Person: Louise White
Date: July 9, 2019
Event: Envelope found taped to basement wall

- The envelope was found at 7:40 a.m. on July 9, 2019 behind a utility shelf in the basement of a house on Briar Hollow Road.
- The envelope front was labeled in blue ballpoint: "Dennis White. Personal."
- Curtis Rice lived in the house for 22 years and died eight months before the envelope was found at age 71.
- Dennis White was adopted in 1995 through a closed agency and was 24 years old at the time of the envelope discovery.
- In December 1994 Curtis Rice paid cash for a paternity-related genetic screening and later drafted a letter he never sent.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105096Sun, 06 Sep 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Hidden Father: Envelope, Photograph, and a Lie That Lasted Decades A sealed envelope taped to a cinderblock wall for decades contained a single handwritten name and a directive in a will - and it quietly held the key to a closed adoption that...
A sealed envelope taped to a cinderblock wall for decades contained a single handwritten name and a directive in a will - and it quietly held the key to a closed adoption that connected three neighbors across Harwick. How did an envelope labeled "Dennis White. Personal." survive half-peeled tape and twenty-four years of deliberate silence, and who decided to keep that secret?

In this episode, we follow the discovery of the envelope and the threads it unravels: the adoptee Dennis White, the retired machinist Curtis Rice who left the envelope, and the birth family decision that placed Dennis with Louise White - a childhood neighbor of his birth mother. What does the envelope reveal about choices made in 1994 and the loyalties that kept them hidden?

Person: Dennis White
Person: Curtis Rice
Person: Louise White
Date: July 9, 2019
Event: Envelope found taped to basement wall

- The envelope was found at 7:40 a.m. on July 9, 2019 behind a utility shelf in the basement of a house on Briar Hollow Road.
- The envelope front was labeled in blue ballpoint: "Dennis White. Personal."
- Curtis Rice lived in the house for 22 years and died eight months before the envelope was found at age 71.
- Dennis White was adopted in 1995 through a closed agency and was 24 years old at the time of the envelope discovery.
- In December 1994 Curtis Rice paid cash for a paternity-related genetic screening and later drafted a letter he never sent.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1159falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/a-dead-man-s-card-surfaces-the-glenn-weaver-case--73105095
A laminated community pool card with a clear photo and a June 1992 expiration was pulled from Harrow Pond in 2019 - the man pictured, Glenn Weaver, had been declared drowned in 1991 and never recovered. The card showed a fresh tideline indicating recent submersion, and it turned up eleven miles from where his staged disappearance began; what did a dead man’s membership card mean for the family who kept his secret for 28 years?

In this episode, we trace the timeline from a staged car on Millhaven Road bridge in June 1991 to weekly Wednesday calls that lasted until 2019, following Glenn’s new identity as Gerald Muns, his life in Carver Falls, and the letters sent from rotating post offices that sustained a family secret - what finally explains the pool card and why was the truth kept from their mother?

Person: Glenn Weaver
Event: staged disappearance with car left on Millhaven Road bridge (June 1991)
Location: Harrow Pond, Brackett Township, Ohio (card found June 11, 2019)
Identity used: Gerald Muns (appeared on rental and tax records 1993-2018)
Letters sent: 26 letters mailed from different post offices over 28 years

- The pool card was found at 5:45 AM on June 11, 2019, wedged four feet from the bank in a half-submerged willow root.
- The card’s expiration date read June 1992, and the pool (Millhaven Community Pool) was demolished in 2004.
- Glenn Weaver was recorded as drowned on June 14, 1991, with no body recovered.
- Glenn adopted the name Gerald Muns and filed federal tax returns under that name every year from 1993 through 2018.
- Sandra placed a collect call on October 1991 and then called Glenn every Wednesday at 11:00 AM for 28 years without documented interruption.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105095Sat, 05 Sep 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaA Dead Man's Card Surfaces: The Glenn Weaver Case A laminated community pool card with a clear photo and a June 1992 expiration was pulled from Harrow Pond in 2019 - the man pictured, Glenn Weaver, had been declared drowned in 1991 and never...
A laminated community pool card with a clear photo and a June 1992 expiration was pulled from Harrow Pond in 2019 - the man pictured, Glenn Weaver, had been declared drowned in 1991 and never recovered. The card showed a fresh tideline indicating recent submersion, and it turned up eleven miles from where his staged disappearance began; what did a dead man’s membership card mean for the family who kept his secret for 28 years?

In this episode, we trace the timeline from a staged car on Millhaven Road bridge in June 1991 to weekly Wednesday calls that lasted until 2019, following Glenn’s new identity as Gerald Muns, his life in Carver Falls, and the letters sent from rotating post offices that sustained a family secret - what finally explains the pool card and why was the truth kept from their mother?

Person: Glenn Weaver
Event: staged disappearance with car left on Millhaven Road bridge (June 1991)
Location: Harrow Pond, Brackett Township, Ohio (card found June 11, 2019)
Identity used: Gerald Muns (appeared on rental and tax records 1993-2018)
Letters sent: 26 letters mailed from different post offices over 28 years

- The pool card was found at 5:45 AM on June 11, 2019, wedged four feet from the bank in a half-submerged willow root.
- The card’s expiration date read June 1992, and the pool (Millhaven Community Pool) was demolished in 2004.
- Glenn Weaver was recorded as drowned on June 14, 1991, with no body recovered.
- Glenn adopted the name Gerald Muns and filed federal tax returns under that name every year from 1993 through 2018.
- Sandra placed a collect call on October 1991 and then called Glenn every Wednesday at 11:00 AM for 28 years without documented interruption.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1218falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-portrait-that-revealed-my-father-s-secret-marriage--73105093
Curiosity turns to unease in a single moment: a 14-year-old paper carrier finds an open door and a small framed portrait that no one recognized, and that photograph upends a 54-year-old son’s certainty about his family history. Who were the man and woman dated May 3, 1971, and why was that portrait kept for decades in a closet where everyone could have seen it?

In this episode, we follow how a found portrait, eleven handwritten letters, and public records force a family to confront a hidden marriage the household never acknowledged. What did the marriage license and the divorce decree reveal, and why were letters from Miriam addressed to Sandra?

Person: Douglas Allen Vogel
Date: April 29, 1971 (marriage license)
Date: November 1972 (divorce decree)
Person: Miriam Louise Hecht
Person: Sandra Vogel

- A 14-year-old paper carrier named Roger Vickers discovered the open front door at 412 Caldwell Avenue on the morning of May 11, 2019.
- The portrait found was wooden-framed, eight inches by ten, with handwriting reading "Douglas and Miriam - May 3, 1971."
- Eleven handwritten letters from Miriam, postmarked between September 1973 and March 1982, were found in a manila envelope beneath the portrait.
- Douglas Allen Vogel died on April 24, 2019, at age 78, and had lived at 412 Caldwell Avenue for decades.
- Public records show Douglas and Miriam married April 29, 1971, and a divorce decree was filed in November 1972 citing irreconcilable differences.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105093Fri, 04 Sep 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Portrait That Revealed My Father's Secret Marriage Curiosity turns to unease in a single moment: a 14-year-old paper carrier finds an open door and a small framed portrait that no one recognized, and that photograph upends a 54-year-old son’s...
Curiosity turns to unease in a single moment: a 14-year-old paper carrier finds an open door and a small framed portrait that no one recognized, and that photograph upends a 54-year-old son’s certainty about his family history. Who were the man and woman dated May 3, 1971, and why was that portrait kept for decades in a closet where everyone could have seen it?

In this episode, we follow how a found portrait, eleven handwritten letters, and public records force a family to confront a hidden marriage the household never acknowledged. What did the marriage license and the divorce decree reveal, and why were letters from Miriam addressed to Sandra?

Person: Douglas Allen Vogel
Date: April 29, 1971 (marriage license)
Date: November 1972 (divorce decree)
Person: Miriam Louise Hecht
Person: Sandra Vogel

- A 14-year-old paper carrier named Roger Vickers discovered the open front door at 412 Caldwell Avenue on the morning of May 11, 2019.
- The portrait found was wooden-framed, eight inches by ten, with handwriting reading "Douglas and Miriam - May 3, 1971."
- Eleven handwritten letters from Miriam, postmarked between September 1973 and March 1982, were found in a manila envelope beneath the portrait.
- Douglas Allen Vogel died on April 24, 2019, at age 78, and had lived at 412 Caldwell Avenue for decades.
- Public records show Douglas and Miriam married April 29, 1971, and a divorce decree was filed in November 1972 citing irreconcilable differences.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1132falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/mother-buried-the-truth-for-52-years-the-switched-babies-of-room-4--73105092
Fear and astonishment: two hospital bracelets stamped April 14, 1971 - both reading Room Four - were found buried in a field in 2019, hinting at a secret kept for 52 years; who moved two newborns that night and why were the bracelets hidden in a metal strongbox? What follows is a family unraveling that pivots on a single nursing note and a mother's line, "I always thought this day would come."

In this episode, we follow how a discarded strongbox, a consumer DNA match and a reunion conversation lead a woman to confront her mother's confession about April 14, 1971, and the cryptic hospital entry that ordered infants in Room Four to be repositioned. How did two newborns end up swapped into different families, and what does the smeared order tell us?

Person: Vicki Young
Person: Agnes Young
Person: Roy Long
Date: April 14, 1971
Event: Strongbox discovered April 9, 2019

- A green metal strongbox was unearthed by a road-grader operator on April 9, 2019 along Teller Creek Road.
- Inside the box were two plastic maternity bracelets stamped April 14, 1971, both listing Room Four at Crestline County General Hospital.
- One bracelet read BABY GIRL YOUNG and the other read BABY GIRL LONG.
- Vicki Young discovered a 25% DNA match to Roy Long after her high school reunion in August 2019.
- The nursing log for Room Four contains a single April 14, 1971 entry at 3:40 a.m.: "R4 infants, repositioned per Dr. Ashford's order," with Dr. Ashford not found in hospital staff records.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105092Thu, 03 Sep 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaMother Buried the Truth for 52 Years: The Switched Babies of Room 4 Fear and astonishment: two hospital bracelets stamped April 14, 1971 - both reading Room Four - were found buried in a field in 2019, hinting at a secret kept for 52 years; who...
Fear and astonishment: two hospital bracelets stamped April 14, 1971 - both reading Room Four - were found buried in a field in 2019, hinting at a secret kept for 52 years; who moved two newborns that night and why were the bracelets hidden in a metal strongbox? What follows is a family unraveling that pivots on a single nursing note and a mother's line, "I always thought this day would come."

In this episode, we follow how a discarded strongbox, a consumer DNA match and a reunion conversation lead a woman to confront her mother's confession about April 14, 1971, and the cryptic hospital entry that ordered infants in Room Four to be repositioned. How did two newborns end up swapped into different families, and what does the smeared order tell us?

Person: Vicki Young
Person: Agnes Young
Person: Roy Long
Date: April 14, 1971
Event: Strongbox discovered April 9, 2019

- A green metal strongbox was unearthed by a road-grader operator on April 9, 2019 along Teller Creek Road.
- Inside the box were two plastic maternity bracelets stamped April 14, 1971, both listing Room Four at Crestline County General Hospital.
- One bracelet read BABY GIRL YOUNG and the other read BABY GIRL LONG.
- Vicki Young discovered a 25% DNA match to Roy Long after her high school reunion in August 2019.
- The nursing log for Room Four contains a single April 14, 1971 entry at 3:40 a.m.: "R4 infants, repositioned per Dr. Ashford's order," with Dr. Ashford not found in hospital staff records.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1294falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/stranger-opens-a-padlocked-house-the-kenneth-slater-secret--73105090
A sealed house, latched windows and a back door that had not been opened for eleven years - yet a freshly wiped five-by-seven photograph sat on the kitchen windowsill with the words "For when you're ready" scrawled on its back. The photograph pointed to a forty-year secret and a man who had been sending money to another family while his own believed there was no other life; who placed the frame and why did he wait so long?

In this episode, we follow the discovery on Coppermill Lane and the family revelations that unfolded when Sharon Romano returned to the house; we trace Kenneth Slater’s hidden past, the intake form redaction at Dellwood County Regional, and the photograph that forced a reckoning. What does the photograph mean for a family reconfigured by secrecy?

Person: Kenneth Slater
Person: Sharon Romano
Person: Thomas Slater
Date: March 2019
Location: Coppermill Lane, Maben, Indiana

- The house had been empty for eleven years when Patricia Gardner found the photograph on a kitchen windowsill.
- The photograph was five inches by seven in a silver frame with the front glass wiped clean and dust thick on the back.
- The back of the frame bore four words written in blue ballpoint: "For when you're ready."
- Kenneth Slater was born in 1935 and was diagnosed with vascular dementia in 2006.
- Thomas Slater was born on March 14, 1961, and Kenneth did not learn of him until Thomas was eight years old.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105090Wed, 02 Sep 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaStranger Opens a Padlocked House: The Kenneth Slater Secret A sealed house, latched windows and a back door that had not been opened for eleven years - yet a freshly wiped five-by-seven photograph sat on the kitchen windowsill with the words "For...
A sealed house, latched windows and a back door that had not been opened for eleven years - yet a freshly wiped five-by-seven photograph sat on the kitchen windowsill with the words "For when you're ready" scrawled on its back. The photograph pointed to a forty-year secret and a man who had been sending money to another family while his own believed there was no other life; who placed the frame and why did he wait so long?

In this episode, we follow the discovery on Coppermill Lane and the family revelations that unfolded when Sharon Romano returned to the house; we trace Kenneth Slater’s hidden past, the intake form redaction at Dellwood County Regional, and the photograph that forced a reckoning. What does the photograph mean for a family reconfigured by secrecy?

Person: Kenneth Slater
Person: Sharon Romano
Person: Thomas Slater
Date: March 2019
Location: Coppermill Lane, Maben, Indiana

- The house had been empty for eleven years when Patricia Gardner found the photograph on a kitchen windowsill.
- The photograph was five inches by seven in a silver frame with the front glass wiped clean and dust thick on the back.
- The back of the frame bore four words written in blue ballpoint: "For when you're ready."
- Kenneth Slater was born in 1935 and was diagnosed with vascular dementia in 2006.
- Thomas Slater was born on March 14, 1961, and Kenneth did not learn of him until Thomas was eight years old.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1342falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-attic-box-that-hid-a-daughter-for-six-decades--73105089
A retired postal worker found a paper-ream box on the curb outside 14 Fenmore Drive on February 9, 2022, with a 1961 hospital photo of "Eleanor Voss Tillman" and 67 handwritten letters inside - but Eleanor had died eleven months earlier and her family never knew of a baby from 1961. How did a life that began in 1961 run parallel to this family for decades without a single law being broken?

In this episode, we walk through the physical evidence found in the box and the timeline it reveals, from the photograph's July 19, 1961 date stamp to the stack of letters postmarked between 1988 and 2009, and consider the secret Eleanor carried that outlasted her. What does the architecture of a decades-long silence tell us about who chose it and why?

Person: Eleanor Voss Tillman
Location: 14 Fenmore Drive, Millhaven, Ohio
Date found: February 9, 2022
Photo date: July 19, 1961
Letters count: 67

- A retired postal worker named Richard Hayes discovered the box just before 7:00 AM beside the recycling bin.
- The photograph showed a woman about 20 years old in a hospital bed holding a newborn with a hospital bracelet reading "E. Voss."
- The back of the photograph was labeled in blue ballpoint ink: "Eleanor Voss Tillman, with baby."
- Eleanor died in March 2021 at age 81; the photograph surfaced eleven months after her death.
- The 67 letters were bundled and postmarked from October 1988 through January 2009, all addressed to a P.O. box in Crestfield, Indiana.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105089Tue, 01 Sep 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Attic Box That Hid a Daughter for Six Decades A retired postal worker found a paper-ream box on the curb outside 14 Fenmore Drive on February 9, 2022, with a 1961 hospital photo of "Eleanor Voss Tillman" and 67 handwritten letters inside - but...
A retired postal worker found a paper-ream box on the curb outside 14 Fenmore Drive on February 9, 2022, with a 1961 hospital photo of "Eleanor Voss Tillman" and 67 handwritten letters inside - but Eleanor had died eleven months earlier and her family never knew of a baby from 1961. How did a life that began in 1961 run parallel to this family for decades without a single law being broken?

In this episode, we walk through the physical evidence found in the box and the timeline it reveals, from the photograph's July 19, 1961 date stamp to the stack of letters postmarked between 1988 and 2009, and consider the secret Eleanor carried that outlasted her. What does the architecture of a decades-long silence tell us about who chose it and why?

Person: Eleanor Voss Tillman
Location: 14 Fenmore Drive, Millhaven, Ohio
Date found: February 9, 2022
Photo date: July 19, 1961
Letters count: 67

- A retired postal worker named Richard Hayes discovered the box just before 7:00 AM beside the recycling bin.
- The photograph showed a woman about 20 years old in a hospital bed holding a newborn with a hospital bracelet reading "E. Voss."
- The back of the photograph was labeled in blue ballpoint ink: "Eleanor Voss Tillman, with baby."
- Eleanor died in March 2021 at age 81; the photograph surfaced eleven months after her death.
- The 67 letters were bundled and postmarked from October 1988 through January 2009, all addressed to a P.O. box in Crestfield, Indiana.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1329falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/a-shoe-at-the-foundation-the-warren-ramsey-secret--73105088
Cold snow, a child's black patent-leather shoe with a tied grosgrain bow, and no footprints - the shoe sat wedged against a foundation wall of an empty house whose owner had been dead since September. Someone had carried that shoe for more than sixty years and placed it deliberately; what did that act mean, and who was it meant to reach?

In this episode, we follow the tangled lives and quiet choices that connect Warren Ramsey, his unknown origins, and Sylvia Holmes, the woman who kept a secret for decades. We trace the discovery that unspooled after deaths, a found photograph, and a DNA test - and ask what a daughter does when she learns she had a brother she will never meet.

Person: Warren Ramsey
Date: Born March 1956
Event: Death on September 14, 2018 (cardiac event, age 62)
Person: Sylvia Holmes (born Sylvia Anne Koller)
Event: Sylvia made cashier's check transfers every March for nearly 38 years
Person: Marcia Holmes
Location: Dunmore east side

- The shoe was a child's size, black patent leather with a grosgrain bow, found pressed between a gas meter housing and a foundation wall.
- The house had been empty for four months and its owner had been dead since September 2018.
- Snow around the foundation was two days old and undisturbed with no footprints to or from the shoe.
- Sylvia sent a cashier's check for $200 every March, labeled in her handwriting "for W.", for nearly 38 years.
- Marcia Holmes, age 54 in January 2019, submitted a consumer DNA test in early December 2018 after finding an undated photo of a girl in her mother's things.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105088Mon, 31 Aug 2026 13:00:03 +0000Creator at ObomediaA Shoe at the Foundation: The Warren Ramsey Secret Cold snow, a child's black patent-leather shoe with a tied grosgrain bow, and no footprints - the shoe sat wedged against a foundation wall of an empty house whose owner had been dead since...
Cold snow, a child's black patent-leather shoe with a tied grosgrain bow, and no footprints - the shoe sat wedged against a foundation wall of an empty house whose owner had been dead since September. Someone had carried that shoe for more than sixty years and placed it deliberately; what did that act mean, and who was it meant to reach?

In this episode, we follow the tangled lives and quiet choices that connect Warren Ramsey, his unknown origins, and Sylvia Holmes, the woman who kept a secret for decades. We trace the discovery that unspooled after deaths, a found photograph, and a DNA test - and ask what a daughter does when she learns she had a brother she will never meet.

Person: Warren Ramsey
Date: Born March 1956
Event: Death on September 14, 2018 (cardiac event, age 62)
Person: Sylvia Holmes (born Sylvia Anne Koller)
Event: Sylvia made cashier's check transfers every March for nearly 38 years
Person: Marcia Holmes
Location: Dunmore east side

- The shoe was a child's size, black patent leather with a grosgrain bow, found pressed between a gas meter housing and a foundation wall.
- The house had been empty for four months and its owner had been dead since September 2018.
- Snow around the foundation was two days old and undisturbed with no footprints to or from the shoe.
- Sylvia sent a cashier's check for $200 every March, labeled in her handwriting "for W.", for nearly 38 years.
- Marcia Holmes, age 54 in January 2019, submitted a consumer DNA test in early December 2018 after finding an undated photo of a girl in her mother's things.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1424falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/daughter-vanishes-at-the-border-the-marta-ramsey-secret--73105085
A parish volunteer found a brittle folder hidden behind a false panel in a donated rolltop desk containing six documents that reveal a four-year-old named Marta traveled to America with her mother and two brothers in October 1956 - then was placed with another family the same day; how did a sister vanish from a family's memory for sixty-three years, and who did Marta become in Allegheny County?

In this episode, we follow the paperwork and the people named in those pages to trace what the documents record and what the living remember, asking whether decisions made in a Bavarian displaced persons camp and a Catholic Charities office erased a child from her birth family.

Person: Irena Ramsey
Person: Alan Ramsey
Person: Marta (listed as Marta Kowalski later)
Date: October 1956
Location: Port of Buffalo, New York

- A water-stained manila folder with six documents was found behind a false back panel in a rolltop desk on December 4, 2019.
- A U.S. immigration processing form dated October 1956 lists Irena Ramsey and three children: Alan (9), Thomas (7), and Marta (4).
- West German transit authorization from August 1956 lists all three children boarding the ship together from a displaced persons camp near Regensburg.
- Catholic Charities intake forms completed the day of arrival list only two children, Alan and Thomas; Marta is absent.
- A placement record signed the day of arrival shows Marta was voluntarily and permanently placed with a Kowalski family in Allegheny County due to a congenital cardiac defect requiring surgical intervention.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105085Sun, 30 Aug 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaDaughter Vanishes at the Border: The Marta Ramsey Secret A parish volunteer found a brittle folder hidden behind a false panel in a donated rolltop desk containing six documents that reveal a four-year-old named Marta traveled to America with her...
A parish volunteer found a brittle folder hidden behind a false panel in a donated rolltop desk containing six documents that reveal a four-year-old named Marta traveled to America with her mother and two brothers in October 1956 - then was placed with another family the same day; how did a sister vanish from a family's memory for sixty-three years, and who did Marta become in Allegheny County?

In this episode, we follow the paperwork and the people named in those pages to trace what the documents record and what the living remember, asking whether decisions made in a Bavarian displaced persons camp and a Catholic Charities office erased a child from her birth family.

Person: Irena Ramsey
Person: Alan Ramsey
Person: Marta (listed as Marta Kowalski later)
Date: October 1956
Location: Port of Buffalo, New York

- A water-stained manila folder with six documents was found behind a false back panel in a rolltop desk on December 4, 2019.
- A U.S. immigration processing form dated October 1956 lists Irena Ramsey and three children: Alan (9), Thomas (7), and Marta (4).
- West German transit authorization from August 1956 lists all three children boarding the ship together from a displaced persons camp near Regensburg.
- Catholic Charities intake forms completed the day of arrival list only two children, Alan and Thomas; Marta is absent.
- A placement record signed the day of arrival shows Marta was voluntarily and permanently placed with a Kowalski family in Allegheny County due to a congenital cardiac defect requiring surgical intervention.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1331falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-30-year-letter-that-unmade-a-man-s-entire-life--73105082
A single cream-colored envelope, postmarked October 14, 1987, surfaced on a hiking trail in Crestfield after thirty years underground-and inside was a three-page handwritten letter that would quietly dismantle everything a 38-year-old man believed about his identity. Who wrote to Patricia Overton and waited three decades for an answer, and why did that reply never arrive?

In this episode, we follow the chain of people and documents that converged on a kitchen counter in Crestfield: a returned letter found by a basset hound, an unopened fireproof box, two birth certificates with conflicting fathers, and a handwriting that insisted on being acknowledged. How did one undelivered letter reshape the life of Curtis Johnson?

Person: Curtis Johnson
Person: Patricia Overton
Person: Jeffrey Porter
Date: October 14, 1987 (postmark)
Location: Fitzgerald trail, 1.2-mile marker near Crestfield, Ohio

- The envelope was found by a basset hound at the 1.2-mile marker of the Fitzgerald trail.
- The postmark on the cream-colored envelope read October 14, 1987-thirty years before discovery.
- Patricia Overton had been dead for five years when the envelope arrived at Curtis’s house.
- Curtis inherited a fireproof box containing a birth certificate with Patricia listed as mother and another amended certificate naming Ray Johnson as father.
- The letter inside was three pages, handwritten in blue ink, signed by Jeffrey Porter with a Millhaven area code phone number.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105082Sat, 29 Aug 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe 30-Year Letter That Unmade a Man's Entire Life A single cream-colored envelope, postmarked October 14, 1987, surfaced on a hiking trail in Crestfield after thirty years underground-and inside was a three-page handwritten letter that would...
A single cream-colored envelope, postmarked October 14, 1987, surfaced on a hiking trail in Crestfield after thirty years underground-and inside was a three-page handwritten letter that would quietly dismantle everything a 38-year-old man believed about his identity. Who wrote to Patricia Overton and waited three decades for an answer, and why did that reply never arrive?

In this episode, we follow the chain of people and documents that converged on a kitchen counter in Crestfield: a returned letter found by a basset hound, an unopened fireproof box, two birth certificates with conflicting fathers, and a handwriting that insisted on being acknowledged. How did one undelivered letter reshape the life of Curtis Johnson?

Person: Curtis Johnson
Person: Patricia Overton
Person: Jeffrey Porter
Date: October 14, 1987 (postmark)
Location: Fitzgerald trail, 1.2-mile marker near Crestfield, Ohio

- The envelope was found by a basset hound at the 1.2-mile marker of the Fitzgerald trail.
- The postmark on the cream-colored envelope read October 14, 1987-thirty years before discovery.
- Patricia Overton had been dead for five years when the envelope arrived at Curtis’s house.
- Curtis inherited a fireproof box containing a birth certificate with Patricia listed as mother and another amended certificate naming Ray Johnson as father.
- The letter inside was three pages, handwritten in blue ink, signed by Jeffrey Porter with a Millhaven area code phone number.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1432falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/daughter-finds-out-her-dead-sister-was-alive-for-61-years-the-marlene-york-case--73105081
A hospital bracelet with the name MARLENE YORK surfaced in a thrift-store coat pocket in October 2019, soft and waxy from decades of hiding; it carried a birthdate of October 14, 1958, and a hospital name that tied it to a small town secret. How did a mother keep this for sixty-one years and never tell her daughter that the sister she mourned might have been alive?

In this episode, we lay out the sequence of discoveries from the thrift annex find to the call that reopened a closed life, describing the people, places, and small town ties involved while asking: what decision did Edna York make in 1958 that shaped three lives for more than six decades?

Person: Marilyn York
Person: Edna York
Date: October 14, 1958
Location: Hargrove Memorial Hospital, Hargrove, Indiana
Event: Bracelet found at Stillwater Thrift Annex in October 2019

- Bette Odom found the tan winter coat with the bracelet in its left interior pocket in the second week of October 2019.
- The bracelet read MARLENE YORK with date of birth October 14, 1958 and Hargrove Memorial Hospital printed on it.
- The bracelet sat in a plastic evidence bag at Hargrove Memorial Department for eleven days before being logged by records clerk Philip Griffin.
- Philip Griffin had worked the records desk for nineteen years and recognized the York surname, prompting him to call Marilyn York that same afternoon.
- Marilyn York had donated seven bags of her mother Edna York’s belongings to the Stillwater Thrift Annex in 2016 after Edna died in March 2016 at age eighty-five.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105081Fri, 28 Aug 2026 13:00:03 +0000Creator at ObomediaDaughter Finds Out Her Dead Sister Was Alive for 61 Years: The Marlene York Case A hospital bracelet with the name MARLENE YORK surfaced in a thrift-store coat pocket in October 2019, soft and waxy from decades of hiding; it carried a birthdate of...
A hospital bracelet with the name MARLENE YORK surfaced in a thrift-store coat pocket in October 2019, soft and waxy from decades of hiding; it carried a birthdate of October 14, 1958, and a hospital name that tied it to a small town secret. How did a mother keep this for sixty-one years and never tell her daughter that the sister she mourned might have been alive?

In this episode, we lay out the sequence of discoveries from the thrift annex find to the call that reopened a closed life, describing the people, places, and small town ties involved while asking: what decision did Edna York make in 1958 that shaped three lives for more than six decades?

Person: Marilyn York
Person: Edna York
Date: October 14, 1958
Location: Hargrove Memorial Hospital, Hargrove, Indiana
Event: Bracelet found at Stillwater Thrift Annex in October 2019

- Bette Odom found the tan winter coat with the bracelet in its left interior pocket in the second week of October 2019.
- The bracelet read MARLENE YORK with date of birth October 14, 1958 and Hargrove Memorial Hospital printed on it.
- The bracelet sat in a plastic evidence bag at Hargrove Memorial Department for eleven days before being logged by records clerk Philip Griffin.
- Philip Griffin had worked the records desk for nineteen years and recognized the York surname, prompting him to call Marilyn York that same afternoon.
- Marilyn York had donated seven bags of her mother Edna York’s belongings to the Stillwater Thrift Annex in 2016 after Edna died in March 2016 at age eighty-five.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1275falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/little-bird-the-secret-daughter-listed-as-dead-on-paper--73105079
A forgotten crayon drawing addressed to "Little Bird" rekindles a seventy-eight-year-old woman's silence and a family record that contradicts a death certificate; one document shows a six-week pediatric checkup while another lists death at eleven days. How did a county records clerk sign a death certificate for a baby who appears in medical notes weeks later, and who has been hiding the truth for decades?

In this episode, we follow the steps a twenty-four-year-old granddaughter takes after finding the envelope on her grandmother's porch, tracing birth and medical records, a death certificate signed by a county clerk, and the fracture in a family's story that raises the question: which official paper tells the truth?

Person: Estelle O'Brien
Person: Darlene O'Brien
Person: Sandra Kay O'Brien
Date: February 9, 1982
Person: Howard Gray

- The envelope sat on the porch of 412 Quince Street for three days before anyone touched it.
- Sandra Kay O'Brien's birth certificate is dated February 9, 1982.
- A death certificate for Sandra Kay O'Brien was filed eleven days after birth listing cause as respiratory failure.
- A six-week pediatric checkup note exists in the medical file confirming Sandra K. O'Brien as a living patient at that follow-up.
- Howard Gray, who signed the death certificate, worked thirty years as a county health records clerk and had retired to Bellhaven.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105079Thu, 27 Aug 2026 13:00:03 +0000Creator at ObomediaLittle Bird: The Secret Daughter Listed as Dead on Paper A forgotten crayon drawing addressed to "Little Bird" rekindles a seventy-eight-year-old woman's silence and a family record that contradicts a death certificate; one document shows a...
A forgotten crayon drawing addressed to "Little Bird" rekindles a seventy-eight-year-old woman's silence and a family record that contradicts a death certificate; one document shows a six-week pediatric checkup while another lists death at eleven days. How did a county records clerk sign a death certificate for a baby who appears in medical notes weeks later, and who has been hiding the truth for decades?

In this episode, we follow the steps a twenty-four-year-old granddaughter takes after finding the envelope on her grandmother's porch, tracing birth and medical records, a death certificate signed by a county clerk, and the fracture in a family's story that raises the question: which official paper tells the truth?

Person: Estelle O'Brien
Person: Darlene O'Brien
Person: Sandra Kay O'Brien
Date: February 9, 1982
Person: Howard Gray

- The envelope sat on the porch of 412 Quince Street for three days before anyone touched it.
- Sandra Kay O'Brien's birth certificate is dated February 9, 1982.
- A death certificate for Sandra Kay O'Brien was filed eleven days after birth listing cause as respiratory failure.
- A six-week pediatric checkup note exists in the medical file confirming Sandra K. O'Brien as a living patient at that follow-up.
- Howard Gray, who signed the death certificate, worked thirty years as a county health records clerk and had retired to Bellhaven.

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© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1175falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-loyalty-card-in-the-well-my-father-s-secret-saturdays--73105076
Fear and curiosity collide when a retired postal worker's hidden Saturday routine is uncovered inside a well: a sealed freezer bag, a grocery loyalty card, and a note that reads "For Cheryl, when it's time." The card's purchase history reveals forty-three consecutive Saturdays of identical groceries and a small birthday cake every third week - so why did Terry hide this trail instead of telling his daughter?

In this episode, we follow the discovery and the documents that lay out a parallel life running six blocks from Terry's house, the emergency contact that didn't belong to his family, and the choices he made about how information would be delivered after his death. What was Terry trying to protect, and who was Donna Fike?

Person: Terry Wells
Person: Cheryl Armstrong
Person: Rebecca Sheridan
Location: Calder Street, Harwick, Indiana
Event: Forty-three consecutive Saturday purchases starting in 2017

- The sealed freezer bag was found inside a shoebox-sized space between the pressure tank and the casing pipe of a well housing.
- The handwritten note inside the bag read: "For Cheryl, when it's time."
- Terry Wells died in May 2019 at age eighty-four after a brief illness.
- The Fresh Mart loyalty card purchase history showed forty-three consecutive Saturdays of bread, cold cuts, canned soup, juice boxes, and a small birthday cake every third visit.
- The loyalty card account was registered to a Lake Street apartment in Verity Hill and listed Donna Fike as the emergency contact.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105076Wed, 26 Aug 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Loyalty Card in the Well: My Father's Secret Saturdays Fear and curiosity collide when a retired postal worker's hidden Saturday routine is uncovered inside a well: a sealed freezer bag, a grocery loyalty card, and a note that reads "For...
Fear and curiosity collide when a retired postal worker's hidden Saturday routine is uncovered inside a well: a sealed freezer bag, a grocery loyalty card, and a note that reads "For Cheryl, when it's time." The card's purchase history reveals forty-three consecutive Saturdays of identical groceries and a small birthday cake every third week - so why did Terry hide this trail instead of telling his daughter?

In this episode, we follow the discovery and the documents that lay out a parallel life running six blocks from Terry's house, the emergency contact that didn't belong to his family, and the choices he made about how information would be delivered after his death. What was Terry trying to protect, and who was Donna Fike?

Person: Terry Wells
Person: Cheryl Armstrong
Person: Rebecca Sheridan
Location: Calder Street, Harwick, Indiana
Event: Forty-three consecutive Saturday purchases starting in 2017

- The sealed freezer bag was found inside a shoebox-sized space between the pressure tank and the casing pipe of a well housing.
- The handwritten note inside the bag read: "For Cheryl, when it's time."
- Terry Wells died in May 2019 at age eighty-four after a brief illness.
- The Fresh Mart loyalty card purchase history showed forty-three consecutive Saturdays of bread, cold cuts, canned soup, juice boxes, and a small birthday cake every third visit.
- The loyalty card account was registered to a Lake Street apartment in Verity Hill and listed Donna Fike as the emergency contact.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1144falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/family-archivist-finds-two-documents-that-cannot-both-be-true--73105074
A quiet discovery in a marsh exposes a family's certainty: a sealed military metal box pulled from Fenwick Reservoir contained an original 1953 DD Form 214 listing Boone, North Carolina, while the family copy framed on a wall and a handwritten family tree both insist on Wilder, Tennessee. Which of the two hometowns belongs to Ross Walker, and what does that single differing field undo about everything the family believed?

In this episode, we follow Norman Phillips, a thirty-two-year-old county assessor and longtime family archivist, as he confronts the impossible mismatch between an official original and the family’s framed copy. What began as an ordinary lunchbreak curiosity becomes a question about records, memory, and identity.

Person: Norman Phillips
Person: Ross Walker
Event: Metal military box found at Fenwick Reservoir on July 9, 2019
Document: Original DD Form 214 issued August 1953
Location: Framed copy lists Wilder, Tennessee; original lists Boone, North Carolina

- The metal military box was discovered on July 9, 2019 in a cattail marsh at Fenwick Reservoir after four inches of rain in six days.
- The box was olive-drab military issue, found dry above the waterline on a concrete drainage shelf.
- The original DD Form 214 inside matched service number, discharge date, and rank of the framed copy but listed hometown as Boone, North Carolina.
- Norman Phillips is thirty-two years old and had been the family archivist since his mid-twenties and a property assessor for six years.
- Ross Walker died in 1988 at age fifty-nine, served in Korea, was discharged in August 1953, and had been buried at a veterans' cemetery near Lynchburg.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105074Tue, 25 Aug 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaFamily Archivist Finds Two Documents That Cannot Both Be True A quiet discovery in a marsh exposes a family's certainty: a sealed military metal box pulled from Fenwick Reservoir contained an original 1953 DD Form 214 listing Boone, North Carolina,...
A quiet discovery in a marsh exposes a family's certainty: a sealed military metal box pulled from Fenwick Reservoir contained an original 1953 DD Form 214 listing Boone, North Carolina, while the family copy framed on a wall and a handwritten family tree both insist on Wilder, Tennessee. Which of the two hometowns belongs to Ross Walker, and what does that single differing field undo about everything the family believed?

In this episode, we follow Norman Phillips, a thirty-two-year-old county assessor and longtime family archivist, as he confronts the impossible mismatch between an official original and the family’s framed copy. What began as an ordinary lunchbreak curiosity becomes a question about records, memory, and identity.

Person: Norman Phillips
Person: Ross Walker
Event: Metal military box found at Fenwick Reservoir on July 9, 2019
Document: Original DD Form 214 issued August 1953
Location: Framed copy lists Wilder, Tennessee; original lists Boone, North Carolina

- The metal military box was discovered on July 9, 2019 in a cattail marsh at Fenwick Reservoir after four inches of rain in six days.
- The box was olive-drab military issue, found dry above the waterline on a concrete drainage shelf.
- The original DD Form 214 inside matched service number, discharge date, and rank of the framed copy but listed hometown as Boone, North Carolina.
- Norman Phillips is thirty-two years old and had been the family archivist since his mid-twenties and a property assessor for six years.
- Ross Walker died in 1988 at age fifty-nine, served in Korea, was discharged in August 1953, and had been buried at a veterans' cemetery near Lynchburg.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1238falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-name-in-the-binder-the-brother-who-was-never-buried--73105073
A single line in a wedding guest binder - a full name dated three weeks ago and the handwriting note "for my sister, finally" - uncovers a 53-year family secret: a grave with a name but no body, and a brother who was given away and lived ninety miles away as Daniel Sorensen. How did a sealed box of infant clothing, irregular paperwork, and one nurse's decision create a life built on a lie, and who knew what when?

In this episode, we tell the story of Nicole Fisher and the hidden life of the brother she thought was dead. We trace the paper trail from a Kellerton binder to a 1967 note, the grave with a sealed box, and the man living in Fenwick who may have known more than anyone expected - could a wedding binder finally force the truth into the open?

Person: Nicole Fisher
Age: 52 in summer 2019
Location: Aldenvale, Ohio
Name found: Daniel (listed as Daniel Edmund Vanek / Daniel Sorensen)
Nurse involved: Wendy Harris

- The wedding guest binder entry was dated three weeks before it was found and included the handwritten line "for my sister, finally."
- Daniel was born January 9, 1966 and was placed with the Sorensen family in Millhaven, Pennsylvania in January 1967.
- The grave in the Kellerton cemetery contains a sealed box of infant clothing instead of a body.
- Nicole visited that grave and left flowers for decades, believing she mourned her brother.
- Daniel Sorensen was 53 in the summer of 2019, living in Fenwick, Pennsylvania, married with two adult sons.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105073Mon, 24 Aug 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Name in the Binder: The Brother Who Was Never Buried A single line in a wedding guest binder - a full name dated three weeks ago and the handwriting note "for my sister, finally" - uncovers a 53-year family secret: a grave with a name but no...
A single line in a wedding guest binder - a full name dated three weeks ago and the handwriting note "for my sister, finally" - uncovers a 53-year family secret: a grave with a name but no body, and a brother who was given away and lived ninety miles away as Daniel Sorensen. How did a sealed box of infant clothing, irregular paperwork, and one nurse's decision create a life built on a lie, and who knew what when?

In this episode, we tell the story of Nicole Fisher and the hidden life of the brother she thought was dead. We trace the paper trail from a Kellerton binder to a 1967 note, the grave with a sealed box, and the man living in Fenwick who may have known more than anyone expected - could a wedding binder finally force the truth into the open?

Person: Nicole Fisher
Age: 52 in summer 2019
Location: Aldenvale, Ohio
Name found: Daniel (listed as Daniel Edmund Vanek / Daniel Sorensen)
Nurse involved: Wendy Harris

- The wedding guest binder entry was dated three weeks before it was found and included the handwritten line "for my sister, finally."
- Daniel was born January 9, 1966 and was placed with the Sorensen family in Millhaven, Pennsylvania in January 1967.
- The grave in the Kellerton cemetery contains a sealed box of infant clothing instead of a body.
- Nicole visited that grave and left flowers for decades, believing she mourned her brother.
- Daniel Sorensen was 53 in the summer of 2019, living in Fenwick, Pennsylvania, married with two adult sons.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1301falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/a-cemetery-plot-purchased-thirteen-months-before-the-infant-buried-in-it-was-born--73105071
A township snowplow operator noticed a laminated post showing a plot purchase on March 14, 1967 for a child born April 3, 1968 - a purchase made thirteen months before the infant’s birth that matched an original deed and a bank cross-reference. How did Robert D. Hensley come to buy that plot and open a joint account with Shannon Bishop long before the child existed?

In this episode, we follow how a routine municipal check led a road equipment operator to text the county clerk and a records technician to contact a local family, uncovering a deed, a joint bank account, and a name no one in the household recognized. What explanation will surface from Robert Hensley’s records and the family’s memories?

Person: Todd Whitfield
Date: May 9, 2019
Location: Section C, Kellerton Township municipal cemetery
Person: Robert D. Hensley
Person: Shannon Bishop

- The snowplow operator photographed the laminated post at about 5:00 AM on May 9, 2019 and texted the county clerk at 5:47 AM asking "Is this right?"
- The laminated post and the original deed both show a plot purchase date of March 14, 1967 for Thomas Alan Hensley.
- The headstone name is Thomas Alan Hensley with birth and death dates April 3, 1968.
- A joint bank account at Kellerton Savings and Trust was opened in February 1967 co-signed by Robert D. Hensley and Shannon Bishop.
- Pat Burrows, a county records technician with 22 years of experience, confirmed the deed was not a transcription error and sent a courtesy letter to the Hensley family on May 14, 2019.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105071Sun, 23 Aug 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaA cemetery plot purchased thirteen months before the infant buried in it was born A township snowplow operator noticed a laminated post showing a plot purchase on March 14, 1967 for a child born April 3, 1968 - a purchase made thirteen months...
A township snowplow operator noticed a laminated post showing a plot purchase on March 14, 1967 for a child born April 3, 1968 - a purchase made thirteen months before the infant’s birth that matched an original deed and a bank cross-reference. How did Robert D. Hensley come to buy that plot and open a joint account with Shannon Bishop long before the child existed?

In this episode, we follow how a routine municipal check led a road equipment operator to text the county clerk and a records technician to contact a local family, uncovering a deed, a joint bank account, and a name no one in the household recognized. What explanation will surface from Robert Hensley’s records and the family’s memories?

Person: Todd Whitfield
Date: May 9, 2019
Location: Section C, Kellerton Township municipal cemetery
Person: Robert D. Hensley
Person: Shannon Bishop

- The snowplow operator photographed the laminated post at about 5:00 AM on May 9, 2019 and texted the county clerk at 5:47 AM asking "Is this right?"
- The laminated post and the original deed both show a plot purchase date of March 14, 1967 for Thomas Alan Hensley.
- The headstone name is Thomas Alan Hensley with birth and death dates April 3, 1968.
- A joint bank account at Kellerton Savings and Trust was opened in February 1967 co-signed by Robert D. Hensley and Shannon Bishop.
- Pat Burrows, a county records technician with 22 years of experience, confirmed the deed was not a transcription error and sent a courtesy letter to the Hensley family on May 14, 2019.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1258falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/utility-repair-uncovers-an-unexpected-artifact--73105066
A sealed manila envelope hidden inside a kitchen wall fell out during a routine repair and contained an 18-page phone bill from September 19, 1993 showing 304 calls-all to a single number listed to L. Clark in Fenwick, 46 miles away. How did a promise made during a childhood divorce keep a family secret buried for nearly 18 years, and why did Michael Clark place an average of 11 calls per day that month while his wife was hospitalized?

In this episode, we tell the sequence of events from the envelope’s discovery to the family ties it revealed, following the phone records, the hidden sister, and the people who kept and handed on the secret. What does a wall, a bill, and a vow reveal about silence and reunion?

Person: Michael Clark
Person: Dorothy Clark
Person: Patrick (son), born 1970
Person: Lorraine (sister), born circa 1942
Date: September 1993

- The envelope contained an 18-page phone bill dated September 1993 with 304 calls.
- The calls in that billing month were all to the same subscriber listed as "L. Clark" in Fenwick, Missouri.
- The house had been vacant for 11 months and the envelope sat hidden for nearly 18 years.
- Michael Clark was born in 1931 and married Dorothy Alderman in 1961.
- Patrick, their son, was 41 years old in 2011 when he received the envelope.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105066Sat, 22 Aug 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at Obomediautility repair uncovers an unexpected artifact A sealed manila envelope hidden inside a kitchen wall fell out during a routine repair and contained an 18-page phone bill from September 19, 1993 showing 304 calls-all to a single number listed to L....
A sealed manila envelope hidden inside a kitchen wall fell out during a routine repair and contained an 18-page phone bill from September 19, 1993 showing 304 calls-all to a single number listed to L. Clark in Fenwick, 46 miles away. How did a promise made during a childhood divorce keep a family secret buried for nearly 18 years, and why did Michael Clark place an average of 11 calls per day that month while his wife was hospitalized?

In this episode, we tell the sequence of events from the envelope’s discovery to the family ties it revealed, following the phone records, the hidden sister, and the people who kept and handed on the secret. What does a wall, a bill, and a vow reveal about silence and reunion?

Person: Michael Clark
Person: Dorothy Clark
Person: Patrick (son), born 1970
Person: Lorraine (sister), born circa 1942
Date: September 1993

- The envelope contained an 18-page phone bill dated September 1993 with 304 calls.
- The calls in that billing month were all to the same subscriber listed as "L. Clark" in Fenwick, Missouri.
- The house had been vacant for 11 months and the envelope sat hidden for nearly 18 years.
- Michael Clark was born in 1931 and married Dorothy Alderman in 1961.
- Patrick, their son, was 41 years old in 2011 when he received the envelope.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1257falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-photograph-that-proved-my-mother-never-drowned--73105065
A single black-and-white school portrait overturned a thirty-two-year certainty that my mother drowned, showing her alive and watching children from a classroom window in September 1989 - two years before her disappearance. How could a photograph left on my porch and another found in a drainage ditch rewrite everything I believed about Beverly Rogers' death?

In this episode, the narrator follows the discovery of two photographs, the cardboard box left by a retired county surveyor, and the family secrets that emerged when a mother once presumed dead reappears in an image. What did those pictures reveal about who Beverly was, where she went, and why she never told her daughter?

Person: Beverly Rogers
Date: September 1989 (photograph); Spring 1991 (official disappearance)
Location: Claverton, Indiana; reservoir at western edge of town
Person: Marilyn Rogers
Person: Raymond Baker

- A wallet-sized black-and-white school portrait showed a girl identified as Aunt Bev, dated by a cousin as about age nine or ten.
- A second photograph dated September 1989 shows Beverly standing inside a classroom window watching children, taken two years before her disappearance.
- Beverly left her Buick LeSabre beside the Claverton reservoir with a cardigan on the passenger seat and bought a bus ticket south six months after learning her son Neil was in trouble.
- The sheriff's office found no body and classified Beverly's case as a probable drowning in spring 1991.
- A retired county surveyor named Raymond Baker, age sixty-four, found a cardboard box in a drainage ditch and placed it on Marilyn's porch on March 7.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105065Fri, 21 Aug 2026 13:00:03 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Photograph That Proved My Mother Never Drowned A single black-and-white school portrait overturned a thirty-two-year certainty that my mother drowned, showing her alive and watching children from a classroom window in September 1989 - two years...
A single black-and-white school portrait overturned a thirty-two-year certainty that my mother drowned, showing her alive and watching children from a classroom window in September 1989 - two years before her disappearance. How could a photograph left on my porch and another found in a drainage ditch rewrite everything I believed about Beverly Rogers' death?

In this episode, the narrator follows the discovery of two photographs, the cardboard box left by a retired county surveyor, and the family secrets that emerged when a mother once presumed dead reappears in an image. What did those pictures reveal about who Beverly was, where she went, and why she never told her daughter?

Person: Beverly Rogers
Date: September 1989 (photograph); Spring 1991 (official disappearance)
Location: Claverton, Indiana; reservoir at western edge of town
Person: Marilyn Rogers
Person: Raymond Baker

- A wallet-sized black-and-white school portrait showed a girl identified as Aunt Bev, dated by a cousin as about age nine or ten.
- A second photograph dated September 1989 shows Beverly standing inside a classroom window watching children, taken two years before her disappearance.
- Beverly left her Buick LeSabre beside the Claverton reservoir with a cardigan on the passenger seat and bought a bus ticket south six months after learning her son Neil was in trouble.
- The sheriff's office found no body and classified Beverly's case as a probable drowning in spring 1991.
- A retired county surveyor named Raymond Baker, age sixty-four, found a cardboard box in a drainage ditch and placed it on Marilyn's porch on March 7.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1273falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/a-pawnshop-owner-opens-a-locket-and-finds-his-mother-s-face-the-dalton-family-secret--73105042
A chill of recognition when a man in a pawnshop finds a photograph of his mother inside a locket priced at fifteen dollars - the tiny object ends a fifty-year silence and starts another. Who sent the locket into a chain of hands that led to Merchant Street, and why does the photograph show a younger face no one in the family remembered?

In this episode, we follow the chain of objects and ordinary lives that collide: a locket catalogued on February 14, 2019, a utility bill that flagged a vacant rental, and a photograph of a woman taken in the 1970s that reshapes three families’ memories. How did a coat in an estate sale carry a secret across forty miles to a pawnshop display case?

Person: Frank Dalton
Date: February 15, 2019
Location: Dalton's Second Chance, Merchant Street
Event: Locket catalogued February 14, 2019 and opened February 15, 2019
Age: Frank Dalton was 51 years old

- The locket was priced at $15 and catalogued on February 14, 2019.
- Frank Dalton had run Dalton's Second Chance on Merchant Street for 19 years.
- The locket contained a photograph of Frank’s mother taken sometime in the 1970s.
- The meter reader Paul Rogers flagged the Dunmore Street property in January 2019 for near-zero consumption.
- The coat with the locket came from the estate of Edna Colwell, who died in October (age 82) and whose house was in Morrow Township about 40 minutes from Kellerton.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105042Thu, 20 Aug 2026 13:00:03 +0000Creator at ObomediaA Pawnshop Owner Opens a Locket and Finds His Mother's Face: The Dalton Family Secret A chill of recognition when a man in a pawnshop finds a photograph of his mother inside a locket priced at fifteen dollars - the tiny object ends a fifty-year...
A chill of recognition when a man in a pawnshop finds a photograph of his mother inside a locket priced at fifteen dollars - the tiny object ends a fifty-year silence and starts another. Who sent the locket into a chain of hands that led to Merchant Street, and why does the photograph show a younger face no one in the family remembered?

In this episode, we follow the chain of objects and ordinary lives that collide: a locket catalogued on February 14, 2019, a utility bill that flagged a vacant rental, and a photograph of a woman taken in the 1970s that reshapes three families’ memories. How did a coat in an estate sale carry a secret across forty miles to a pawnshop display case?

Person: Frank Dalton
Date: February 15, 2019
Location: Dalton's Second Chance, Merchant Street
Event: Locket catalogued February 14, 2019 and opened February 15, 2019
Age: Frank Dalton was 51 years old

- The locket was priced at $15 and catalogued on February 14, 2019.
- Frank Dalton had run Dalton's Second Chance on Merchant Street for 19 years.
- The locket contained a photograph of Frank’s mother taken sometime in the 1970s.
- The meter reader Paul Rogers flagged the Dunmore Street property in January 2019 for near-zero consumption.
- The coat with the locket came from the estate of Edna Colwell, who died in October (age 82) and whose house was in Morrow Township about 40 minutes from Kellerton.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1319falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/a-woman-s-blood-type-made-it-biologically-impossible-for-her-to-be-amy-s-mother--73105040
The thought that your whole life could hinge on a single blood type arrives like a cold fact: a hospital intake form marked Jean Mabry, AB-negative, and a pediatric record showing Amy as O-positive - a genetic impossibility. Who sealed that envelope for forty-two years, and why did a yellow receiving blanket connect two women who never knew each other?

In this episode, we tell how a sealed envelope found in a garage set off a chain of discoveries that upended family history. You will hear what the hospital records show, how a consumer DNA match pointed to a potential half-sibling, and why a three-day gap in dates became the key question leading Amy to the truth.

Person: Amy Duncan
Person: Jean Mabry (Jean Duncan)
Person: Heather Powell
Date: January 14, 1981 (hospital intake form)
Location: Dellview General (hospital)

- The sealed envelope sat in Heather Powell's garage for forty-two years before being found in January 2023.
- The hospital intake form inside was dated January 14, 1981 and listed patient Jean Mabry with blood type AB-negative.
- Amy's pediatric record from 1986 recorded her blood type as O-positive, a combination incompatible with an AB-negative mother.
- Amy ordered a consumer DNA test; on February 2, 2023 it flagged a match listed as "half-sibling or aunt" under the name Connie Obert from Morganfield, Kentucky.
- Jean Duncan (born Jean Mabry) died in March 2022 at age seventy-one of ovarian cancer; Heather Powell died in January 2023 at age eighty-two.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105040Wed, 19 Aug 2026 13:00:03 +0000Creator at ObomediaA woman's blood type made it biologically impossible for her to be Amy's mother The thought that your whole life could hinge on a single blood type arrives like a cold fact: a hospital intake form marked Jean Mabry, AB-negative, and a pediatric...
The thought that your whole life could hinge on a single blood type arrives like a cold fact: a hospital intake form marked Jean Mabry, AB-negative, and a pediatric record showing Amy as O-positive - a genetic impossibility. Who sealed that envelope for forty-two years, and why did a yellow receiving blanket connect two women who never knew each other?

In this episode, we tell how a sealed envelope found in a garage set off a chain of discoveries that upended family history. You will hear what the hospital records show, how a consumer DNA match pointed to a potential half-sibling, and why a three-day gap in dates became the key question leading Amy to the truth.

Person: Amy Duncan
Person: Jean Mabry (Jean Duncan)
Person: Heather Powell
Date: January 14, 1981 (hospital intake form)
Location: Dellview General (hospital)

- The sealed envelope sat in Heather Powell's garage for forty-two years before being found in January 2023.
- The hospital intake form inside was dated January 14, 1981 and listed patient Jean Mabry with blood type AB-negative.
- Amy's pediatric record from 1986 recorded her blood type as O-positive, a combination incompatible with an AB-negative mother.
- Amy ordered a consumer DNA test; on February 2, 2023 it flagged a match listed as "half-sibling or aunt" under the name Connie Obert from Morganfield, Kentucky.
- Jean Duncan (born Jean Mabry) died in March 2022 at age seventy-one of ovarian cancer; Heather Powell died in January 2023 at age eighty-two.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1222falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/a-dog-finds-a-box-that-splits-one-man-into-two-the-raymond-brooks-secret--73105034
Fear and curiosity collide when a golden retriever named Pepper uncovers a sealed metal box containing two notarized land deeds for the exact same parcel-signed by two different men who share one family line. Who left the box and why did Raymond Brooks buy the same land twice under different names, leaving a secret that will force his grandson to confront a life he never knew?

In this episode, we follow how a stray box found on Millhaven Nature Path unravels a family secret across counties and decades, revealing a second life, a hidden son, and documents that bridge Crestwood and Pryor County-what does it mean for the living relatives now learning the truth?

Person: Howard Brooks
Person: Raymond Brooks
Person: Mark Campbell
Date: December 3, 2019
Location: Millhaven Nature Path

- A golden retriever named Pepper found a sealed black metal box with a clasp on December 3, 2019.
- Inside the box were two notarized land deeds for the same parcel dated 1971 and 1974 under the names Raymond Brooks and Raymond Nolan.
- Raymond Brooks died in 1991 at age seventy-eight after working twenty-two years as a warehouse foreman.
- Howard Brooks, age sixty-two, worked nineteen years as a receiving manager and learned of the box via a recorder's office notice on December 9, 2019.
- A baptismal certificate in the box records a birth on September 4, 1966, listing Raymond Brooks as the father of a boy now known as Mark Campbell.

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© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105034Tue, 18 Aug 2026 13:00:03 +0000Creator at ObomediaA Dog Finds a Box That Splits One Man Into Two: The Raymond Brooks Secret Fear and curiosity collide when a golden retriever named Pepper uncovers a sealed metal box containing two notarized land deeds for the exact same parcel-signed by two...
Fear and curiosity collide when a golden retriever named Pepper uncovers a sealed metal box containing two notarized land deeds for the exact same parcel-signed by two different men who share one family line. Who left the box and why did Raymond Brooks buy the same land twice under different names, leaving a secret that will force his grandson to confront a life he never knew?

In this episode, we follow how a stray box found on Millhaven Nature Path unravels a family secret across counties and decades, revealing a second life, a hidden son, and documents that bridge Crestwood and Pryor County-what does it mean for the living relatives now learning the truth?

Person: Howard Brooks
Person: Raymond Brooks
Person: Mark Campbell
Date: December 3, 2019
Location: Millhaven Nature Path

- A golden retriever named Pepper found a sealed black metal box with a clasp on December 3, 2019.
- Inside the box were two notarized land deeds for the same parcel dated 1971 and 1974 under the names Raymond Brooks and Raymond Nolan.
- Raymond Brooks died in 1991 at age seventy-eight after working twenty-two years as a warehouse foreman.
- Howard Brooks, age sixty-two, worked nineteen years as a receiving manager and learned of the box via a recorder's office notice on December 9, 2019.
- A baptismal certificate in the box records a birth on September 4, 1966, listing Raymond Brooks as the father of a boy now known as Mark Campbell.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1281falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-bible-in-the-mud-seven-margin-words-that-broke-a-family--73105032
Fear uncoils when a forgotten Bible, swollen with creek mud, hides a seven-word margin note that names a child never recorded anywhere - a discovery that split a Tennessee family and reopened a vanished life. What did the note mean, who wrote it, and how did a child named Cecelia vanish from the Sharp family record?

In this episode, you’ll hear how a retired electrician’s morning walk led to a family Bible from Greer’s Mill being brought to a kitchen table in Clarkson, how a paralegal from Nashville photographed a marginal note in Luke, and why that single line - “Cecelia, born July 1953. Taken to Harmon County. God keep her.” - changed everything.

Person: Marvin Davis
Person: Ross Sharp
Person: Michelle Burke
Location: Greer's Mill, Tennessee
Date: November 2019

- Marvin Davis found the Sharp family Bible buried in mud on a Tuesday morning in November 2019.
- Ross Sharp was born April 14, 1948, and his sister Janet was recorded as born 1951, died 1954 of escarlatina.
- A single undated note signed "A." was found in Millie Sharp’s cedar chest after her death in 1994.
- Seven margin words in the Gospel of Luke read: "Cecelia, born July 1953. Taken to Harmon County. God keep her."
- Michelle Burke, age 26 and a paralegal, drove from Nashville and scanned and photographed the Bible at Ross’s house in Clarkson.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105032Mon, 17 Aug 2026 13:00:03 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Bible in the Mud: Seven Margin Words That Broke a Family Fear uncoils when a forgotten Bible, swollen with creek mud, hides a seven-word margin note that names a child never recorded anywhere - a discovery that split a Tennessee family and...
Fear uncoils when a forgotten Bible, swollen with creek mud, hides a seven-word margin note that names a child never recorded anywhere - a discovery that split a Tennessee family and reopened a vanished life. What did the note mean, who wrote it, and how did a child named Cecelia vanish from the Sharp family record?

In this episode, you’ll hear how a retired electrician’s morning walk led to a family Bible from Greer’s Mill being brought to a kitchen table in Clarkson, how a paralegal from Nashville photographed a marginal note in Luke, and why that single line - “Cecelia, born July 1953. Taken to Harmon County. God keep her.” - changed everything.

Person: Marvin Davis
Person: Ross Sharp
Person: Michelle Burke
Location: Greer's Mill, Tennessee
Date: November 2019

- Marvin Davis found the Sharp family Bible buried in mud on a Tuesday morning in November 2019.
- Ross Sharp was born April 14, 1948, and his sister Janet was recorded as born 1951, died 1954 of escarlatina.
- A single undated note signed "A." was found in Millie Sharp’s cedar chest after her death in 1994.
- Seven margin words in the Gospel of Luke read: "Cecelia, born July 1953. Taken to Harmon County. God keep her."
- Michelle Burke, age 26 and a paralegal, drove from Nashville and scanned and photographed the Bible at Ross’s house in Clarkson.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1216falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/he-was-buried-but-his-pension-kept-paying-for-22-years--73105030
Fear that someone you trusted vanished and built a second life: a pension in Tucson kept depositing to Gerald Dean Patterson’s account for 37 years while his headstone stood in Calvary Ridge Cemetery dated February 11, 1989 - and his grave was empty. How did direct deposits to a Tucson savings account under a man recorded dead for more than two decades go unnoticed, and who kept the secret from his children?

In this episode, we tell what county deed records, a funeral home ledger search, and a surprise envelope on a kitchen table revealed about a family secret. We follow the documents and the people who found them to ask: which record was real - the grave or the bank account?

Person: Gerald Dean Patterson
Event: Direct deposit to Tucson savings account
Date: February 11, 1989 (headstone date)
Location: Tucson, Arizona
Case: Southwestern Operators' Pension Kept active since 1974

- Pension account had been active since 1974 and generated uninterrupted direct deposits for 37 years.
- Headstone at Calvary Ridge Cemetery bore the date February 11, 1989.
- An Arizona pension check cleared in Tucson in September 2011 to an account in Gerald’s name.
- Frances Patterson turned 48 in autumn 2011 and was living on Crestfall Drive in Odessa Junction.
- County surveyor Sharon Fisher discovered the pension direct deposit records while pulling deed records during a fence-line dispute.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105030Sun, 16 Aug 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaHe Was Buried-But His Pension Kept Paying for 22 Years Fear that someone you trusted vanished and built a second life: a pension in Tucson kept depositing to Gerald Dean Patterson’s account for 37 years while his headstone stood in Calvary Ridge...
Fear that someone you trusted vanished and built a second life: a pension in Tucson kept depositing to Gerald Dean Patterson’s account for 37 years while his headstone stood in Calvary Ridge Cemetery dated February 11, 1989 - and his grave was empty. How did direct deposits to a Tucson savings account under a man recorded dead for more than two decades go unnoticed, and who kept the secret from his children?

In this episode, we tell what county deed records, a funeral home ledger search, and a surprise envelope on a kitchen table revealed about a family secret. We follow the documents and the people who found them to ask: which record was real - the grave or the bank account?

Person: Gerald Dean Patterson
Event: Direct deposit to Tucson savings account
Date: February 11, 1989 (headstone date)
Location: Tucson, Arizona
Case: Southwestern Operators' Pension Kept active since 1974

- Pension account had been active since 1974 and generated uninterrupted direct deposits for 37 years.
- Headstone at Calvary Ridge Cemetery bore the date February 11, 1989.
- An Arizona pension check cleared in Tucson in September 2011 to an account in Gerald’s name.
- Frances Patterson turned 48 in autumn 2011 and was living on Crestfall Drive in Odessa Junction.
- County surveyor Sharon Fisher discovered the pension direct deposit records while pulling deed records during a fence-line dispute.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1293falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-envelope-under-the-floor-a-hidden-daughter-silent-payments--73105029
A sealed manila envelope lay between the floor joists of a Pelham Crossing bedroom for years, taped with modern packing tape and covered with grey dust - and inside its quiet hiding place were clues that a son who had cleaned the house top to bottom never found. For twenty years, a monthly $200 transfer flowed from that same house to an account under the name A. Keller, and a thirty-two-year-old woman in Columbus had Diane Snyder’s name for six years before the envelope was discovered - how did these secret threads remain invisible, and why were they hidden beneath the floor?

In this episode, we follow the sequence of discoveries after a septic technician photographed the envelope in September 2022 and a contractor pulled back the floorboards, revealing payments and a hidden family connection that reshaped what a son believed he knew about his mother. What did Diane Snyder choose to carry alone, and how did twenty years of silent payments link a hidden daughter to a small Ohio town?

Person: Diane Snyder
Person: Howard Snyder
Person: Amy Keller
Date: Envelope first seen September 2022
Event: Monthly transfers of $200 from January 2001 for 20 years

- The envelope was photographed by a Pelham Crossing septic technician on a routine inspection in September 2022.
- Diane Snyder opened a bank account in January 2001 and set up an automatic $200 monthly transfer to an account under the name A. Keller.
- The recurring transfers continued without interruption for twenty years, totaling approximately $48,000 by the time they stopped after Diane's death.
- Amy Keller was born September 14, 1989 at Morrow County General Hospital and was placed for adoption the same day.
- Amy requested an amended birth certificate through the Ohio Voluntary Adoption Registry in 2016, which returned Diane Snyder, Pelham Crossing as the mother’s name.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105029Sat, 15 Aug 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Envelope Under the Floor: A Hidden Daughter, Silent Payments A sealed manila envelope lay between the floor joists of a Pelham Crossing bedroom for years, taped with modern packing tape and covered with grey dust - and inside its quiet hiding...
A sealed manila envelope lay between the floor joists of a Pelham Crossing bedroom for years, taped with modern packing tape and covered with grey dust - and inside its quiet hiding place were clues that a son who had cleaned the house top to bottom never found. For twenty years, a monthly $200 transfer flowed from that same house to an account under the name A. Keller, and a thirty-two-year-old woman in Columbus had Diane Snyder’s name for six years before the envelope was discovered - how did these secret threads remain invisible, and why were they hidden beneath the floor?

In this episode, we follow the sequence of discoveries after a septic technician photographed the envelope in September 2022 and a contractor pulled back the floorboards, revealing payments and a hidden family connection that reshaped what a son believed he knew about his mother. What did Diane Snyder choose to carry alone, and how did twenty years of silent payments link a hidden daughter to a small Ohio town?

Person: Diane Snyder
Person: Howard Snyder
Person: Amy Keller
Date: Envelope first seen September 2022
Event: Monthly transfers of $200 from January 2001 for 20 years

- The envelope was photographed by a Pelham Crossing septic technician on a routine inspection in September 2022.
- Diane Snyder opened a bank account in January 2001 and set up an automatic $200 monthly transfer to an account under the name A. Keller.
- The recurring transfers continued without interruption for twenty years, totaling approximately $48,000 by the time they stopped after Diane's death.
- Amy Keller was born September 14, 1989 at Morrow County General Hospital and was placed for adoption the same day.
- Amy requested an amended birth certificate through the Ohio Voluntary Adoption Registry in 2016, which returned Diane Snyder, Pelham Crossing as the mother’s name.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1255falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-soldier-who-never-died-father-lie-and-the-wall-photograph--73105027
A sealed military portrait found inside a wall in August 2019 cracked open a six-decade family secret: a soldier declared dead who actually returned home broken, then vanished into a deliberate falsehood. Why did Eleanor Ennis keep his uniformed photograph on her mantel while telling the town her husband had been killed in the Philippines, and what did she mean when she wrote she did it “to keep her daughter safe”?

In this episode, we follow the discovery of the photograph and trace the decisions that split a family into two realities - the official record and the private life hidden at the Pelham farmhouse - asking whether Eleanor’s choice was protection, abandonment, or something in between.

Person: Corporal Harold James Ennis
Date: August 2019 (photograph found)
Location: Pelham farmhouse outside Kellner, Ohio
Event: Soldier walked away from a San Francisco hospital spring 1945; photograph sealed inside wall
Person: Eleanor Ennis

- Harold enlisted in Columbus, Ohio in June 1942 at age 24 and served in the Army Signal Corps.
- Harold was held as a prisoner of war in the Philippines for 14 months before returning to the U.S.
- Harold left a military hospital in San Francisco about three weeks before his formal discharge in spring 1945.
- Eleanor corresponded with Vera Ennis from 1946 to 1951 and wrote in spring 1948 that she believed her action was “the only way to keep her daughter safe.”
- Sandra Cooper found the army-issued portrait sealed behind horsehair lath during demolition in the first week of August 2019 and delivered it to the Hardin County Historical Society the same afternoon.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105027Fri, 14 Aug 2026 13:00:03 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Soldier Who Never Died: Father, Lie, and the Wall Photograph A sealed military portrait found inside a wall in August 2019 cracked open a six-decade family secret: a soldier declared dead who actually returned home broken, then vanished into a...
A sealed military portrait found inside a wall in August 2019 cracked open a six-decade family secret: a soldier declared dead who actually returned home broken, then vanished into a deliberate falsehood. Why did Eleanor Ennis keep his uniformed photograph on her mantel while telling the town her husband had been killed in the Philippines, and what did she mean when she wrote she did it “to keep her daughter safe”?

In this episode, we follow the discovery of the photograph and trace the decisions that split a family into two realities - the official record and the private life hidden at the Pelham farmhouse - asking whether Eleanor’s choice was protection, abandonment, or something in between.

Person: Corporal Harold James Ennis
Date: August 2019 (photograph found)
Location: Pelham farmhouse outside Kellner, Ohio
Event: Soldier walked away from a San Francisco hospital spring 1945; photograph sealed inside wall
Person: Eleanor Ennis

- Harold enlisted in Columbus, Ohio in June 1942 at age 24 and served in the Army Signal Corps.
- Harold was held as a prisoner of war in the Philippines for 14 months before returning to the U.S.
- Harold left a military hospital in San Francisco about three weeks before his formal discharge in spring 1945.
- Eleanor corresponded with Vera Ennis from 1946 to 1951 and wrote in spring 1948 that she believed her action was “the only way to keep her daughter safe.”
- Sandra Cooper found the army-issued portrait sealed behind horsehair lath during demolition in the first week of August 2019 and delivered it to the Hardin County Historical Society the same afternoon.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1315falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/a-stranger-finds-the-letter-that-changes-everything-the-monica-vickers-secret--73105023
Fear and curiosity collide the moment a paperboy's chain slips: a sealed envelope addressed to Monica Vickers sits beside the body of 78-year-old Paula Tillman, and inside is a one-page letter that rewrites a life. How did a private adoption from 1975, a lawyer named Gideon Pruett, and a photograph of two young women lead to a secret kept for forty-four years?

In this episode, we trace the chain of events from Birchwood Estates to the Harlan County Sheriff's annex, following Monica as she reads the letter that names Greta Solis as the birth mother and reveals why the adoption was arranged; what unfolds when a stranger's delivery forces identities and histories to collide?

Person: Monica Vickers
Person: Paula Tillman
Person: Greta Solis
Date: July 9, 2019
Event: Private adoption arranged by lawyer Gideon Pruett

- A paperboy named Bruce Holmes, age 15, delivered the paper on July 9, 2019, when his bicycle chain slipped twice.
- Paula Tillman, age 78, had lived at 14 Birchwood Estates for 11 years and was found dead in her armchair with the sealed envelope beside a framed photo.
- The photograph on Paula's table was dated June 1975 and labeled "Greta and Paula, June 1975."
- Monica Vickers was born on July 14, 1975, at Harlan Regional Hospital and raised in Bowling Green believing Nora and Walter Vickers were her parents.
- The one-page letter, written front and back in blue ballpoint, contained the line: "Greta came to your mother. Not the other way," and named lawyer Gideon Pruett.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105023Thu, 13 Aug 2026 13:00:03 +0000Creator at ObomediaA Stranger Finds the Letter That Changes Everything: The Monica Vickers Secret Fear and curiosity collide the moment a paperboy's chain slips: a sealed envelope addressed to Monica Vickers sits beside the body of 78-year-old Paula Tillman, and...
Fear and curiosity collide the moment a paperboy's chain slips: a sealed envelope addressed to Monica Vickers sits beside the body of 78-year-old Paula Tillman, and inside is a one-page letter that rewrites a life. How did a private adoption from 1975, a lawyer named Gideon Pruett, and a photograph of two young women lead to a secret kept for forty-four years?

In this episode, we trace the chain of events from Birchwood Estates to the Harlan County Sheriff's annex, following Monica as she reads the letter that names Greta Solis as the birth mother and reveals why the adoption was arranged; what unfolds when a stranger's delivery forces identities and histories to collide?

Person: Monica Vickers
Person: Paula Tillman
Person: Greta Solis
Date: July 9, 2019
Event: Private adoption arranged by lawyer Gideon Pruett

- A paperboy named Bruce Holmes, age 15, delivered the paper on July 9, 2019, when his bicycle chain slipped twice.
- Paula Tillman, age 78, had lived at 14 Birchwood Estates for 11 years and was found dead in her armchair with the sealed envelope beside a framed photo.
- The photograph on Paula's table was dated June 1975 and labeled "Greta and Paula, June 1975."
- Monica Vickers was born on July 14, 1975, at Harlan Regional Hospital and raised in Bowling Green believing Nora and Walter Vickers were her parents.
- The one-page letter, written front and back in blue ballpoint, contained the line: "Greta came to your mother. Not the other way," and named lawyer Gideon Pruett.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1303falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/son-watches-father-walk-free-the-dennis-tate-disappearance--73105021
A blood-type card with the name Dennis Tate appeared on a dead-end road thirty years after his disappearance, dry and legible as if it had been dropped yesterday - and yet Dennis had been declared dead in 1989. How could a card issued between 1982 and 1989 turn up intact on Birch Spur Road in January 2019, and what does it mean for a son who grew up with nothing but a silhouette of a father?

In this episode, we follow how a found-property report and one man's questions unravel a thirty-year family silence and a county's quiet file. Listen as the discovery of a Dellard Community Blood Bank card pushes a son to reopen the story his mother never fully told: what really happened the night Dennis Tate drove to the reservoir?

Person: Dennis Tate
Date: Truck found in June 1989
Location: Birch Spur Road, near Fenwick reservoir boat landing
Event: Blood-type card found at 5:40 AM on a Tuesday in January 2019
Person: Alan Tate

- The blood-type card was found twenty yards from the Fenwick reservoir boat landing.
- Heather Simpson found the card at 5:40 AM while operating a road grader and had driven the road four days earlier.
- The card matched the format used by Dellard Community Blood Bank between 1982 and 1989.
- Dennis Tate’s truck was found the morning after his disappearance with the driver’s door open and one boot on the roof of the cab.
- Alan Tate was seven months old when Dennis disappeared and was twenty-six when his mother Connie died in spring 2017.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105021Wed, 12 Aug 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaSon Watches Father Walk Free: The Dennis Tate Disappearance A blood-type card with the name Dennis Tate appeared on a dead-end road thirty years after his disappearance, dry and legible as if it had been dropped yesterday - and yet Dennis had been...
A blood-type card with the name Dennis Tate appeared on a dead-end road thirty years after his disappearance, dry and legible as if it had been dropped yesterday - and yet Dennis had been declared dead in 1989. How could a card issued between 1982 and 1989 turn up intact on Birch Spur Road in January 2019, and what does it mean for a son who grew up with nothing but a silhouette of a father?

In this episode, we follow how a found-property report and one man's questions unravel a thirty-year family silence and a county's quiet file. Listen as the discovery of a Dellard Community Blood Bank card pushes a son to reopen the story his mother never fully told: what really happened the night Dennis Tate drove to the reservoir?

Person: Dennis Tate
Date: Truck found in June 1989
Location: Birch Spur Road, near Fenwick reservoir boat landing
Event: Blood-type card found at 5:40 AM on a Tuesday in January 2019
Person: Alan Tate

- The blood-type card was found twenty yards from the Fenwick reservoir boat landing.
- Heather Simpson found the card at 5:40 AM while operating a road grader and had driven the road four days earlier.
- The card matched the format used by Dellard Community Blood Bank between 1982 and 1989.
- Dennis Tate’s truck was found the morning after his disappearance with the driver’s door open and one boot on the roof of the cab.
- Alan Tate was seven months old when Dennis disappeared and was twenty-six when his mother Connie died in spring 2017.

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© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1298falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/stranger-in-the-family-portrait-the-walt-stroud-secret--73105017
A photograph left in plain sight on a kitchen table led to the discovery that one man had maintained two families for decades: two marriages, two homes, and a life insurance policy that was amended and abandoned. How did a formal wedding portrait captioned "Walt and Norma - June 14, 1963" end up in the empty Route Six house decades after Walt Stroud's 1991 death, and what truth did so many carry in silence?

In this episode, we walk through the municipal records, property deeds, and family recollections that piece together Walt Stroud’s double life - from his hiring as a deputy assessor in 1960 to the Route Six property sale in 1972 - and ask how personal choice and community knowledge intersected in a secret that spanned fifty-three years.

Person: Walt Stroud
Date: June 14, 1963
Location: Route Six property (purchased October 1972), Crestfield, Kellerton referenced
Event: Photograph found May 9, 2019 by lineman Lloyd Hayes
Status: Walt Stroud deceased April 1991

- The photograph’s inscription read "Walt and Norma - June 14, 1963, St. Ambrose Hall, Kellerton."
- Walt Stroud was promoted to township assessor within two years of being hired as a deputy assessor in 1960 and served eleven years.
- Roger Larsen purchased the Route Six property in October 1972 for $11,400 in cash from attorney Doyle Fetters.
- Norma Pietsch married Roger Larsen by 1965 while her 1963 marriage to Walt Stroud was never legally dissolved.
- Lloyd Hayes, a lineman for the Fennimore Township gas cooperative, found the photograph on the kitchen table on the morning of May 9, 2019.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105017Tue, 11 Aug 2026 13:00:03 +0000Creator at ObomediaStranger in the Family Portrait: The Walt Stroud Secret A photograph left in plain sight on a kitchen table led to the discovery that one man had maintained two families for decades: two marriages, two homes, and a life insurance policy that was...
A photograph left in plain sight on a kitchen table led to the discovery that one man had maintained two families for decades: two marriages, two homes, and a life insurance policy that was amended and abandoned. How did a formal wedding portrait captioned "Walt and Norma - June 14, 1963" end up in the empty Route Six house decades after Walt Stroud's 1991 death, and what truth did so many carry in silence?

In this episode, we walk through the municipal records, property deeds, and family recollections that piece together Walt Stroud’s double life - from his hiring as a deputy assessor in 1960 to the Route Six property sale in 1972 - and ask how personal choice and community knowledge intersected in a secret that spanned fifty-three years.

Person: Walt Stroud
Date: June 14, 1963
Location: Route Six property (purchased October 1972), Crestfield, Kellerton referenced
Event: Photograph found May 9, 2019 by lineman Lloyd Hayes
Status: Walt Stroud deceased April 1991

- The photograph’s inscription read "Walt and Norma - June 14, 1963, St. Ambrose Hall, Kellerton."
- Walt Stroud was promoted to township assessor within two years of being hired as a deputy assessor in 1960 and served eleven years.
- Roger Larsen purchased the Route Six property in October 1972 for $11,400 in cash from attorney Doyle Fetters.
- Norma Pietsch married Roger Larsen by 1965 while her 1963 marriage to Walt Stroud was never legally dissolved.
- Lloyd Hayes, a lineman for the Fennimore Township gas cooperative, found the photograph on the kitchen table on the morning of May 9, 2019.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1327falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/she-finds-a-stroller-at-dawn-the-kettering-baby-swap--73105015
Fear and curiosity collide: a pale yellow stroller left at 3 a.m. in an empty hospital lot contained a Kettering Memorial maternity ledger open to April 9, 1999-what secret tied two Millhaven families together for 23 years? Who placed the stroller there, and why did one retired hospital administrator stay silent for a decade?

In this episode, we follow the discovery, the DNA match that unraveled two households, and the small-town ties that hid a swapped identity for decades. Listen to how a misplaced binder, a consumer ancestry test, and a quiet reunion raise the question: how did two families end up raising each other’s children?

Person: Christine Edwards
Location: Millhaven, Kentucky
Date: April 2022
Event: DNA ancestry match revealing likely half/full sibling between Kevin Marsh and Patricia Young

- Christine Edwards found a pale yellow stroller in an overflow parking lot before sunrise in April 2022.
- The binder inside was Kettering Memorial Hospital maternity ward discharge records dated January-June 1999 and open to April 9.
- Deputy Aaron Spivey arrived within 20 minutes and noted the stroller showed no dew and wheels had no dirt.
- Kevin Marsh received his DNA results in late January 2022 showing a close-family match to Patricia Young.
- Patricia Young was 22 years old in spring 2022 and a junior at the University of Kentucky studying health administration.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105015Mon, 10 Aug 2026 13:00:03 +0000Creator at ObomediaShe Finds a Stroller at Dawn: The Kettering Baby Swap Fear and curiosity collide: a pale yellow stroller left at 3 a.m. in an empty hospital lot contained a Kettering Memorial maternity ledger open to April 9, 1999-what secret tied two Millhaven...
Fear and curiosity collide: a pale yellow stroller left at 3 a.m. in an empty hospital lot contained a Kettering Memorial maternity ledger open to April 9, 1999-what secret tied two Millhaven families together for 23 years? Who placed the stroller there, and why did one retired hospital administrator stay silent for a decade?

In this episode, we follow the discovery, the DNA match that unraveled two households, and the small-town ties that hid a swapped identity for decades. Listen to how a misplaced binder, a consumer ancestry test, and a quiet reunion raise the question: how did two families end up raising each other’s children?

Person: Christine Edwards
Location: Millhaven, Kentucky
Date: April 2022
Event: DNA ancestry match revealing likely half/full sibling between Kevin Marsh and Patricia Young

- Christine Edwards found a pale yellow stroller in an overflow parking lot before sunrise in April 2022.
- The binder inside was Kettering Memorial Hospital maternity ward discharge records dated January-June 1999 and open to April 9.
- Deputy Aaron Spivey arrived within 20 minutes and noted the stroller showed no dew and wheels had no dirt.
- Kevin Marsh received his DNA results in late January 2022 showing a close-family match to Patricia Young.
- Patricia Young was 22 years old in spring 2022 and a junior at the University of Kentucky studying health administration.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1390falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/son-left-a-shoe-at-her-door-the-secret-april-taylor-kept--73105012
A single child's white Mary Jane, size four or five, appeared on the concrete meter pad outside 4431 Millhaven Road the morning after April Taylor died - clean, unscuffed, and inexplicable. That shoe was the smallest visible trace of a secret April had carried for forty years: a son named Thomas, born September 1982 and privately surrendered to a couple in Muncie; who was he, and why had no one at 4431 Millhaven Road known?

In this episode, we follow the facts left behind in a shoebox, a hospital bedside confession, and a shoe on a utility pad to piece together what April told her son Harvey in her final days. What does the discovery of that shoe and the sentence she finally spoke mean for the family she left?

Person: April Taylor
Age: 81
Location: 4431 Millhaven Road
Event: Death from congestive heart failure on March 13
Revealed fact: Named son Thomas born September 1982, father named Ray, surrendered in Muncie

- A single white Mary Jane shoe, size four or five, was found on the meter pad outside 4431 Millhaven Road on the morning of March 14.
- April Taylor had lived at 4431 Millhaven Road since 1992 and had been married to Donald until his death in 2003.
- Harvey Schmidt (Harvey Taylor), age 38, was listed as April's emergency contact and was at her hospital bedside on March 9 when she named Thomas.
- April worked 22 years as a bookkeeper at Keller's Bend Plumbing Supply and was admitted to St. Ambrose Regional Medical Center on March 8 with congestive heart failure.
- Behind Christmas cards in a shoebox in April's closet Harvey found papers revealing fourteen years of a separate life April had kept hidden.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105012Sun, 09 Aug 2026 13:00:04 +0000Creator at ObomediaSon Left a Shoe at Her Door: The Secret April Taylor Kept A single child's white Mary Jane, size four or five, appeared on the concrete meter pad outside 4431 Millhaven Road the morning after April Taylor died - clean, unscuffed, and inexplicable....
A single child's white Mary Jane, size four or five, appeared on the concrete meter pad outside 4431 Millhaven Road the morning after April Taylor died - clean, unscuffed, and inexplicable. That shoe was the smallest visible trace of a secret April had carried for forty years: a son named Thomas, born September 1982 and privately surrendered to a couple in Muncie; who was he, and why had no one at 4431 Millhaven Road known?

In this episode, we follow the facts left behind in a shoebox, a hospital bedside confession, and a shoe on a utility pad to piece together what April told her son Harvey in her final days. What does the discovery of that shoe and the sentence she finally spoke mean for the family she left?

Person: April Taylor
Age: 81
Location: 4431 Millhaven Road
Event: Death from congestive heart failure on March 13
Revealed fact: Named son Thomas born September 1982, father named Ray, surrendered in Muncie

- A single white Mary Jane shoe, size four or five, was found on the meter pad outside 4431 Millhaven Road on the morning of March 14.
- April Taylor had lived at 4431 Millhaven Road since 1992 and had been married to Donald until his death in 2003.
- Harvey Schmidt (Harvey Taylor), age 38, was listed as April's emergency contact and was at her hospital bedside on March 9 when she named Thomas.
- April worked 22 years as a bookkeeper at Keller's Bend Plumbing Supply and was admitted to St. Ambrose Regional Medical Center on March 8 with congestive heart failure.
- Behind Christmas cards in a shoebox in April's closet Harvey found papers revealing fourteen years of a separate life April had kept hidden.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1279falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-letters-in-the-attic-a-mother-s-hidden-life-revealed--73105009
A retired postal worker finds a misdirected box in a church attic containing fourteen handwritten letters addressed to the dead Edith Hollis and signed by Sandra Dempsey - a name the recipient already bears decades later. Who wrote to Edith from a P.O. box in Marvell, Arkansas, wrote about Calloway streets, and vanished after April 1970?

In this episode, you’ll hear the discovery in the attic, Sandra Dempsey’s reaction as she reads all fourteen letters, and the tangled details that don’t fit with the life she knows - including a return address in Marvell, Arkansas and references to Calloway, Indiana. What was the relationship between the writer and Edith, and why was it kept hidden?

Person: Edith Hollis (also known as Edith Crane)
Person: Sandra Dempsey
Location: Calvary Lutheran Church attic, Calloway, Indiana
Date: Letters dated February 19, 1967 to April 1970
Event: Fourteen handwritten letters found in misdirected box

- Fourteen envelopes all in the same handwriting were found in a cardboard box in the church attic on the morning of February 4, 2019.
- Every letter was addressed to a P.O. box in Marvell, Arkansas and all bore Marvell postmarks.
- The letters span three years and two months, from February 1967 to April 1970.
- The writer signed every letter as Sandra Dempsey, a name the living Sandra had only held since 1988.
- The last letter is postmarked April 1970, after which there is no further correspondence.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105009Sat, 08 Aug 2026 13:00:05 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Letters in the Attic: A Mother's Hidden Life Revealed A retired postal worker finds a misdirected box in a church attic containing fourteen handwritten letters addressed to the dead Edith Hollis and signed by Sandra Dempsey - a name the...
A retired postal worker finds a misdirected box in a church attic containing fourteen handwritten letters addressed to the dead Edith Hollis and signed by Sandra Dempsey - a name the recipient already bears decades later. Who wrote to Edith from a P.O. box in Marvell, Arkansas, wrote about Calloway streets, and vanished after April 1970?

In this episode, you’ll hear the discovery in the attic, Sandra Dempsey’s reaction as she reads all fourteen letters, and the tangled details that don’t fit with the life she knows - including a return address in Marvell, Arkansas and references to Calloway, Indiana. What was the relationship between the writer and Edith, and why was it kept hidden?

Person: Edith Hollis (also known as Edith Crane)
Person: Sandra Dempsey
Location: Calvary Lutheran Church attic, Calloway, Indiana
Date: Letters dated February 19, 1967 to April 1970
Event: Fourteen handwritten letters found in misdirected box

- Fourteen envelopes all in the same handwriting were found in a cardboard box in the church attic on the morning of February 4, 2019.
- Every letter was addressed to a P.O. box in Marvell, Arkansas and all bore Marvell postmarks.
- The letters span three years and two months, from February 1967 to April 1970.
- The writer signed every letter as Sandra Dempsey, a name the living Sandra had only held since 1988.
- The last letter is postmarked April 1970, after which there is no further correspondence.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1231falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-day-a-culvert-revealed-my-mother-s-secret-half-sister--73105007
A retired shop teacher walking a four-year-old retriever found a sealed envelope in a culvert containing a printed DNA report that named Wendy Morgan as a half-sister with 98.4% confidence on the maternal line - and the paper was placed there carefully by someone living less than 300 meters away. Who printed the report, why was it hidden in a drainage pipe, and how would that secret unravel a family that believed Marvin Casey was an only child?

In this episode, we trace the days between the discovery of the DNA report and the confrontation that followed, following Marvin’s routine, the missing document, and the phone call to police that closed a missing-persons inquiry - what led Marvin to learn the truth?

Person: Marvin Casey
Person: Deanna Casey
Person: Wendy Morgan
Date: January 11, 2022
Location: culvert three miles east of Kellerton

- A retired shop teacher named Lloyd Gardner found the envelope on the morning of January 11, 2022.
- The DNA report inside the zip-lock bag listed Wendy Morgan as a half-sister with 98.4% confidence, maternal line.
- Marvin was 26 years old and had worked nights at a grocery distribution warehouse in Kellerton for three years as of January 2022.
- Marvin ordered the consumer DNA kit in September 2021 for $79 and received results in November 2021.
- A missing-persons inquiry filed by Marvin was closed after a phone call from a woman identifying herself as Deanna Casey.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105007Fri, 07 Aug 2026 13:00:04 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Day a Culvert Revealed My Mother's Secret Half-Sister A retired shop teacher walking a four-year-old retriever found a sealed envelope in a culvert containing a printed DNA report that named Wendy Morgan as a half-sister with 98.4% confidence...
A retired shop teacher walking a four-year-old retriever found a sealed envelope in a culvert containing a printed DNA report that named Wendy Morgan as a half-sister with 98.4% confidence on the maternal line - and the paper was placed there carefully by someone living less than 300 meters away. Who printed the report, why was it hidden in a drainage pipe, and how would that secret unravel a family that believed Marvin Casey was an only child?

In this episode, we trace the days between the discovery of the DNA report and the confrontation that followed, following Marvin’s routine, the missing document, and the phone call to police that closed a missing-persons inquiry - what led Marvin to learn the truth?

Person: Marvin Casey
Person: Deanna Casey
Person: Wendy Morgan
Date: January 11, 2022
Location: culvert three miles east of Kellerton

- A retired shop teacher named Lloyd Gardner found the envelope on the morning of January 11, 2022.
- The DNA report inside the zip-lock bag listed Wendy Morgan as a half-sister with 98.4% confidence, maternal line.
- Marvin was 26 years old and had worked nights at a grocery distribution warehouse in Kellerton for three years as of January 2022.
- Marvin ordered the consumer DNA kit in September 2021 for $79 and received results in November 2021.
- A missing-persons inquiry filed by Marvin was closed after a phone call from a woman identifying herself as Deanna Casey.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1236falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-forgotten-sister-how-a-creek-revealed-an-erased-life--73105005
A waterproof sleeve pulled from Canawba Creek contained a photocopy of a 1931 ship manifest listing three children when every American record showed only two - an entire life erased for eighty-eight years. Who was the unnamed infant on that manifest, and why did a family's memory close around her absence?

In this episode, we follow how a document found on a catfish trotline moved from a county sheriff to a retired schoolteacher and then into a family that had never known it existed, tracing what that manifest reveals and what it undoes about a family story. Can the arithmetic on a single page rewrite generations of recollection?

Person: Paula Long
Date: December 9, 2019
Location: Canawba Creek, Ohio
Person: Donna Osborne
Date: April 1931 (ship manifest)

- Paula Long found a waterproof document sleeve snagged in a catfish trotline on December 9, 2019.
- The photocopied ship manifest inside was dated April 1931 and listed three children: Lena (age 7), Pawel (age 5), and an unnamed female approximately four months old.
- The manifest departed Bremen for Baltimore in April 1931 and listed Marta Szymanski, age 26, as the mother.
- Donna Osborne spent six weeks verifying the manifest after finding the photocopy at the county historical society and mailed a three-page handwritten letter to Irene Novak in March 2020.
- Roy Novak was 48 years old in December 2019 and learned of the manifest when his sister Peggy called him to Sycamore Lane in March 2020.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105005Thu, 06 Aug 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Forgotten Sister: How a Creek Revealed an Erased Life A waterproof sleeve pulled from Canawba Creek contained a photocopy of a 1931 ship manifest listing three children when every American record showed only two - an entire life erased for...
A waterproof sleeve pulled from Canawba Creek contained a photocopy of a 1931 ship manifest listing three children when every American record showed only two - an entire life erased for eighty-eight years. Who was the unnamed infant on that manifest, and why did a family's memory close around her absence?

In this episode, we follow how a document found on a catfish trotline moved from a county sheriff to a retired schoolteacher and then into a family that had never known it existed, tracing what that manifest reveals and what it undoes about a family story. Can the arithmetic on a single page rewrite generations of recollection?

Person: Paula Long
Date: December 9, 2019
Location: Canawba Creek, Ohio
Person: Donna Osborne
Date: April 1931 (ship manifest)

- Paula Long found a waterproof document sleeve snagged in a catfish trotline on December 9, 2019.
- The photocopied ship manifest inside was dated April 1931 and listed three children: Lena (age 7), Pawel (age 5), and an unnamed female approximately four months old.
- The manifest departed Bremen for Baltimore in April 1931 and listed Marta Szymanski, age 26, as the mother.
- Donna Osborne spent six weeks verifying the manifest after finding the photocopy at the county historical society and mailed a three-page handwritten letter to Irene Novak in March 2020.
- Roy Novak was 48 years old in December 2019 and learned of the manifest when his sister Peggy called him to Sycamore Lane in March 2020.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1356falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-sealed-letter-that-revealed-my-mother-s-hidden-life--73105004
Fear that the life you thought you knew is a careful fiction: a sealed, wax‑stamped envelope sat undelivered for 30 years in a retired mail carrier’s garage before it was handed to the dead woman’s son-what secret could have been held by a cream legal‑size letter postmarked September 14, 1993?

In this episode, we follow how a county surveyor found forty-one pieces of undelivered mail in a milk crate, how the post office chose to deliver a sealed envelope to the addressee’s son, and what unfolded when Larry Williams finally opened the letter that his mother never received; what did that single sealed document reveal?

Person: Edna Williams
Person: Larry Williams
Event: Mail discovered in garage milk crate
Date: Letter postmarked September 14, 1993
Location: Poplar Mill Road, Millhaven, Indiana

- Forty-one pieces of undelivered mail were rubber‑banded together in a plastic milk crate on a pegboard shelf.
- The cream legal‑size envelope bore an unbroken red notarial wax seal after thirty years.
- The envelope was addressed to Edna Williams at Poplar Mill Road and postmarked September 14, 1993.
- Edna Williams died in 2011; her son Larry Williams was born March 4, 1962 and was 61 when he received the letter.
- Roy Peck served the Poplar Mill Road mail route from 1988 until retiring in 2006 and died in October 2023; his garage contained the crate.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105004Wed, 05 Aug 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Sealed Letter That Revealed My Mother's Hidden Life Fear that the life you thought you knew is a careful fiction: a sealed, wax‑stamped envelope sat undelivered for 30 years in a retired mail carrier’s garage before it was handed to the dead...
Fear that the life you thought you knew is a careful fiction: a sealed, wax‑stamped envelope sat undelivered for 30 years in a retired mail carrier’s garage before it was handed to the dead woman’s son-what secret could have been held by a cream legal‑size letter postmarked September 14, 1993?

In this episode, we follow how a county surveyor found forty-one pieces of undelivered mail in a milk crate, how the post office chose to deliver a sealed envelope to the addressee’s son, and what unfolded when Larry Williams finally opened the letter that his mother never received; what did that single sealed document reveal?

Person: Edna Williams
Person: Larry Williams
Event: Mail discovered in garage milk crate
Date: Letter postmarked September 14, 1993
Location: Poplar Mill Road, Millhaven, Indiana

- Forty-one pieces of undelivered mail were rubber‑banded together in a plastic milk crate on a pegboard shelf.
- The cream legal‑size envelope bore an unbroken red notarial wax seal after thirty years.
- The envelope was addressed to Edna Williams at Poplar Mill Road and postmarked September 14, 1993.
- Edna Williams died in 2011; her son Larry Williams was born March 4, 1962 and was 61 when he received the letter.
- Roy Peck served the Poplar Mill Road mail route from 1988 until retiring in 2006 and died in October 2023; his garage contained the crate.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1272falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-twin-she-never-knew-bracelet-secret-and-a-hidden-sister--73105000
A thrift-store find exposed a hospital bracelet stamped DANNA PADGETT with the exact birthdate March 14, 1963 - one letter different from Donna Padgett and sealed in a coat pocket for nearly thirty years. In a town where everyone knows your driveway, two birth certificates with the same parents and the same hospital turned a methodical claims adjuster’s ordinary life into a question she could not ignore: who was the other child named Danna?

In this episode, we follow how a volunteer’s discovery at Millhaven Community Thrift led Donna from her kitchen table to the county records office, uncovering two certificates issued the same day at Northwick Memorial Hospital for Harold J. Padgett and Loretta Ann Padgett’s children. What happened the morning these twins were born, and why had no one ever told Donna about Danna?

Person: Donna Padgett
Date: March 14, 1963
Location: Millhaven County / Millhaven Community Thrift
Hospital: Northwick Memorial Hospital (code NWMH)
Family: Parents Harold J. Padgett and Loretta Ann Padgett

- A volunteer named Bev found the bracelet inside the interior pocket of a camel-colored wool coat donated to Millhaven Community Thrift.
- The bracelet was white plastic with thermal printing that read DANNA PADGETT and March 14, 1963.
- Donna Padgett lived on Elm Creek Road, twelve minutes from the thrift store, and was thirty-four years old in 1998.
- The coat had belonged to Loretta Padgett and passed through Laura Simmons before being donated.
- The county records office produced two birth certificates issued the same day at Northwick Memorial Hospital: one for DONNA and one for DANNA, both listing Harold J. Padgett and Loretta Ann Padgett as parents.

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© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73105000Tue, 04 Aug 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Twin She Never Knew: Bracelet, Secret, and a Hidden Sister A thrift-store find exposed a hospital bracelet stamped DANNA PADGETT with the exact birthdate March 14, 1963 - one letter different from Donna Padgett and sealed in a coat pocket for...
A thrift-store find exposed a hospital bracelet stamped DANNA PADGETT with the exact birthdate March 14, 1963 - one letter different from Donna Padgett and sealed in a coat pocket for nearly thirty years. In a town where everyone knows your driveway, two birth certificates with the same parents and the same hospital turned a methodical claims adjuster’s ordinary life into a question she could not ignore: who was the other child named Danna?

In this episode, we follow how a volunteer’s discovery at Millhaven Community Thrift led Donna from her kitchen table to the county records office, uncovering two certificates issued the same day at Northwick Memorial Hospital for Harold J. Padgett and Loretta Ann Padgett’s children. What happened the morning these twins were born, and why had no one ever told Donna about Danna?

Person: Donna Padgett
Date: March 14, 1963
Location: Millhaven County / Millhaven Community Thrift
Hospital: Northwick Memorial Hospital (code NWMH)
Family: Parents Harold J. Padgett and Loretta Ann Padgett

- A volunteer named Bev found the bracelet inside the interior pocket of a camel-colored wool coat donated to Millhaven Community Thrift.
- The bracelet was white plastic with thermal printing that read DANNA PADGETT and March 14, 1963.
- Donna Padgett lived on Elm Creek Road, twelve minutes from the thrift store, and was thirty-four years old in 1998.
- The coat had belonged to Loretta Padgett and passed through Laura Simmons before being donated.
- The county records office produced two birth certificates issued the same day at Northwick Memorial Hospital: one for DONNA and one for DANNA, both listing Harold J. Padgett and Loretta Ann Padgett as parents.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1122falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-word-beanbag-in-a-stranger-s-drawing-my-mother-s-secret-sister--73104999
A single word - Beanbag - written across a child’s crayon drawing arrived in a plain white envelope with no return address, mailed from Clarksburg, West Virginia to 412 Garnet Avenue in Morganfield, Kentucky. The word matched the only nickname Terry O'Brien’s late mother ever used for him, and it set in motion a fifty-year secret that crossed state lines; who sent the drawing, and why now?

In this episode, we trace how one anonymous piece of mail reopened buried histories and linked two families who had never known the other existed. We follow the envelope from a left-handed child’s drawing found in an estate to the surveyor who inherited his mother’s house, asking how a carefully chosen word became the key to a decades-long private correspondence.

Person: Terry O'Brien
Age: 44
Location: 412 Garnet Avenue, Morganfield, Kentucky
Sender city: Clarksburg, West Virginia
Person: Diane Macy, age 52

- The envelope arrived in the second week of September with no return address and a postmark from Clarksburg, West Virginia.
- Terry stood in his hallway without moving for four minutes after opening the envelope, observed by neighbor Scott Chambers.
- The drawing was a child’s crayon picture with two figures, a tree, and a kite, drawn by a left-handed child around age seven.
- Terry had been a licensed surveyor for twenty years and turned forty-four the winter before the envelope arrived.
- Diane Macy found the drawing among her deceased mother Helen Macy’s belongings and mailed it in September after recognizing different handwriting on the reverse.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104999Mon, 03 Aug 2026 13:00:04 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Word "Beanbag" in a Stranger's Drawing - My Mother's Secret Sister A single word - Beanbag - written across a child’s crayon drawing arrived in a plain white envelope with no return address, mailed from Clarksburg, West Virginia to 412 Garnet...
A single word - Beanbag - written across a child’s crayon drawing arrived in a plain white envelope with no return address, mailed from Clarksburg, West Virginia to 412 Garnet Avenue in Morganfield, Kentucky. The word matched the only nickname Terry O'Brien’s late mother ever used for him, and it set in motion a fifty-year secret that crossed state lines; who sent the drawing, and why now?

In this episode, we trace how one anonymous piece of mail reopened buried histories and linked two families who had never known the other existed. We follow the envelope from a left-handed child’s drawing found in an estate to the surveyor who inherited his mother’s house, asking how a carefully chosen word became the key to a decades-long private correspondence.

Person: Terry O'Brien
Age: 44
Location: 412 Garnet Avenue, Morganfield, Kentucky
Sender city: Clarksburg, West Virginia
Person: Diane Macy, age 52

- The envelope arrived in the second week of September with no return address and a postmark from Clarksburg, West Virginia.
- Terry stood in his hallway without moving for four minutes after opening the envelope, observed by neighbor Scott Chambers.
- The drawing was a child’s crayon picture with two figures, a tree, and a kite, drawn by a left-handed child around age seven.
- Terry had been a licensed surveyor for twenty years and turned forty-four the winter before the envelope arrived.
- Diane Macy found the drawing among her deceased mother Helen Macy’s belongings and mailed it in September after recognizing different handwriting on the reverse.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1201falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/grandmother-mails-birthday-cards-to-a-son-no-one-knew-existed--73104998
Fear and longing sit inside an unclaimed tote bag: chamomile tea, dish towels and a birthday card addressed to Marcus Teel - a name no one in Patricia Rice’s family had heard. Why did an 81-year-old woman buy weekly cards and mail them for years to an address that kept coming back marked "Not At This Address," and who was the son she kept hidden for decades?

In this episode, we follow the discovery a granddaughter made after finding a tote bag and unsealed card, the purchase history that contradicted everything the family believed, and the envelopes-seven of them-returned in red ink and carefully taped back. How did a private adoption from 1962 lead to a lifetime of secret letters and weekly trips across town?

Person: Patricia Ann Mercer (also identified as Patricia Rice)
Date: July 24, 2023 (discovery at 6:15 AM)
Location: Fareway parking lot on Sixteenth Avenue, Moline, Illinois
Event: Seven mailed envelopes returned marked "Not At This Address"
Person: Cynthia, granddaughter and billing coordinator in Davenport

- The tote bag was found at 6:15 AM on July 24, 2023, in the Fareway parking lot on Sixteenth Avenue.
- Inside the bag: three folded dish towels, a box of chamomile tea, and a birthday card addressed to Marcus Teel.
- Patricia had four years of weekly Wednesday purchases at the Fareway on Sixteenth Avenue, always between 9:00 and 10:00 AM, consisting of chamomile tea, bakery goods, and birthday cards.
- Seven envelopes addressed to Marcus Teel at Vandenberg Court, Ridgewood, were stored behind a frame and each marked in red "Not At This Address" with seven different postmarks spanning seven years.
- Patricia gave birth in October 1962, named the child Thomas, and arranged a private adoption through a minister named Braddock.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104998Sun, 02 Aug 2026 13:00:03 +0000Creator at ObomediaGrandmother Mails Birthday Cards to a Son No One Knew Existed Fear and longing sit inside an unclaimed tote bag: chamomile tea, dish towels and a birthday card addressed to Marcus Teel - a name no one in Patricia Rice’s family had heard. Why did an...
Fear and longing sit inside an unclaimed tote bag: chamomile tea, dish towels and a birthday card addressed to Marcus Teel - a name no one in Patricia Rice’s family had heard. Why did an 81-year-old woman buy weekly cards and mail them for years to an address that kept coming back marked "Not At This Address," and who was the son she kept hidden for decades?

In this episode, we follow the discovery a granddaughter made after finding a tote bag and unsealed card, the purchase history that contradicted everything the family believed, and the envelopes-seven of them-returned in red ink and carefully taped back. How did a private adoption from 1962 lead to a lifetime of secret letters and weekly trips across town?

Person: Patricia Ann Mercer (also identified as Patricia Rice)
Date: July 24, 2023 (discovery at 6:15 AM)
Location: Fareway parking lot on Sixteenth Avenue, Moline, Illinois
Event: Seven mailed envelopes returned marked "Not At This Address"
Person: Cynthia, granddaughter and billing coordinator in Davenport

- The tote bag was found at 6:15 AM on July 24, 2023, in the Fareway parking lot on Sixteenth Avenue.
- Inside the bag: three folded dish towels, a box of chamomile tea, and a birthday card addressed to Marcus Teel.
- Patricia had four years of weekly Wednesday purchases at the Fareway on Sixteenth Avenue, always between 9:00 and 10:00 AM, consisting of chamomile tea, bakery goods, and birthday cards.
- Seven envelopes addressed to Marcus Teel at Vandenberg Court, Ridgewood, were stored behind a frame and each marked in red "Not At This Address" with seven different postmarks spanning seven years.
- Patricia gave birth in October 1962, named the child Thomas, and arranged a private adoption through a minister named Braddock.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1311falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-hidden-mississippi-life-my-great-uncle-s-secret-town-and-lost-photograph--73104997
A retired librarian discovers a military separation record that lists her great-uncle’s hometown as Brackton, Mississippi - a place no one in the family had ever heard of - and a small 4x3 photograph inscribed “W. and Rhonda, summer 1938, Brackton” makes the contradiction impossible to ignore. How did a man who lived, married, worked, and was buried in Pelham, Illinois, list a different birthplace and spend an earlier life no one knew about?

In this episode, we follow how Valerie Doyle found the DD Form 214 and the photograph in a cardboard box kept by her father and learn the concrete details that expose an old secret. What happened between Warren’s birth in Brackton in 1917 and his life in Pelham that left a family with so many unanswered questions?

Person: Warren G. Doyle
Date: born August 1917
Location: Brackton, Coahoma County, Mississippi
Event: DD Form 214 (military separation) completed September 1953
Photograph size: approximately 4 inches by 3 inches

- The DD Form 214 listing Warren G. Doyle’s hometown as Brackton, Mississippi was found on a county road grader on a Tuesday morning in July 2019.
- Warren G. Doyle was born in August 1917; the attending physician was Dr. H. Croft.
- Six weeks after his birth, Warren was baptized at Pelham Presbyterian Church as son of Edward and Mabel Doyle of Pelham.
- Nora, Warren’s wife, died in 1979; Warren died in 1988 at age 71 and left no children.
- The photograph’s back is inscribed “W. and Rhonda, summer 1938, Brackton” in handwriting that is not Warren’s.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104997Sat, 01 Aug 2026 13:00:03 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Hidden Mississippi Life: My Great‑Uncle's Secret Town and Lost Photograph A retired librarian discovers a military separation record that lists her great-uncle’s hometown as Brackton, Mississippi - a place no one in the family had ever heard of...
A retired librarian discovers a military separation record that lists her great-uncle’s hometown as Brackton, Mississippi - a place no one in the family had ever heard of - and a small 4x3 photograph inscribed “W. and Rhonda, summer 1938, Brackton” makes the contradiction impossible to ignore. How did a man who lived, married, worked, and was buried in Pelham, Illinois, list a different birthplace and spend an earlier life no one knew about?

In this episode, we follow how Valerie Doyle found the DD Form 214 and the photograph in a cardboard box kept by her father and learn the concrete details that expose an old secret. What happened between Warren’s birth in Brackton in 1917 and his life in Pelham that left a family with so many unanswered questions?

Person: Warren G. Doyle
Date: born August 1917
Location: Brackton, Coahoma County, Mississippi
Event: DD Form 214 (military separation) completed September 1953
Photograph size: approximately 4 inches by 3 inches

- The DD Form 214 listing Warren G. Doyle’s hometown as Brackton, Mississippi was found on a county road grader on a Tuesday morning in July 2019.
- Warren G. Doyle was born in August 1917; the attending physician was Dr. H. Croft.
- Six weeks after his birth, Warren was baptized at Pelham Presbyterian Church as son of Edward and Mabel Doyle of Pelham.
- Nora, Warren’s wife, died in 1979; Warren died in 1988 at age 71 and left no children.
- The photograph’s back is inscribed “W. and Rhonda, summer 1938, Brackton” in handwriting that is not Warren’s.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1335falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-boy-who-was-buried-and-then-signed-a-wedding-guestbook--73104993
A family grave says Glenn Bishop died in 1959, yet a wedding registry from June 14, 1982 bears the same name in fresh ink - signed by someone who calls Nadine Bishop’s sister by a childhood nickname. How can a man buried as an infant appear to have signed a guestbook twenty‑three years later?

In this episode, we trace the discovery that split an official record from a family story: a storm toppled a trunk, a wedding registry was found open to Denise Kowalski’s 1982 page, and the signature raised a question no document answers - who was the man named Glenn who signed that book?

Person: Glenn Allen Bishop
Date: 1959 (grave year) and June 14, 1982 (wedding)
Location: Cedar Rest Cemetery, east side; Dellwood Circle, Prentiss, Ohio
Event: wedding of Denise Kowalski and Frank Pruitt
Witness: Terry Mills (photographed registry and grave)

- A trunk fell during a storm on a Tuesday evening in June 2023 and revealed a cloth-bound wedding registry.
- The registry was open to June 14, 1982, the wedding of Denise Kowalski and Frank Pruitt.
- The wedding page contains a clear signature: "Glenn Bishop - so happy for you both, Denny. Your brother, Glenn."
- A white marble marker at Cedar Rest Cemetery lists Glenn Bishop with only the year 1959 and a lamb carving.
- County records show a birth and a death filed three days apart for Glenn Allen Bishop in 1959; the death certificate lists Dr. H. Parrish and cause: congenital cardiac malformation.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104993Fri, 31 Jul 2026 13:00:03 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Boy Who Was Buried and Then Signed a Wedding Guestbook A family grave says Glenn Bishop died in 1959, yet a wedding registry from June 14, 1982 bears the same name in fresh ink - signed by someone who calls Nadine Bishop’s sister by a childhood...
A family grave says Glenn Bishop died in 1959, yet a wedding registry from June 14, 1982 bears the same name in fresh ink - signed by someone who calls Nadine Bishop’s sister by a childhood nickname. How can a man buried as an infant appear to have signed a guestbook twenty‑three years later?

In this episode, we trace the discovery that split an official record from a family story: a storm toppled a trunk, a wedding registry was found open to Denise Kowalski’s 1982 page, and the signature raised a question no document answers - who was the man named Glenn who signed that book?

Person: Glenn Allen Bishop
Date: 1959 (grave year) and June 14, 1982 (wedding)
Location: Cedar Rest Cemetery, east side; Dellwood Circle, Prentiss, Ohio
Event: wedding of Denise Kowalski and Frank Pruitt
Witness: Terry Mills (photographed registry and grave)

- A trunk fell during a storm on a Tuesday evening in June 2023 and revealed a cloth-bound wedding registry.
- The registry was open to June 14, 1982, the wedding of Denise Kowalski and Frank Pruitt.
- The wedding page contains a clear signature: "Glenn Bishop - so happy for you both, Denny. Your brother, Glenn."
- A white marble marker at Cedar Rest Cemetery lists Glenn Bishop with only the year 1959 and a lamb carving.
- County records show a birth and a death filed three days apart for Glenn Allen Bishop in 1959; the death certificate lists Dr. H. Parrish and cause: congenital cardiac malformation.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1063falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-tombstone-with-my-name-why-her-family-buried-me-alive--73104992
Fear that someone has been waiting in plain sight: a cemetery plot bought in September 1967 carries Jessica Hicks’s name and birthdate, yet no burial, while fresh impressions in the soil suggest someone stood there recently-so why was a tombstone engraved before she was born, and who has been tending this secret for decades?

In this episode, you will hear how a routine DNA test led Jessica Hicks from her home and job managing a dental office to a pale granite stone at Calverton Municipal Cemetery, and how county records and a chance phone call began to pull at a private adoption sealed since 1968; will that paper trail reveal who purchased the plot and why her name was placed there years before her birth?

Person: Jessica Marie Hicks
Date of birth: April 3, 1968
Location: Calverton Municipal Cemetery, Pell County
Event: Cemetery plot purchased September 1967
Contact: Sherry Vance (second cousin once removed)

- Jessica Hicks graduated Dunmore High School in 1986 and worked in healthcare administration.
- She married David Pryor in 1994, had two children, and returned to the surname Hicks after David died in 2011.
- The cemetery stone reads JESSICA HICKS with birthdate April 3, 1968 and no death date.
- The Vance family plot was purchased in September 1967 and never transferred or released in county records.
- Jessica submitted a saliva sample to a consumer DNA registry in February and matched Sherry Vance in March, who linked Dorothy Vance and Patricia Prater in the family tree.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104992Thu, 30 Jul 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Tombstone with My Name: Why Her Family Buried Me Alive Fear that someone has been waiting in plain sight: a cemetery plot bought in September 1967 carries Jessica Hicks’s name and birthdate, yet no burial, while fresh impressions in the soil...
Fear that someone has been waiting in plain sight: a cemetery plot bought in September 1967 carries Jessica Hicks’s name and birthdate, yet no burial, while fresh impressions in the soil suggest someone stood there recently-so why was a tombstone engraved before she was born, and who has been tending this secret for decades?

In this episode, you will hear how a routine DNA test led Jessica Hicks from her home and job managing a dental office to a pale granite stone at Calverton Municipal Cemetery, and how county records and a chance phone call began to pull at a private adoption sealed since 1968; will that paper trail reveal who purchased the plot and why her name was placed there years before her birth?

Person: Jessica Marie Hicks
Date of birth: April 3, 1968
Location: Calverton Municipal Cemetery, Pell County
Event: Cemetery plot purchased September 1967
Contact: Sherry Vance (second cousin once removed)

- Jessica Hicks graduated Dunmore High School in 1986 and worked in healthcare administration.
- She married David Pryor in 1994, had two children, and returned to the surname Hicks after David died in 2011.
- The cemetery stone reads JESSICA HICKS with birthdate April 3, 1968 and no death date.
- The Vance family plot was purchased in September 1967 and never transferred or released in county records.
- Jessica submitted a saliva sample to a consumer DNA registry in February and matched Sherry Vance in March, who linked Dorothy Vance and Patricia Prater in the family tree.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1367falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-hidden-shoebox-that-rewrote-a-lifetime-of-quiet-loyalties--73104990
Something a lifetime of order couldn’t explain: a dry shoebox hidden in a damp crawl space contained five personal items that point to a secret life Gerald Bowers kept for decades - a phone bill showing 312 calls in one month, a photo stamped between 1982-1989, and a letter that ends with “She is healthy and she looks like you around the eyes.” Who was Teresa Fisher, and what did Gerald hide from the family for years?

In this episode, we follow the discovery and the facts uncovered by Gerald’s children as they sort through the box and their father's records, tracing strange billing patterns, a child’s crayon drawing of a house with a yellow door, and a handwritten note addressed “Dear Gerry.” What do the phone records, photo stamp, and income drop together reveal about a life their father never introduced?

Person: Gerald Bowers
Date found: Monday, April 3, 2019
Location: crawl space under house on Ferndale Court, Delphi Hollow, Ohio
Phone calls: 312 calls in September 1984, between 9 PM and midnight
Income change: approximately 40% drop from July 1983 through March 1984

- The shoebox contained exactly five objects: a phone bill, a photograph, a birthday card, a handwritten letter, and a crayon drawing.
- The phone bill recorded 312 calls to the same number during one billing cycle in September 1984, made nightly between 9 PM and midnight.
- The photograph bears a processing stamp from a photo developer that operated in east-central Ohio between 1982 and 1989.
- Gerald’s Social Security earnings record shows an approximate 40% drop in reported income from July 1983 through March 1984 despite continuous employment.
- The handwritten letter found in the box closed with the line: “She is healthy and she looks like you around the eyes.”

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104990Wed, 29 Jul 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Hidden Shoebox That Rewrote a Lifetime of Quiet Loyalties Something a lifetime of order couldn’t explain: a dry shoebox hidden in a damp crawl space contained five personal items that point to a secret life Gerald Bowers kept for decades - a...
Something a lifetime of order couldn’t explain: a dry shoebox hidden in a damp crawl space contained five personal items that point to a secret life Gerald Bowers kept for decades - a phone bill showing 312 calls in one month, a photo stamped between 1982-1989, and a letter that ends with “She is healthy and she looks like you around the eyes.” Who was Teresa Fisher, and what did Gerald hide from the family for years?

In this episode, we follow the discovery and the facts uncovered by Gerald’s children as they sort through the box and their father's records, tracing strange billing patterns, a child’s crayon drawing of a house with a yellow door, and a handwritten note addressed “Dear Gerry.” What do the phone records, photo stamp, and income drop together reveal about a life their father never introduced?

Person: Gerald Bowers
Date found: Monday, April 3, 2019
Location: crawl space under house on Ferndale Court, Delphi Hollow, Ohio
Phone calls: 312 calls in September 1984, between 9 PM and midnight
Income change: approximately 40% drop from July 1983 through March 1984

- The shoebox contained exactly five objects: a phone bill, a photograph, a birthday card, a handwritten letter, and a crayon drawing.
- The phone bill recorded 312 calls to the same number during one billing cycle in September 1984, made nightly between 9 PM and midnight.
- The photograph bears a processing stamp from a photo developer that operated in east-central Ohio between 1982 and 1989.
- Gerald’s Social Security earnings record shows an approximate 40% drop in reported income from July 1983 through March 1984 despite continuous employment.
- The handwritten letter found in the box closed with the line: “She is healthy and she looks like you around the eyes.”

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1212falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/a-class-photo-that-proved-a-missing-boy-lived-under-another-name--73104987
Cold certainty colliding with a family wound: a school portrait taken April 2003, 114 miles from Fenn Township, shows a boy pressed to a gym window with the same broad forehead, uneven ears, and front-tooth gap as nine-year-old Robbie Haas, who vanished in May 2001 - so how did that photograph sit unnoticed for years and what did one forty-minute phone call uncover?

In this episode, we follow how a mailed class photograph, a dry cleaner’s processing address, and Jean Collins’s methodical approach moved a cold missing-persons file back into motion and raised the question of who the boy in the window really was.

Person: Robbie Haas
Date: May 2001 (disappearance)
Date: April 2003 (photograph)
Location: Fenn Township, Pennsylvania
Distance: 114 miles

- Robbie Haas was nine years old when he disappeared in May 2001.
- The class photograph was taken in April 2003, two years after his disappearance.
- The photograph was processed by Alderman Portrait Services with an address in Dunmore, Pennsylvania.
- The photograph arrived at Jean Collins’s apartment in an envelope in early March 2019.
- Jean Collins was twenty-six years old in March 2019 when she received the photo.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104987Tue, 28 Jul 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaA Class Photo That Proved a Missing Boy Lived Under Another Name Cold certainty colliding with a family wound: a school portrait taken April 2003, 114 miles from Fenn Township, shows a boy pressed to a gym window with the same broad forehead,...
Cold certainty colliding with a family wound: a school portrait taken April 2003, 114 miles from Fenn Township, shows a boy pressed to a gym window with the same broad forehead, uneven ears, and front-tooth gap as nine-year-old Robbie Haas, who vanished in May 2001 - so how did that photograph sit unnoticed for years and what did one forty-minute phone call uncover?

In this episode, we follow how a mailed class photograph, a dry cleaner’s processing address, and Jean Collins’s methodical approach moved a cold missing-persons file back into motion and raised the question of who the boy in the window really was.

Person: Robbie Haas
Date: May 2001 (disappearance)
Date: April 2003 (photograph)
Location: Fenn Township, Pennsylvania
Distance: 114 miles

- Robbie Haas was nine years old when he disappeared in May 2001.
- The class photograph was taken in April 2003, two years after his disappearance.
- The photograph was processed by Alderman Portrait Services with an address in Dunmore, Pennsylvania.
- The photograph arrived at Jean Collins’s apartment in an envelope in early March 2019.
- Jean Collins was twenty-six years old in March 2019 when she received the photo.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1192falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-locket-that-revealed-my-mother-s-secret-half-brother--73104986
Fear and curiosity collide when a pawned silver locket bought for forty dollars contains a black-and-white photo of a man’s dead mother - a woman who died sixteen years earlier and whose initials on the locket are B.P., dated 1963. How did Eleanor’s face end up in jewelry marked with someone else’s initials, and what hidden family link will surface if the clues are followed?

In this episode, we trace the sequence of purchases, records, and a DNA match that bring two strangers from different lives into the same story. You’ll hear how a genealogy test, a yearbook, a boarding-house lease, and a pawnshop purchase converge to ask whether a long-buried family secret can be confirmed.

Person: Richard Fitzgerald
Person: Eleanor Fitzgerald (born Eleanor Marsh)
Person: Nancy Petersen
Date: February 2, 2019
Location: Bright Star Pawn, Dunbar, Ohio

- Richard bought the silver locket for $40 at Bright Star Pawn at 2:43 p.m, on February 2, 2019.
- The locket’s back is engraved with the initials B.P. and the year 1963.
- Eleanor Marsh Fitzgerald was born in 1944, worked at the textile plant until it burned in 1978, and died in 2003.
- Nancy Petersen submitted a consumer DNA sample in January 2019 and received a half-sibling match to R. Fitzgerald in February 2019.
- A Dunbar rental lease shows Barbara Marsh (Barbara Pauline Marsh) listed at a boarding-house room starting March 1965, contradicting her claim she left Dunbar by 1964.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104986Mon, 27 Jul 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Locket That Revealed My Mother's Secret Half-Brother Fear and curiosity collide when a pawned silver locket bought for forty dollars contains a black-and-white photo of a man’s dead mother - a woman who died sixteen years earlier and whose...
Fear and curiosity collide when a pawned silver locket bought for forty dollars contains a black-and-white photo of a man’s dead mother - a woman who died sixteen years earlier and whose initials on the locket are B.P., dated 1963. How did Eleanor’s face end up in jewelry marked with someone else’s initials, and what hidden family link will surface if the clues are followed?

In this episode, we trace the sequence of purchases, records, and a DNA match that bring two strangers from different lives into the same story. You’ll hear how a genealogy test, a yearbook, a boarding-house lease, and a pawnshop purchase converge to ask whether a long-buried family secret can be confirmed.

Person: Richard Fitzgerald
Person: Eleanor Fitzgerald (born Eleanor Marsh)
Person: Nancy Petersen
Date: February 2, 2019
Location: Bright Star Pawn, Dunbar, Ohio

- Richard bought the silver locket for $40 at Bright Star Pawn at 2:43 p.m, on February 2, 2019.
- The locket’s back is engraved with the initials B.P. and the year 1963.
- Eleanor Marsh Fitzgerald was born in 1944, worked at the textile plant until it burned in 1978, and died in 2003.
- Nancy Petersen submitted a consumer DNA sample in January 2019 and received a half-sibling match to R. Fitzgerald in February 2019.
- A Dunbar rental lease shows Barbara Marsh (Barbara Pauline Marsh) listed at a boarding-house room starting March 1965, contradicting her claim she left Dunbar by 1964.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1257falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-secret-sister-hidden-in-a-bible-blood-type-that-doesn-t-add-up--73104984
A single hospital form tucked in a box names Dennis Cox as B-negative while his daughter Paula is O-positive - a biological contradiction that turns a quiet family archive into a sixty-year mystery. A DNA match showing 23% shared material with a woman named Donna and a folded Bible labeled in Lottie’s handwriting suggest a secret that only the papers can answer: who really belongs to this family?

In this episode, we follow how an accidental discovery in a late grandmother’s storage room, a DNA match, and county records pull a grandson into the past. The episode traces the threads from a February 1989 discharge form to a January 1964 birth record and asks what Lottie was hiding in Grover, Ohio.

Person: Brian Weaver
Person: Paula Weaver
Person: Lottie Cox (née Harmon)
Event: DNA match showing 23% shared material with Donna
Date: February 1989 (hospital discharge form)

- Brian Weaver is 32 years old and lives in Columbus, works as a project estimator.
- Paula Weaver is 61 years old and listed blood type O-positive.
- The discharge form from Fenwick Regional Hospital is dated February 1989 and lists Dennis Cox as B-negative.
- DNA results received in January 2023 show a match named Donna Hollis sharing roughly 23% of Brian’s DNA.
- Lottie lived in Grover, Ohio between April 1963 and June 1964 and a girl named Donna was born there in January 1964 to Vera and Glen Hollis.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104984Sun, 26 Jul 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Secret Sister Hidden in a Bible: Blood Type That Doesn't Add Up A single hospital form tucked in a box names Dennis Cox as B-negative while his daughter Paula is O-positive - a biological contradiction that turns a quiet family archive into a...
A single hospital form tucked in a box names Dennis Cox as B-negative while his daughter Paula is O-positive - a biological contradiction that turns a quiet family archive into a sixty-year mystery. A DNA match showing 23% shared material with a woman named Donna and a folded Bible labeled in Lottie’s handwriting suggest a secret that only the papers can answer: who really belongs to this family?

In this episode, we follow how an accidental discovery in a late grandmother’s storage room, a DNA match, and county records pull a grandson into the past. The episode traces the threads from a February 1989 discharge form to a January 1964 birth record and asks what Lottie was hiding in Grover, Ohio.

Person: Brian Weaver
Person: Paula Weaver
Person: Lottie Cox (née Harmon)
Event: DNA match showing 23% shared material with Donna
Date: February 1989 (hospital discharge form)

- Brian Weaver is 32 years old and lives in Columbus, works as a project estimator.
- Paula Weaver is 61 years old and listed blood type O-positive.
- The discharge form from Fenwick Regional Hospital is dated February 1989 and lists Dennis Cox as B-negative.
- DNA results received in January 2023 show a match named Donna Hollis sharing roughly 23% of Brian’s DNA.
- Lottie lived in Grover, Ohio between April 1963 and June 1964 and a girl named Donna was born there in January 1964 to Vera and Glen Hollis.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1131falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-deed-with-two-names-my-father-s-vanished-identity--73104980
Fear that everything you trusted about a loved one might be a careful, long-lived fiction: a county deed from 1951 names "Randy Cooper, also known as Donald Lane," and a son discovers the paper while sorting his father's estate-so why did a man live under two names for nearly seven decades, and what does that single deed hide?

In this episode, we follow the documents and the people they touch to describe how a routine boundary check turned into a family revelation. The episode covers the deed, the DD-214 discharge, the uncovered birth record, and the steps Jeffrey takes to trace the man his father once was-what will those records finally explain?

Person: Jeffrey Lane
Person: Donald Lane
Person: Randy Cooper
Event: Warranty deed filed November 14, 1951
Location: Dunmore, Sutter County

- Jeffrey Lane was 52 years old when he read the deed in mid-December 2019.
- The warranty deed recorded 11 acres on November 14, 1951, naming "Randy Cooper, also known as Donald Lane."
- Donald Lane served as a deacon at Calvary Lutheran Church for 11 years.
- A DD-214 discharge in Donald Lane’s red accordion folder listed Dunmore, Sutter County, as the discharge station.
- Randy Cooper was born in 1926 in Dunmore, Sutter County, to mother Loretta Cooper (born 1902).

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104980Sat, 25 Jul 2026 13:00:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Deed with Two Names: My Father's Vanished Identity Fear that everything you trusted about a loved one might be a careful, long-lived fiction: a county deed from 1951 names "Randy Cooper, also known as Donald Lane," and a son discovers the paper...
Fear that everything you trusted about a loved one might be a careful, long-lived fiction: a county deed from 1951 names "Randy Cooper, also known as Donald Lane," and a son discovers the paper while sorting his father's estate-so why did a man live under two names for nearly seven decades, and what does that single deed hide?

In this episode, we follow the documents and the people they touch to describe how a routine boundary check turned into a family revelation. The episode covers the deed, the DD-214 discharge, the uncovered birth record, and the steps Jeffrey takes to trace the man his father once was-what will those records finally explain?

Person: Jeffrey Lane
Person: Donald Lane
Person: Randy Cooper
Event: Warranty deed filed November 14, 1951
Location: Dunmore, Sutter County

- Jeffrey Lane was 52 years old when he read the deed in mid-December 2019.
- The warranty deed recorded 11 acres on November 14, 1951, naming "Randy Cooper, also known as Donald Lane."
- Donald Lane served as a deacon at Calvary Lutheran Church for 11 years.
- A DD-214 discharge in Donald Lane’s red accordion folder listed Dunmore, Sutter County, as the discharge station.
- Randy Cooper was born in 1926 in Dunmore, Sutter County, to mother Loretta Cooper (born 1902).

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1260falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-bible-under-the-farm-a-name-buried-for-seventy-years--73104977
Fear that a family secret has been intentionally erased starts the moment a contractor finds a Bible tucked under a farmhouse and discovers a penciled name pressed so hard it cuts the page: "Cecelia, born April 1951, not recorded." Who wrote that name four times in the margins of the Book of Ruth, and why was it left deliberately impermanent-was it a plea, a warning, or a confession?

In this episode, we follow how a found family Bible travels from under a drained farmhouse to a kitchen table and then to an eighty-one-year-old relative, tracing each lead and reaction as James Owens seeks the truth about a name his family never spoke. Can the penciled message buried for decades be reconciled with the register entries written in copperplate ink?

Person: James Owens
Date: November 4, 2019
Location: Bleeker Road farmhouse, Dunnfield, Pennsylvania
Event: Discovery of penciled name "Cecelia, born April 1951, not recorded" in Bible
Person: Phyllis Crane, age 81

- A contractor named Ralph Tate found the Bible while inspecting a septic line under the house on November 4, 2019.
- The family register lists Roy, Lottie, Donald, and Beverly in ink; "Cecelia" appears four times in pencil.
- James Owens was 44 years old in November 2019 and is the last direct Owens family member living in the county.
- The fourth penciled occurrence adds the phrase "she was given away before the baptism."
- James drove three hours each way to see his great-aunt Phyllis Crane and later received from her the name and number Wendy Hill in Crestfield, Pennsylvania.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104977Fri, 24 Jul 2026 13:00:03 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Bible Under the Farm: A Name Buried for Seventy Years Fear that a family secret has been intentionally erased starts the moment a contractor finds a Bible tucked under a farmhouse and discovers a penciled name pressed so hard it cuts the page:...
Fear that a family secret has been intentionally erased starts the moment a contractor finds a Bible tucked under a farmhouse and discovers a penciled name pressed so hard it cuts the page: "Cecelia, born April 1951, not recorded." Who wrote that name four times in the margins of the Book of Ruth, and why was it left deliberately impermanent-was it a plea, a warning, or a confession?

In this episode, we follow how a found family Bible travels from under a drained farmhouse to a kitchen table and then to an eighty-one-year-old relative, tracing each lead and reaction as James Owens seeks the truth about a name his family never spoke. Can the penciled message buried for decades be reconciled with the register entries written in copperplate ink?

Person: James Owens
Date: November 4, 2019
Location: Bleeker Road farmhouse, Dunnfield, Pennsylvania
Event: Discovery of penciled name "Cecelia, born April 1951, not recorded" in Bible
Person: Phyllis Crane, age 81

- A contractor named Ralph Tate found the Bible while inspecting a septic line under the house on November 4, 2019.
- The family register lists Roy, Lottie, Donald, and Beverly in ink; "Cecelia" appears four times in pencil.
- James Owens was 44 years old in November 2019 and is the last direct Owens family member living in the county.
- The fourth penciled occurrence adds the phrase "she was given away before the baptism."
- James drove three hours each way to see his great-aunt Phyllis Crane and later received from her the name and number Wendy Hill in Crestfield, Pennsylvania.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1085falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/a-dead-man-s-pension-check-arrives-the-dennis-price-secret--73104973
A single glass of water on a folding card table, a legal pad with eight lines, and an unopened pension check addressed to a man buried in 1997 - the moment a retired postal worker found them cracked open a twenty-two-year family secret. Who had been living under a dead man's name, and why did a widow forward uncashed checks to an empty grain building instead of cashing them?

In this episode, we lay out the sequence of discoveries from the October morning when Crystal Whitley entered the Fenner grain cooperative to the conversations that followed at Ruth Price’s kitchen table, and follow how those objects forced a granddaughter and a town to reckon with what the family had been carrying. What did the note on the legal pad actually say, and what does it reveal about the choices the family made?

Person: Dennis Price
Date: October 14, 1997 (date on burial/records)
Location: Linden Grove Cemetery, Harwick, Indiana
Event: Unopened pension check found October 9, 2019
Person: Ruth Price

- A retired postal worker, Crystal Whitley, entered the Fenner grain cooperative on October 9, 2019 after finding the door unlatched.
- The legal pad on the table had eight lines written in handwriting later unfamiliar to Christine Rice.
- Dennis Price’s headstone records his death on October 14, 1997 at age 53.
- Ruth Price, aged 81 in 2019, had been collecting a survivor benefit for twenty-two years.
- Christine Rice was 28 years old in autumn 2019 and volunteered weekly at the local food shelf until the week the story ended.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104973Thu, 23 Jul 2026 13:00:13 +0000Creator at ObomediaA Dead Man's Pension Check Arrives: The Dennis Price Secret A single glass of water on a folding card table, a legal pad with eight lines, and an unopened pension check addressed to a man buried in 1997 - the moment a retired postal worker found...
A single glass of water on a folding card table, a legal pad with eight lines, and an unopened pension check addressed to a man buried in 1997 - the moment a retired postal worker found them cracked open a twenty-two-year family secret. Who had been living under a dead man's name, and why did a widow forward uncashed checks to an empty grain building instead of cashing them?

In this episode, we lay out the sequence of discoveries from the October morning when Crystal Whitley entered the Fenner grain cooperative to the conversations that followed at Ruth Price’s kitchen table, and follow how those objects forced a granddaughter and a town to reckon with what the family had been carrying. What did the note on the legal pad actually say, and what does it reveal about the choices the family made?

Person: Dennis Price
Date: October 14, 1997 (date on burial/records)
Location: Linden Grove Cemetery, Harwick, Indiana
Event: Unopened pension check found October 9, 2019
Person: Ruth Price

- A retired postal worker, Crystal Whitley, entered the Fenner grain cooperative on October 9, 2019 after finding the door unlatched.
- The legal pad on the table had eight lines written in handwriting later unfamiliar to Christine Rice.
- Dennis Price’s headstone records his death on October 14, 1997 at age 53.
- Ruth Price, aged 81 in 2019, had been collecting a survivor benefit for twenty-two years.
- Christine Rice was 28 years old in autumn 2019 and volunteered weekly at the local food shelf until the week the story ended.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1100falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-laminated-birth-certificate-hidden-under-her-kitchen-floor--73104972
Fear of a family secret: a laminated 1959 birth certificate, sealed and crisp, sat beneath the kitchen floor of a house where two children grew up unaware-found in 2019 by a 14‑year‑old delivering newspapers; why was a paper proving one man's origin hidden for six decades? What else did the Pembrook family bury in plain sight?

In this episode, we follow the discovery, the family records, and the single documents that reopen a silence stretching from 1959 to 2019, asking whether one ledger entry and one letter can reveal who decided to hide Thomas Allen Pembrook from his own family.

Person: Sherry Davis
Date: September 11, 2019
Location: Cutler Mill Road, Haddox, Pennsylvania
Person: Thomas Allen Pembrook
Document: Sylvia Anne Pembrook ledger entry "St. A's" (1959-October 1962)

- A 14‑year‑old named Sherry Davis found a laminated birth certificate dated 1959 under a loose floorboard while on a paper route.
- The certificate named Thomas Allen Pembrook, born March 4, 1959, and was sealed in lamination dated to the 1990s by polymer analysis.
- The Pembrook house on Cutler Mill Road was built in 1953 and had been occupied by Harold (b. ~1935) and Sylvia (b. ~1937) Pembrook.
- Sylvia wrote a letter in August 1964 to Saint Agatha's Children's Home asking to correspond with a child transferred out two years earlier; the administrator replied that the Ingram family requested separation.
- Sylvia's household ledger records recurring payments labeled "St. A's" of $40-$60 per month from 1959 through October 1962.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104972Wed, 22 Jul 2026 13:00:03 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Laminated Birth Certificate Hidden Under Her Kitchen Floor Fear of a family secret: a laminated 1959 birth certificate, sealed and crisp, sat beneath the kitchen floor of a house where two children grew up unaware-found in 2019 by a 14‑year‑old...
Fear of a family secret: a laminated 1959 birth certificate, sealed and crisp, sat beneath the kitchen floor of a house where two children grew up unaware-found in 2019 by a 14‑year‑old delivering newspapers; why was a paper proving one man's origin hidden for six decades? What else did the Pembrook family bury in plain sight?

In this episode, we follow the discovery, the family records, and the single documents that reopen a silence stretching from 1959 to 2019, asking whether one ledger entry and one letter can reveal who decided to hide Thomas Allen Pembrook from his own family.

Person: Sherry Davis
Date: September 11, 2019
Location: Cutler Mill Road, Haddox, Pennsylvania
Person: Thomas Allen Pembrook
Document: Sylvia Anne Pembrook ledger entry "St. A's" (1959-October 1962)

- A 14‑year‑old named Sherry Davis found a laminated birth certificate dated 1959 under a loose floorboard while on a paper route.
- The certificate named Thomas Allen Pembrook, born March 4, 1959, and was sealed in lamination dated to the 1990s by polymer analysis.
- The Pembrook house on Cutler Mill Road was built in 1953 and had been occupied by Harold (b. ~1935) and Sylvia (b. ~1937) Pembrook.
- Sylvia wrote a letter in August 1964 to Saint Agatha's Children's Home asking to correspond with a child transferred out two years earlier; the administrator replied that the Ingram family requested separation.
- Sylvia's household ledger records recurring payments labeled "St. A's" of $40-$60 per month from 1959 through October 1962.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1310falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-photo-buried-in-agnes-s-garden-that-unraveled-a-family--73104971
Fear and curiosity collide: a seven-by-four inch photograph, a brass-latched cedar box dug up by a road crew, and a name on the back-Thomas Aldrich-contradicting fifty-eight years of family memory about Leonard Zimmerman. Who buried the proof, who agreed to the secret, and why did Agnes seal it in the earth instead of speaking?

In this episode, we follow the discovery and documents that reopen a family's long-held story. You will hear what was found in the cedar box, how those items clashed with the Zimmermans' narrative, and the questions Judith Zimmerman could not leave unanswered.

Person: Leonard Arthur Zimmerman
Person: Thomas Aldrich
Date: September 1945
Location: Holt County, Iowa
Event: Cedar box found by road crew in August 2003

- The photograph measured seven inches by four and was printed on cream-colored matte paper.
- The cedar box was found by a grader blade in August 2003 in Tilden Township, Iowa, and had a brass latch oxidized green.
- Agnes Zimmerman died in February 2002 at age eighty-one and left the property where the box was buried.
- The discharge document in the box was dated September 1945 and listed Holt County, Iowa, as the destination address.
- Judith Zimmerman was twenty-two in August 2003 and transcribed a two-page unsigned, undated handwritten letter over two nights.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104971Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:27:50 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Photo Buried in Agnes's Garden That Unraveled a Family Fear and curiosity collide: a seven-by-four inch photograph, a brass-latched cedar box dug up by a road crew, and a name on the back-Thomas Aldrich-contradicting fifty-eight years of family...
Fear and curiosity collide: a seven-by-four inch photograph, a brass-latched cedar box dug up by a road crew, and a name on the back-Thomas Aldrich-contradicting fifty-eight years of family memory about Leonard Zimmerman. Who buried the proof, who agreed to the secret, and why did Agnes seal it in the earth instead of speaking?

In this episode, we follow the discovery and documents that reopen a family's long-held story. You will hear what was found in the cedar box, how those items clashed with the Zimmermans' narrative, and the questions Judith Zimmerman could not leave unanswered.

Person: Leonard Arthur Zimmerman
Person: Thomas Aldrich
Date: September 1945
Location: Holt County, Iowa
Event: Cedar box found by road crew in August 2003

- The photograph measured seven inches by four and was printed on cream-colored matte paper.
- The cedar box was found by a grader blade in August 2003 in Tilden Township, Iowa, and had a brass latch oxidized green.
- Agnes Zimmerman died in February 2002 at age eighty-one and left the property where the box was buried.
- The discharge document in the box was dated September 1945 and listed Holt County, Iowa, as the destination address.
- Judith Zimmerman was twenty-two in August 2003 and transcribed a two-page unsigned, undated handwritten letter over two nights.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1242falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/a-man-photographs-a-dish-before-touching-it-the-jean-gardner-case--73104968
The sight of a clean, bone-dry ceramic feeding dish precisely centered on a concrete pad stopped a utility lineman in his tracks and made him take a photo before he touched it - the house had been empty for three months and there were no paw prints in the dust. That single photograph ties a vacant garage, seventeen local newspapers, and a DNA match with 91% confidence together into a mystery that refuses easy answers: who placed the dish, and why was someone from Kessler keeping routes to Fenwick highlighted?

In this episode, the story follows the sequence of discoveries that unfolded between February and July 2019, tracing Jean Gardner’s ordinary routines, a DNA match that identified a likely close relative, and the contents of a rented garage that suggested deliberate planning. How do these details - a replaced lock, a folding chair under a camping lantern, and three highlighted driving routes - connect to the woman who had counted 41 fish in a lobby tank for years?

Person: Jean Gardner
Date: July 22, 2019
Location: Pepper Mill Road, Kessler Township, Indiana
Match confidence: 91%
Newspapers found: 17 issues (February-July 2019)

- A ceramic feeding dish was found centered on a 4-by-4 concrete pad beside the garage and was bone-dry with no paw prints around it.
- William Lawson, a utility lineman, photographed the dish before touching it when he arrived to read a meter.
- Jean Gardner was 38 years old at the time and had worked at Fenwick Credit Union, arriving at her desk by 6:15 each morning.
- Jean’s DNA ancestry result in May 2019 returned a 91% confidence match to profile marsh_d71, categorized as first cousin or half-sibling.
- Inside the rented garage were exactly four items: a folding card table, two folding chairs, a camping lantern, and a cardboard box containing 17 consecutive issues of the Kessler Courier.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104968Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:27:38 +0000Creator at ObomediaA Man Photographs a Dish Before Touching It: The Jean Gardner Case The sight of a clean, bone-dry ceramic feeding dish precisely centered on a concrete pad stopped a utility lineman in his tracks and made him take a photo before he touched it - the...
The sight of a clean, bone-dry ceramic feeding dish precisely centered on a concrete pad stopped a utility lineman in his tracks and made him take a photo before he touched it - the house had been empty for three months and there were no paw prints in the dust. That single photograph ties a vacant garage, seventeen local newspapers, and a DNA match with 91% confidence together into a mystery that refuses easy answers: who placed the dish, and why was someone from Kessler keeping routes to Fenwick highlighted?

In this episode, the story follows the sequence of discoveries that unfolded between February and July 2019, tracing Jean Gardner’s ordinary routines, a DNA match that identified a likely close relative, and the contents of a rented garage that suggested deliberate planning. How do these details - a replaced lock, a folding chair under a camping lantern, and three highlighted driving routes - connect to the woman who had counted 41 fish in a lobby tank for years?

Person: Jean Gardner
Date: July 22, 2019
Location: Pepper Mill Road, Kessler Township, Indiana
Match confidence: 91%
Newspapers found: 17 issues (February-July 2019)

- A ceramic feeding dish was found centered on a 4-by-4 concrete pad beside the garage and was bone-dry with no paw prints around it.
- William Lawson, a utility lineman, photographed the dish before touching it when he arrived to read a meter.
- Jean Gardner was 38 years old at the time and had worked at Fenwick Credit Union, arriving at her desk by 6:15 each morning.
- Jean’s DNA ancestry result in May 2019 returned a 91% confidence match to profile marsh_d71, categorized as first cousin or half-sibling.
- Inside the rented garage were exactly four items: a folding card table, two folding chairs, a camping lantern, and a cardboard box containing 17 consecutive issues of the Kessler Courier.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1257falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-wallet-that-undid-a-family-he-faked-his-death-lived-25-years--73104964
A drought exposed a clay shelf at Archer's Pond and a runner pulled a waterlogged bifold wallet that had been underwater for twenty-five years; inside was a Tennessee driver's license bearing the name Thomas A. Wagner and an address in Belmar, Tennessee-so why was a man declared drowned in Millhaven in 1989 resurfacing as a different identity? What the wallet revealed would upend a family that had collected life insurance and accepted an accidental drowning ruling.

In this episode, you’ll hear how a routine Wednesday phone call that stopped in 1989, an inquest with no recovered body, and the discovery of keys and a tackle box on the bank led to a thirty-year secret; the episode follows the facts from the pond to the license and asks whether Thomas Wagner really died or simply disappeared under a new name.

Person: Thomas A. Wagner
Location: Archer's Pond, Millhaven, Illinois
Date: June 1989 (drowning ruling); June 2019 (wallet found)
Event: Wallet found with Tennessee driver's license
Status: Body never recovered; coroner ruled accidental drowning

- A runner named Frances Wallace found a brown bifold wallet on a clay shelf at Archer's Pond at approximately 6:15 AM on a Tuesday in June 2019.
- The wallet had been underwater for twenty-five years and contained a Tennessee driver's license for Thomas A. Wagner with an address in Belmar, Tennessee and an expiration date of 2003.
- Thomas Wagner was declared to have drowned in Archer's Pond in June 1989; his body was never recovered and the coroner ruled the death accidental.
- On the morning the pond was searched in 1989 deputies found truck keys and a green tackle box identified by a coworker as belonging to Thomas, while a Shimano rod and reel identified as his were never recovered.
- Thomas's daughters were Valerie (age 32 in 1989, living in Columbus, Ohio) and Pam (age 28 in 1989); Valerie reported her father called every Wednesday at 10:15 PM and the calls stopped after spring 1989.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104964Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:27:26 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Wallet That Undid a Family: He Faked His Death, Lived 25 Years A drought exposed a clay shelf at Archer's Pond and a runner pulled a waterlogged bifold wallet that had been underwater for twenty-five years; inside was a Tennessee driver's...
A drought exposed a clay shelf at Archer's Pond and a runner pulled a waterlogged bifold wallet that had been underwater for twenty-five years; inside was a Tennessee driver's license bearing the name Thomas A. Wagner and an address in Belmar, Tennessee-so why was a man declared drowned in Millhaven in 1989 resurfacing as a different identity? What the wallet revealed would upend a family that had collected life insurance and accepted an accidental drowning ruling.

In this episode, you’ll hear how a routine Wednesday phone call that stopped in 1989, an inquest with no recovered body, and the discovery of keys and a tackle box on the bank led to a thirty-year secret; the episode follows the facts from the pond to the license and asks whether Thomas Wagner really died or simply disappeared under a new name.

Person: Thomas A. Wagner
Location: Archer's Pond, Millhaven, Illinois
Date: June 1989 (drowning ruling); June 2019 (wallet found)
Event: Wallet found with Tennessee driver's license
Status: Body never recovered; coroner ruled accidental drowning

- A runner named Frances Wallace found a brown bifold wallet on a clay shelf at Archer's Pond at approximately 6:15 AM on a Tuesday in June 2019.
- The wallet had been underwater for twenty-five years and contained a Tennessee driver's license for Thomas A. Wagner with an address in Belmar, Tennessee and an expiration date of 2003.
- Thomas Wagner was declared to have drowned in Archer's Pond in June 1989; his body was never recovered and the coroner ruled the death accidental.
- On the morning the pond was searched in 1989 deputies found truck keys and a green tackle box identified by a coworker as belonging to Thomas, while a Shimano rod and reel identified as his were never recovered.
- Thomas's daughters were Valerie (age 32 in 1989, living in Columbus, Ohio) and Pam (age 28 in 1989); Valerie reported her father called every Wednesday at 10:15 PM and the calls stopped after spring 1989.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1152falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-hidden-sister-fifty-years-of-silence-behind-a-house-box--73104961
A single cardboard box, hidden behind an unlatched crawl space panel, sat untouched for decades until a meter reader's 7:40 a.m. photo in May 2019 revealed envelopes, a small ledger, and a photograph that exposed a secret kept for more than fifty years. How did a meticulous woman who organized every bill and receipt also build a life in which she erased the existence of her own sister from the man she married?

In this episode, we follow the discovery at 19 Sycamore Terrace and trace the papers Wendy Young found on a kitchen floor that afternoon, from a ledger dated 1953-1959 to fourteen letters mailed between 1964 and 1971 - and ask how and why Helen kept her sister Debra hidden for so long.

Person: Helen Marie Young
Person: Debra Collier
Location: 19 Sycamore Terrace, Dellwood, Ohio
Date: May 7, 2019
Event: Discovery of sealed box in crawl space

- The meter reader Brenda Gallagher photographed the unlatched crawl space at 7:40 a.m. on May 7, 2019.
- Helen Marie Young died in November 2018 at age 78 of congestive heart failure.
- A ledger found in the box spans the years 1953 through 1959.
- Fourteen letters were posted to a Dellwood post office box from Aldrich, Indiana between 1964 and 1971.
- A life insurance policy paid out $412 and bore Debra's signature on the claim form in 1963.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104961Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:27:14 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Hidden Sister: Fifty Years of Silence Behind a House Box A single cardboard box, hidden behind an unlatched crawl space panel, sat untouched for decades until a meter reader's 7:40 a.m. photo in May 2019 revealed envelopes, a small ledger, and...
A single cardboard box, hidden behind an unlatched crawl space panel, sat untouched for decades until a meter reader's 7:40 a.m. photo in May 2019 revealed envelopes, a small ledger, and a photograph that exposed a secret kept for more than fifty years. How did a meticulous woman who organized every bill and receipt also build a life in which she erased the existence of her own sister from the man she married?

In this episode, we follow the discovery at 19 Sycamore Terrace and trace the papers Wendy Young found on a kitchen floor that afternoon, from a ledger dated 1953-1959 to fourteen letters mailed between 1964 and 1971 - and ask how and why Helen kept her sister Debra hidden for so long.

Person: Helen Marie Young
Person: Debra Collier
Location: 19 Sycamore Terrace, Dellwood, Ohio
Date: May 7, 2019
Event: Discovery of sealed box in crawl space

- The meter reader Brenda Gallagher photographed the unlatched crawl space at 7:40 a.m. on May 7, 2019.
- Helen Marie Young died in November 2018 at age 78 of congestive heart failure.
- A ledger found in the box spans the years 1953 through 1959.
- Fourteen letters were posted to a Dellwood post office box from Aldrich, Indiana between 1964 and 1971.
- A life insurance policy paid out $412 and bore Debra's signature on the claim form in 1963.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1364falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-two-babies-switched-at-calverton-who-kept-the-secret--73104955
A small-town hospital paperwork, a hand-bracketed note reading "Long. Burns." and a single word: Transposed - a finding that upended two families after forty-eight years. Who saw the change in 1971 and why did someone wait until the last weeks of their life to act?

In this episode, we follow how a photograph of an open archive folder moved through Calverton and reached two men whose lives had quietly swapped; we hear how routine Wednesdays, funeral dates, and DNA results reopened a story that began on April 14-15, 1971. What happens when the people who raised you are not your biological parents - and who kept that secret for decades?

Person: William Myers
Date: April 9, 2019
Person: Charles Long
Date: May, 2019 (DNA results confirmed)
Person: Edward Burns
Event: Hospital newborns transposed on April 14-15, 1971

- William Myers, age 67, photographed an open manila folder at Calverton County Historical Society on April 9, 2019.
- The photocopied hospital admission form in the folder was dated April 14, 1971 and had "Long. Burns." bracketed with "Transposed" in blue ballpoint pen.
- Charles Long, age 48 in spring 2019, received the photograph within a week and visited his 81-year-old mother on a Wednesday.
- DNA results confirmed in May 2019 showed Charles Long was biologically the child of Harold and Nora Burns, and Edward Burns was biologically the child of Robert and Irene Long.
- The neonatal observation record for April 14-15, 1971 documents two male infants assigned to the Long and Burns families and notes infants in cribs 7 and 9 were relocated for temperature regulation, with a handwriting change later in the record.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104955Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:27:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Two Babies Switched at Calverton - Who Kept the Secret? A small-town hospital paperwork, a hand-bracketed note reading "Long. Burns." and a single word: Transposed - a finding that upended two families after forty-eight years. Who saw the...
A small-town hospital paperwork, a hand-bracketed note reading "Long. Burns." and a single word: Transposed - a finding that upended two families after forty-eight years. Who saw the change in 1971 and why did someone wait until the last weeks of their life to act?

In this episode, we follow how a photograph of an open archive folder moved through Calverton and reached two men whose lives had quietly swapped; we hear how routine Wednesdays, funeral dates, and DNA results reopened a story that began on April 14-15, 1971. What happens when the people who raised you are not your biological parents - and who kept that secret for decades?

Person: William Myers
Date: April 9, 2019
Person: Charles Long
Date: May, 2019 (DNA results confirmed)
Person: Edward Burns
Event: Hospital newborns transposed on April 14-15, 1971

- William Myers, age 67, photographed an open manila folder at Calverton County Historical Society on April 9, 2019.
- The photocopied hospital admission form in the folder was dated April 14, 1971 and had "Long. Burns." bracketed with "Transposed" in blue ballpoint pen.
- Charles Long, age 48 in spring 2019, received the photograph within a week and visited his 81-year-old mother on a Wednesday.
- DNA results confirmed in May 2019 showed Charles Long was biologically the child of Harold and Nora Burns, and Edward Burns was biologically the child of Robert and Irene Long.
- The neonatal observation record for April 14-15, 1971 documents two male infants assigned to the Long and Burns families and notes infants in cribs 7 and 9 were relocated for temperature regulation, with a handwriting change later in the record.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1191falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-letter-that-ended-a-life-forgive-left-hanging--73104952
A sealed freezer bag held a 41-year-old hospital discharge form and a handwritten letter signed only “Mom,” written by a woman who had been dead three years - but the note hinted that two families were bound by a secret agreement that lasted decades. Who arranged a private transfer of a child, why did it stay hidden through cash withdrawals of $200 at a time for twelve years, and what did the final unfinished word "forgive" mean?

In this episode, we follow the discovery and the chain of documents that force a family to confront a hidden choice spanning four decades, as a daughter reads her dead mother’s handwriting and a son learns the card he kept might point to another origin. How did a hospital form, a savings account, and a single initial on a birthday card finally pull these lives apart?

Person: Patrice Harris
Person: Kenneth Harris
Person: Tracy Morris
Person: Linda Harris
Person: James Morris

- The sealed bag was found on March 7 by a dog named Pepper at a culvert on Ridgeline Loop in Calloway County.
- The hospital discharge form inside the bag was 41 years old and listed emergency contact Kenneth Harris with a Dunmore phone number.
- Patrice Harris made cash withdrawals from a savings account over 12 years, never more than $200 at a time, totaling over $14,000 before the account went dormant.
- Patrice died of a stroke three years before the bag was found; her documents sat in a banker's box packed by Linda and stored in Ken’s basement for about three years.
- A birthday card signed “T.” was kept by Robert for 38 years, coinciding with the 12-year period when Patrice’s withdrawals were made.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104952Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:26:50 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Letter That Ended a Life - "Forgive" Left Hanging A sealed freezer bag held a 41-year-old hospital discharge form and a handwritten letter signed only “Mom,” written by a woman who had been dead three years - but the note hinted that two...
A sealed freezer bag held a 41-year-old hospital discharge form and a handwritten letter signed only “Mom,” written by a woman who had been dead three years - but the note hinted that two families were bound by a secret agreement that lasted decades. Who arranged a private transfer of a child, why did it stay hidden through cash withdrawals of $200 at a time for twelve years, and what did the final unfinished word "forgive" mean?

In this episode, we follow the discovery and the chain of documents that force a family to confront a hidden choice spanning four decades, as a daughter reads her dead mother’s handwriting and a son learns the card he kept might point to another origin. How did a hospital form, a savings account, and a single initial on a birthday card finally pull these lives apart?

Person: Patrice Harris
Person: Kenneth Harris
Person: Tracy Morris
Person: Linda Harris
Person: James Morris

- The sealed bag was found on March 7 by a dog named Pepper at a culvert on Ridgeline Loop in Calloway County.
- The hospital discharge form inside the bag was 41 years old and listed emergency contact Kenneth Harris with a Dunmore phone number.
- Patrice Harris made cash withdrawals from a savings account over 12 years, never more than $200 at a time, totaling over $14,000 before the account went dormant.
- Patrice died of a stroke three years before the bag was found; her documents sat in a banker's box packed by Linda and stored in Ken’s basement for about three years.
- A birthday card signed “T.” was kept by Robert for 38 years, coinciding with the 12-year period when Patrice’s withdrawals were made.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1240falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-brother-cora-hid-43-letters-found-in-a-riverbox--73104951
A rusted shoebox pulled from the Sequatchie River yielded forty-three perfectly preserved letters addressed to Cora Nix, postmarked between March 1957 and August 1963 - all signed “Earl.” Who was this Earl, why did Cora keep the letters hidden in a river for decades, and why did she list “parents deceased, no siblings” on her marriage certificate for sixty-five years?

In this episode, we follow the discovery of the box by fisherman Wayne Anderson and the small-town paperwork trail that led granddaughter Gail Rogers to open a mystery no one in Dunlap expected. What made Cora bury this correspondence and what did the letters mean to her life and family?

Person: Cora Nix
Person: Wayne Anderson
Person: Gail Rogers
Date: February 11, 2019
Postmarks: March 1957-August 1963

- The metal box was the size of a shoebox with rusted orange hinges and tied with bright orange twine in a square knot.
- Wayne Anderson found the box in Calloway Bend on the Sequatchie River and called the number on the Nix estate filing.
- The box contained forty-three letters, sealed inside a plastic bag and tied with a faded yellow ribbon.
- A conservator estimated the box entered the river in the 1980s or 1990s after being submerged and re-exposed for decades.
- On her 1954 marriage certificate Cora wrote “parents deceased, no siblings,” a claim she maintained for sixty-five years.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104951Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:26:38 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Brother Cora Hid: 43 Letters Found in a Riverbox A rusted shoebox pulled from the Sequatchie River yielded forty-three perfectly preserved letters addressed to Cora Nix, postmarked between March 1957 and August 1963 - all signed “Earl.” Who was...
A rusted shoebox pulled from the Sequatchie River yielded forty-three perfectly preserved letters addressed to Cora Nix, postmarked between March 1957 and August 1963 - all signed “Earl.” Who was this Earl, why did Cora keep the letters hidden in a river for decades, and why did she list “parents deceased, no siblings” on her marriage certificate for sixty-five years?

In this episode, we follow the discovery of the box by fisherman Wayne Anderson and the small-town paperwork trail that led granddaughter Gail Rogers to open a mystery no one in Dunlap expected. What made Cora bury this correspondence and what did the letters mean to her life and family?

Person: Cora Nix
Person: Wayne Anderson
Person: Gail Rogers
Date: February 11, 2019
Postmarks: March 1957-August 1963

- The metal box was the size of a shoebox with rusted orange hinges and tied with bright orange twine in a square knot.
- Wayne Anderson found the box in Calloway Bend on the Sequatchie River and called the number on the Nix estate filing.
- The box contained forty-three letters, sealed inside a plastic bag and tied with a faded yellow ribbon.
- A conservator estimated the box entered the river in the 1980s or 1990s after being submerged and re-exposed for decades.
- On her 1954 marriage certificate Cora wrote “parents deceased, no siblings,” a claim she maintained for sixty-five years.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1305falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-laminated-birth-certificate-that-split-a-family-forever--73104949
A laminated birth certificate sealed in a plastic bag was found at chest height between fence posts on January 9, 2019 - placed, not lost - carrying the name Janet O'Brien and a February 19, 1972 birth date that revealed a secret twin kept hidden for decades. Who left that certificate on Henry Corbin’s old property, and why did Patricia Taylor guard the truth about a child given up for adoption until her dying days?

In this episode, we tell how a routine county survey led to a discovery that unraveled a family story kept through two deaths, three property sales, and forty-seven years of silence, and why one laminated document changed lives when it was finally found.

Person: Christine Bennett
Date: January 9, 2019
Location: Calloway Township, Oscoda County, Michigan
Person: Patricia Taylor (born Patricia Corbin)
Date: February 19, 1972

- The laminated birth certificate found was sealed inside a plastic bag and placed between two wooden fence posts at chest height.
- The name on the certificate was Janet O'Brien with a birth date of February 19, 1972.
- Patricia Taylor told her daughter Elaine in summer 2016 that she had given birth to twins on February 19, 1972 and that the girl was placed for adoption.
- Henry Corbin’s property, where Patricia said she hid the certificate, had changed hands twice since his death in 1991.
- The certificate was discovered by county surveyor Christine Bennett while walking a fence line during standard boundary survey work.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104949Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:26:26 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Laminated Birth Certificate That Split a Family Forever A laminated birth certificate sealed in a plastic bag was found at chest height between fence posts on January 9, 2019 - placed, not lost - carrying the name Janet O'Brien and a February...
A laminated birth certificate sealed in a plastic bag was found at chest height between fence posts on January 9, 2019 - placed, not lost - carrying the name Janet O'Brien and a February 19, 1972 birth date that revealed a secret twin kept hidden for decades. Who left that certificate on Henry Corbin’s old property, and why did Patricia Taylor guard the truth about a child given up for adoption until her dying days?

In this episode, we tell how a routine county survey led to a discovery that unraveled a family story kept through two deaths, three property sales, and forty-seven years of silence, and why one laminated document changed lives when it was finally found.

Person: Christine Bennett
Date: January 9, 2019
Location: Calloway Township, Oscoda County, Michigan
Person: Patricia Taylor (born Patricia Corbin)
Date: February 19, 1972

- The laminated birth certificate found was sealed inside a plastic bag and placed between two wooden fence posts at chest height.
- The name on the certificate was Janet O'Brien with a birth date of February 19, 1972.
- Patricia Taylor told her daughter Elaine in summer 2016 that she had given birth to twins on February 19, 1972 and that the girl was placed for adoption.
- Henry Corbin’s property, where Patricia said she hid the certificate, had changed hands twice since his death in 1991.
- The certificate was discovered by county surveyor Christine Bennett while walking a fence line during standard boundary survey work.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1226falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-tin-in-the-pipe-grandpa-s-secret-son-hidden-for-sixty-years--73104946
A corroded tin shoved into a cast-iron sewer pipe held a sealed photocopy of a 1954 ship manifest and a photograph that named a child no one in the family had ever heard of: Marek. The manifest lists Vera Kowalski and three children arriving in December 1954, yet household memory only counted two - so where did Marek go and why did the family never ask?

In this episode, we follow how a routine sewer inspection and a plastic bag set in motion a search through estate paperwork, a naturalization petition, diocesan intake records, and an unanswered contact that spanned decades to ask whether a secret was intentional or simply never questioned.

Person: Vera Kowalski
Date: December 1954
Location: Bridgewater
Event: child placed at St. Agatha's
Person: Marek (later Scott Harrison)

- The camera stopped forty feet into the cast-iron pipe where Jean Mills found a tin sealed with a lid.
- Inside the tin was a photocopy of a ship's passenger manifest listing Vera Kowalski, David, Nora, and Marek, male, age four.
- Vera arrived in the United States in December 1954 at age twenty-three and placed her youngest child at St. Agatha's within weeks of landing.
- Marek was adopted in 1957 by Bernard and Elaine Harrison of Bridgewater and his name was changed to Scott; he was seven at adoption.
- Vera died in March 2019, approximately eight months before Alan Bishop found the tin in the pipe.

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© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104946Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:26:14 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Tin in the Pipe: Grandpa's Secret Son Hidden for Sixty Years A corroded tin shoved into a cast-iron sewer pipe held a sealed photocopy of a 1954 ship manifest and a photograph that named a child no one in the family had ever heard of: Marek....
A corroded tin shoved into a cast-iron sewer pipe held a sealed photocopy of a 1954 ship manifest and a photograph that named a child no one in the family had ever heard of: Marek. The manifest lists Vera Kowalski and three children arriving in December 1954, yet household memory only counted two - so where did Marek go and why did the family never ask?

In this episode, we follow how a routine sewer inspection and a plastic bag set in motion a search through estate paperwork, a naturalization petition, diocesan intake records, and an unanswered contact that spanned decades to ask whether a secret was intentional or simply never questioned.

Person: Vera Kowalski
Date: December 1954
Location: Bridgewater
Event: child placed at St. Agatha's
Person: Marek (later Scott Harrison)

- The camera stopped forty feet into the cast-iron pipe where Jean Mills found a tin sealed with a lid.
- Inside the tin was a photocopy of a ship's passenger manifest listing Vera Kowalski, David, Nora, and Marek, male, age four.
- Vera arrived in the United States in December 1954 at age twenty-three and placed her youngest child at St. Agatha's within weeks of landing.
- Marek was adopted in 1957 by Bernard and Elaine Harrison of Bridgewater and his name was changed to Scott; he was seven at adoption.
- Vera died in March 2019, approximately eight months before Alan Bishop found the tin in the pipe.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1351falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-thirty-year-letter-that-erased-his-father-s-name--73104944
Fear and disbelief: a cream-colored, notarized envelope postmarked November 9, 1993, arrives thirty years late and names a different man as Wade Brown’s father - a fact that had never been questioned. How did undelivered mail, a retired carrier’s hidden box, and a photo of a carrier over a waste truck keep this truth from a man who had lived his whole life with a single name?

In this episode, we follow the chain of events that moved one piece of mail from a postal annex box to a kitchen table and changed a family history. We trace where the letter sat, who found it, and what the two handwritten pages signed Dale West revealed - and ask what it means to have your origins rewritten decades later.

Person: Wade Brown
Person: Norene Brown
Person: Burt Seibert
Person: Tom Vega
Date: Postmark November 9, 1993

- The envelope was cream-colored, legal-sized, with a notary embossed seal and a postmark dated November 9, 1993.
- Burt Seibert, a retired letter carrier, had a corrugated box in a private postal storage annex containing 47 pieces of undelivered mail from the early 1990s.
- Tom Vega photographed holding the cream envelope above the mouth of a waste truck before later delivering it on November 4 of the current year.
- Wade Brown was 54 years old, lived on Pelham Road in Tanner Falls, and had inherited his mother’s house when Norene died in 2011.
- The letter inside was two handwritten pages, signed Dale West, notarized November 6, 1993 in Lacey, Washington, stating Dale believed himself to be Wade’s biological father and that he had learned of a heritable cardiac arrhythmia in 1993.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104944Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:26:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Thirty-Year Letter That Erased His Father's Name Fear and disbelief: a cream-colored, notarized envelope postmarked November 9, 1993, arrives thirty years late and names a different man as Wade Brown’s father - a fact that had never been...
Fear and disbelief: a cream-colored, notarized envelope postmarked November 9, 1993, arrives thirty years late and names a different man as Wade Brown’s father - a fact that had never been questioned. How did undelivered mail, a retired carrier’s hidden box, and a photo of a carrier over a waste truck keep this truth from a man who had lived his whole life with a single name?

In this episode, we follow the chain of events that moved one piece of mail from a postal annex box to a kitchen table and changed a family history. We trace where the letter sat, who found it, and what the two handwritten pages signed Dale West revealed - and ask what it means to have your origins rewritten decades later.

Person: Wade Brown
Person: Norene Brown
Person: Burt Seibert
Person: Tom Vega
Date: Postmark November 9, 1993

- The envelope was cream-colored, legal-sized, with a notary embossed seal and a postmark dated November 9, 1993.
- Burt Seibert, a retired letter carrier, had a corrugated box in a private postal storage annex containing 47 pieces of undelivered mail from the early 1990s.
- Tom Vega photographed holding the cream envelope above the mouth of a waste truck before later delivering it on November 4 of the current year.
- Wade Brown was 54 years old, lived on Pelham Road in Tanner Falls, and had inherited his mother’s house when Norene died in 2011.
- The letter inside was two handwritten pages, signed Dale West, notarized November 6, 1993 in Lacey, Washington, stating Dale believed himself to be Wade’s biological father and that he had learned of a heritable cardiac arrhythmia in 1993.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1115falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-bracelet-said-simpson-my-mother-s-secret-life-revealed--73104942
Fear that the life you trust is a careful lie hits like finding a name that almost matches your own: an eleven-letter stamped bracelet reading "AMANDA SIMPSO" tucked inside a thrift coat, dated Mercy General February 14, 1997 - the same hospital and day on Amanda Wells's birth certificate. Who did that extra letter belong to, and why does a billing summary list a different employer and a second insurance policy that Donna Wells never mentioned?

In this episode, you will hear how a $3 thrift-store purchase set a nursing student on a ninety-mile drive and a quiet paper chase through filing cabinets and county records. Follow Amanda as she compares a birth certificate, a hospital bracelet, and a billing summary to the family story she grew up with - and ask whether the documents hold the truth about her origins.

Person: Amanda Wells
Person: Donna Wells (formerly Donna Simpson)
Date: February 14, 1997
Location: Mercy General, Harwell
Event: Bracelet found in thrift store coat, October 2019

- The bracelet read "AMANDA SIMPSO" with eleven faded letters pressed into yellowed thermal paper.
- Amanda was 22 years old and three semesters into a nursing program at Harwell Community College in October 2019.
- Donna's billing summary listed hospital admission dates February 13-16, 1997 and showed two insurance policy numbers.
- One insurance entry listed Medicaid; the other listed an employer group plan naming Crestfield Memorial Hospital.
- Crestfield is 90 miles east of Harwell, across the county line in Harding County.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104942Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:25:50 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Bracelet Said Simpson - My Mother's Secret Life Revealed Fear that the life you trust is a careful lie hits like finding a name that almost matches your own: an eleven-letter stamped bracelet reading "AMANDA SIMPSO" tucked inside a thrift coat,...
Fear that the life you trust is a careful lie hits like finding a name that almost matches your own: an eleven-letter stamped bracelet reading "AMANDA SIMPSO" tucked inside a thrift coat, dated Mercy General February 14, 1997 - the same hospital and day on Amanda Wells's birth certificate. Who did that extra letter belong to, and why does a billing summary list a different employer and a second insurance policy that Donna Wells never mentioned?

In this episode, you will hear how a $3 thrift-store purchase set a nursing student on a ninety-mile drive and a quiet paper chase through filing cabinets and county records. Follow Amanda as she compares a birth certificate, a hospital bracelet, and a billing summary to the family story she grew up with - and ask whether the documents hold the truth about her origins.

Person: Amanda Wells
Person: Donna Wells (formerly Donna Simpson)
Date: February 14, 1997
Location: Mercy General, Harwell
Event: Bracelet found in thrift store coat, October 2019

- The bracelet read "AMANDA SIMPSO" with eleven faded letters pressed into yellowed thermal paper.
- Amanda was 22 years old and three semesters into a nursing program at Harwell Community College in October 2019.
- Donna's billing summary listed hospital admission dates February 13-16, 1997 and showed two insurance policy numbers.
- One insurance entry listed Medicaid; the other listed an employer group plan naming Crestfield Memorial Hospital.
- Crestfield is 90 miles east of Harwell, across the county line in Harding County.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1053falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/a-dead-man-s-secret-reaches-his-son-the-brenda-ferris-story--73104940
Fear and curiosity collide the moment Eugene Mitchell finds an envelope propped against his storm door-inside, a crayon drawing and a photograph kept for nearly 24 years, labeled in his father's hand and addressed with a childhood nickname no one has used aloud since his mother died. Who left this deliberate message on Decker Street, and why was a memory from August 1991 waiting for him on a September morning in 2019?

In this episode, we follow the sequence of events from the Tuesday morning when a road grader operator noticed the envelope to the details inside it, the family history it touches, and the single question that opens everything: what did Dennis Mitchell want Eugene to find?

Person: Eugene Mitchell
Person: Dennis Mitchell
Date: September 2019
Date: August 1991
Event: Envelope found propped against storm door

- The envelope was discovered by road grader operator Melvin Dempsey on a Tuesday in the second week of September 2019.
- Inside the envelope were a crayon drawing on standard copier paper and a glossy 3.5-by-5 photograph.
- The photograph’s back was labeled in Dennis Mitchell’s handwriting: "Joanna / August, 1991."
- Wanda Mitchell died of ovarian cancer in March 1992 when Eugene was not yet two years old.
- Eugene had lived on Decker Street for 38 years and worked managing the receiving dock at a warehouse in 2019.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104940Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:25:38 +0000Creator at ObomediaA Dead Man's Secret Reaches His Son: The Brenda Ferris Story Fear and curiosity collide the moment Eugene Mitchell finds an envelope propped against his storm door-inside, a crayon drawing and a photograph kept for nearly 24 years, labeled in his...
Fear and curiosity collide the moment Eugene Mitchell finds an envelope propped against his storm door-inside, a crayon drawing and a photograph kept for nearly 24 years, labeled in his father's hand and addressed with a childhood nickname no one has used aloud since his mother died. Who left this deliberate message on Decker Street, and why was a memory from August 1991 waiting for him on a September morning in 2019?

In this episode, we follow the sequence of events from the Tuesday morning when a road grader operator noticed the envelope to the details inside it, the family history it touches, and the single question that opens everything: what did Dennis Mitchell want Eugene to find?

Person: Eugene Mitchell
Person: Dennis Mitchell
Date: September 2019
Date: August 1991
Event: Envelope found propped against storm door

- The envelope was discovered by road grader operator Melvin Dempsey on a Tuesday in the second week of September 2019.
- Inside the envelope were a crayon drawing on standard copier paper and a glossy 3.5-by-5 photograph.
- The photograph’s back was labeled in Dennis Mitchell’s handwriting: "Joanna / August, 1991."
- Wanda Mitchell died of ovarian cancer in March 1992 when Eugene was not yet two years old.
- Eugene had lived on Decker Street for 38 years and worked managing the receiving dock at a warehouse in 2019.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1203falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-tuesday-bag-how-a-bruised-peach-reunited-two-daughters--73104936
The ordinary detail that unlocked a hidden family: a bruised peach left in a canvas tote on an empty kitchen counter led from a utility worker to letters and a reunification spanning five decades. What drove a quiet bookkeeper to answer a stranger’s letter and begin shopping three miles away every single Tuesday for 41 consecutive weeks?

In this episode, we trace the chain of small decisions and preserved documents that connected a woman in memory care to a dental hygienist who had long known she was adopted, and ask how eleven handwritten letters and a pattern of grocery trips reshaped one family’s history.

Person: Pamela R. Griffin
Person: Margot Heller
Event: Eleven letters exchanged between October 2013 and December 2015
Location: Davenport, Iowa; Bettendorf, Iowa (twelve miles apart)
Case: A canvas tote from Harmon's Fresh Market found in an unattended apartment on Oleander Street

- Pamela R. Griffin was born circa 1938 and worked as a bookkeeper in Davenport.
- Pamela’s husband Warren died around 1961; their daughter Alice was about four at that time.
- Pamela moved into Briar Creek Memory Care Center in spring 2016 and never returned home.
- Margot Heller, a 54-year-old dental hygienist from Bettendorf, ordered a consumer DNA kit in winter 2012 and later identified a second-cousin match to Pamela.
- Pamela and Margot exchanged eleven letters over two years and three months, beginning in October 2013, preserved together in a fireproof box.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104936Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:25:26 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Tuesday Bag: How a Bruised Peach Reunited Two Daughters The ordinary detail that unlocked a hidden family: a bruised peach left in a canvas tote on an empty kitchen counter led from a utility worker to letters and a reunification spanning five...
The ordinary detail that unlocked a hidden family: a bruised peach left in a canvas tote on an empty kitchen counter led from a utility worker to letters and a reunification spanning five decades. What drove a quiet bookkeeper to answer a stranger’s letter and begin shopping three miles away every single Tuesday for 41 consecutive weeks?

In this episode, we trace the chain of small decisions and preserved documents that connected a woman in memory care to a dental hygienist who had long known she was adopted, and ask how eleven handwritten letters and a pattern of grocery trips reshaped one family’s history.

Person: Pamela R. Griffin
Person: Margot Heller
Event: Eleven letters exchanged between October 2013 and December 2015
Location: Davenport, Iowa; Bettendorf, Iowa (twelve miles apart)
Case: A canvas tote from Harmon's Fresh Market found in an unattended apartment on Oleander Street

- Pamela R. Griffin was born circa 1938 and worked as a bookkeeper in Davenport.
- Pamela’s husband Warren died around 1961; their daughter Alice was about four at that time.
- Pamela moved into Briar Creek Memory Care Center in spring 2016 and never returned home.
- Margot Heller, a 54-year-old dental hygienist from Bettendorf, ordered a consumer DNA kit in winter 2012 and later identified a second-cousin match to Pamela.
- Pamela and Margot exchanged eleven letters over two years and three months, beginning in October 2013, preserved together in a fireproof box.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1221falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-hidden-letter-that-rewrote-two-families-lives--73104933
A folded onionskin letter and a World War II separation paper sat unread in a cardboard box for four decades until a stranger found them in July 2019 - a single name, Raymond Allen Holt, erased a life in West Virginia and created another in Muncie, Indiana. How did one man become Howard to one family and Raymond to another, and what did his disappearance cost the people he left behind?

In this episode, you’ll hear the paper trail that links a coal-country birth, a wartime discharge, a sealed promise, and a quiet life in a Midwestern neighborhood; the episode traces the moments when a hidden document changed two families’ stories and asks who bears the burden of a name kept secret.

Person: Raymond Allen Holt
Event: World War II military separation
Location: Decker's Mill, Raleigh County, West Virginia
Date: March 1949 (letter) and July 2019 (discovery)
Status: Died as Howard Holt in 1984

- Raymond wrote a letter in March 1949 asking Alma to keep his name change secret one month before his daughter Patricia was born.
- The military separation document with the name Raymond Allen Holt survived inside an envelope for roughly seventy years.
- Raymond’s name was removed from West Virginia property records by October 1949.
- A man named Howard Holt bought a house on Detmer Street in Muncie in 1951 and worked thirty years at an industrial gasket plant.
- The box containing the onionskin letter and discharge paper reached Janet Porter’s kitchen table in mid-July 2019 after being traced to Vicki Padgett’s storage.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104933Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:25:14 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Hidden Letter That Rewrote Two Families' Lives A folded onionskin letter and a World War II separation paper sat unread in a cardboard box for four decades until a stranger found them in July 2019 - a single name, Raymond Allen Holt, erased a...
A folded onionskin letter and a World War II separation paper sat unread in a cardboard box for four decades until a stranger found them in July 2019 - a single name, Raymond Allen Holt, erased a life in West Virginia and created another in Muncie, Indiana. How did one man become Howard to one family and Raymond to another, and what did his disappearance cost the people he left behind?

In this episode, you’ll hear the paper trail that links a coal-country birth, a wartime discharge, a sealed promise, and a quiet life in a Midwestern neighborhood; the episode traces the moments when a hidden document changed two families’ stories and asks who bears the burden of a name kept secret.

Person: Raymond Allen Holt
Event: World War II military separation
Location: Decker's Mill, Raleigh County, West Virginia
Date: March 1949 (letter) and July 2019 (discovery)
Status: Died as Howard Holt in 1984

- Raymond wrote a letter in March 1949 asking Alma to keep his name change secret one month before his daughter Patricia was born.
- The military separation document with the name Raymond Allen Holt survived inside an envelope for roughly seventy years.
- Raymond’s name was removed from West Virginia property records by October 1949.
- A man named Howard Holt bought a house on Detmer Street in Muncie in 1951 and worked thirty years at an industrial gasket plant.
- The box containing the onionskin letter and discharge paper reached Janet Porter’s kitchen table in mid-July 2019 after being traced to Vicki Padgett’s storage.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1219falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/a-dead-man-s-name-appears-on-a-wedding-gift-the-lisa-cook-case--73104931
A single adult handwriting on a 1971 wedding registry contradicted a story told for decades: a brother declared dead in 1953 signed as a gift-giver and left a silver picture frame. Who wrote that name, why did Norma hide the registry for 26 years, and what does it mean that the entry is in the dead man's own hand?

In this episode, we follow Lisa Cook as she sorts through her mother's estate and uncovers the registry page, the marginal note "D's brother. Keep.", and other objects Norma deliberately preserved; we ask how one handwritten line unraveled a forty-four-year family secret and what questions remained unanswered by the time of discovery.

Victim: Douglas Cook
Date: 1997
Location: Dunmore / Harrisburg, PA
Case Status: Resolved - family reunion confirmed
Person: Dean Phillips

- The wedding took place on June 14, 1971, and the registry was handwritten in Norma Cook's vertical script.
- The registry entry reads "Dean Phillips - silver picture frame, engraved" with a marginal note "D's brother. Keep."
- Lisa Cook received a banker's box from the estate attorney in the second week of June 1997 containing the cloth-bound 1971 gift registry.
- Norma Cook wrote a disclosure letter in March 1997, sealed it with a wedding photo, and hid it at the exterior meter box before she died.
- In August 1997 Dean Phillips, declared dead as an infant in 1953, was alive at age 64, working as a machinist in Canonsburg, PA, married with three children.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104931Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:25:03 +0000Creator at ObomediaA Dead Man's Name Appears on a Wedding Gift: The Lisa Cook Case A single adult handwriting on a 1971 wedding registry contradicted a story told for decades: a brother declared dead in 1953 signed as a gift-giver and left a silver picture frame. Who...
A single adult handwriting on a 1971 wedding registry contradicted a story told for decades: a brother declared dead in 1953 signed as a gift-giver and left a silver picture frame. Who wrote that name, why did Norma hide the registry for 26 years, and what does it mean that the entry is in the dead man's own hand?

In this episode, we follow Lisa Cook as she sorts through her mother's estate and uncovers the registry page, the marginal note "D's brother. Keep.", and other objects Norma deliberately preserved; we ask how one handwritten line unraveled a forty-four-year family secret and what questions remained unanswered by the time of discovery.

Victim: Douglas Cook
Date: 1997
Location: Dunmore / Harrisburg, PA
Case Status: Resolved - family reunion confirmed
Person: Dean Phillips

- The wedding took place on June 14, 1971, and the registry was handwritten in Norma Cook's vertical script.
- The registry entry reads "Dean Phillips - silver picture frame, engraved" with a marginal note "D's brother. Keep."
- Lisa Cook received a banker's box from the estate attorney in the second week of June 1997 containing the cloth-bound 1971 gift registry.
- Norma Cook wrote a disclosure letter in March 1997, sealed it with a wedding photo, and hid it at the exterior meter box before she died.
- In August 1997 Dean Phillips, declared dead as an infant in 1953, was alive at age 64, working as a machinist in Canonsburg, PA, married with three children.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1406falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/a-grave-was-bought-before-she-was-born-the-helen-cross-secret--73104927
The moment Jessica Tran sees a cemetery ledger stamped March 14, 1967 - eight months before the November 3, 1967 birth date on a child's headstone - she feels the quiet certainty of a missing piece. A purchased plot with undisturbed earth, a lamb carved on the stone, and no matching birth or death record in any of four surrounding counties: what happened to Helen Marie Cross?

In this episode, we follow Jessica Tran as she traces a ledger entry, family memories, and county records to confront a five-decade gap in a family story. How did a grave get bought before a child was born, and why does the official record refuse to exist?

Person: Jessica Tran
Person: Michelle Tran
Person: Patricia Bailey
Date: Purchase date March 14, 1967
Date: Headstone date November 3, 1967

- The cemetery ledger lists a purchase date of March 14, 1967 for Row 14, Plot 81.
- The headstone reads Helen Marie Cross, Beloved daughter, November 3, 1967.
- Jessica Tran is 34 years old and works as a title research specialist.
- Patricia Bailey, born Patricia Cross, is 61 years old and is Helen’s sister.
- County clerks searched four adjacent counties and found no birth or death record for Helen Marie Cross.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104927Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:24:50 +0000Creator at ObomediaA Grave Was Bought Before She Was Born: The Helen Cross Secret The moment Jessica Tran sees a cemetery ledger stamped March 14, 1967 - eight months before the November 3, 1967 birth date on a child's headstone - she feels the quiet certainty of a...
The moment Jessica Tran sees a cemetery ledger stamped March 14, 1967 - eight months before the November 3, 1967 birth date on a child's headstone - she feels the quiet certainty of a missing piece. A purchased plot with undisturbed earth, a lamb carved on the stone, and no matching birth or death record in any of four surrounding counties: what happened to Helen Marie Cross?

In this episode, we follow Jessica Tran as she traces a ledger entry, family memories, and county records to confront a five-decade gap in a family story. How did a grave get bought before a child was born, and why does the official record refuse to exist?

Person: Jessica Tran
Person: Michelle Tran
Person: Patricia Bailey
Date: Purchase date March 14, 1967
Date: Headstone date November 3, 1967

- The cemetery ledger lists a purchase date of March 14, 1967 for Row 14, Plot 81.
- The headstone reads Helen Marie Cross, Beloved daughter, November 3, 1967.
- Jessica Tran is 34 years old and works as a title research specialist.
- Patricia Bailey, born Patricia Cross, is 61 years old and is Helen’s sister.
- County clerks searched four adjacent counties and found no birth or death record for Helen Marie Cross.

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© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1161falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-secret-sister-hidden-in-a-dog-s-hedge-find--73104924
Fear and curiosity collide the moment a dog drags a collapsed box from a hedge and inside is a 1982 telephone bill documenting 307 calls to one number - calls made by a man who had been dead ten years. Who was the name written in blue ink across the top margin, "Crystal Stein née Barrett," and how did that single paper reshape one family's history?

In this episode, you will hear how a neighbor found the bill, how Peggy Barrett tracked a marriage record in under ten minutes, and how a photograph hidden in a cedar chest confirmed a connection no one in the family expected. What hidden life did Gerald Barrett live that Peggy never knew about?

Person: Peggy Barrett
Date: April 9 (discovery), September 1982 (bill)
Location: four Clover Hill Drive, Millhaven County
Event: discovery of telephone bill documenting 307 calls
Case: Crystal Stein née Barrett written on bill

- Scout, a Labrador mix, pulled a collapsed cardboard box from a privet hedge behind Clover Hill Drive.
- The telephone bill inside was dated September 1982 and documented 307 calls all to the same number in a single month.
- The man who made those calls, Gerald Thomas Barrett, had been dead for ten years when the bill was found.
- Peggy Barrett discovered a county marriage record within ten minutes showing Crystal Barrett married Dennis Ray Stein in June 1979 with Gerald Thomas Barrett listed as the bride's father.
- A photograph of a younger Gerald was found at the bottom of a cedar chest in the upstairs hallway after Peggy reopened the chest she had left untouched since 2014.

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© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104924Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:24:38 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Secret Sister Hidden in a Dog's Hedge Find Fear and curiosity collide the moment a dog drags a collapsed box from a hedge and inside is a 1982 telephone bill documenting 307 calls to one number - calls made by a man who had been dead ten years....
Fear and curiosity collide the moment a dog drags a collapsed box from a hedge and inside is a 1982 telephone bill documenting 307 calls to one number - calls made by a man who had been dead ten years. Who was the name written in blue ink across the top margin, "Crystal Stein née Barrett," and how did that single paper reshape one family's history?

In this episode, you will hear how a neighbor found the bill, how Peggy Barrett tracked a marriage record in under ten minutes, and how a photograph hidden in a cedar chest confirmed a connection no one in the family expected. What hidden life did Gerald Barrett live that Peggy never knew about?

Person: Peggy Barrett
Date: April 9 (discovery), September 1982 (bill)
Location: four Clover Hill Drive, Millhaven County
Event: discovery of telephone bill documenting 307 calls
Case: Crystal Stein née Barrett written on bill

- Scout, a Labrador mix, pulled a collapsed cardboard box from a privet hedge behind Clover Hill Drive.
- The telephone bill inside was dated September 1982 and documented 307 calls all to the same number in a single month.
- The man who made those calls, Gerald Thomas Barrett, had been dead for ten years when the bill was found.
- Peggy Barrett discovered a county marriage record within ten minutes showing Crystal Barrett married Dennis Ray Stein in June 1979 with Gerald Thomas Barrett listed as the bride's father.
- A photograph of a younger Gerald was found at the bottom of a cedar chest in the upstairs hallway after Peggy reopened the chest she had left untouched since 2014.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1231falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-river-returned-her-a-secret-daughter-revealed-after-death--73104923
A laminated school portrait pulled from the Catawba Fork in March 2019 raised a single chilling fact: a photograph mailed to "Aunt Bev" in October 2017 resurfaced fourteen months after Beverly Sharpe died - and the girl in the picture was named Randy's daughter. What happened between that October mail, Beverly's January 2018 death, and a flooded river returning a secret that contradicted decades of family belief?

In this episode, we trace the photograph's journey from Harwick Elementary to a sheriff's lost-and-found and the small clues that force a family to ask whether Bev truly had no children. How did a school portrait end up laminated in a river, and whose child was it?

Person: Beverly Sharpe
Date: January 2018 (death)
Location: Catawba Fork
Event: Photograph mailed October 2017 and recovered March 11, 2019
Person: Michelle Nelson

- The photograph was pulled from the river on March 11, 2019, by Kenneth Walker, a 51-year-old mill worker.
- The back of the laminated portrait was inscribed in blue ballpoint: "For Aunt Bev - Love, Randy."
- The portrait had a caption strip reading "Harwick Elementary Spring 1984."
- Beverly Sharpe died of a stroke at age 71 in January 2018.
- The photograph sat in the Harwick County Sheriff's lost-and-found drawer for eleven days before Michelle Nelson found it.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104923Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:24:26 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe River Returned Her: A Secret Daughter Revealed After Death A laminated school portrait pulled from the Catawba Fork in March 2019 raised a single chilling fact: a photograph mailed to "Aunt Bev" in October 2017 resurfaced fourteen months after...
A laminated school portrait pulled from the Catawba Fork in March 2019 raised a single chilling fact: a photograph mailed to "Aunt Bev" in October 2017 resurfaced fourteen months after Beverly Sharpe died - and the girl in the picture was named Randy's daughter. What happened between that October mail, Beverly's January 2018 death, and a flooded river returning a secret that contradicted decades of family belief?

In this episode, we trace the photograph's journey from Harwick Elementary to a sheriff's lost-and-found and the small clues that force a family to ask whether Bev truly had no children. How did a school portrait end up laminated in a river, and whose child was it?

Person: Beverly Sharpe
Date: January 2018 (death)
Location: Catawba Fork
Event: Photograph mailed October 2017 and recovered March 11, 2019
Person: Michelle Nelson

- The photograph was pulled from the river on March 11, 2019, by Kenneth Walker, a 51-year-old mill worker.
- The back of the laminated portrait was inscribed in blue ballpoint: "For Aunt Bev - Love, Randy."
- The portrait had a caption strip reading "Harwick Elementary Spring 1984."
- Beverly Sharpe died of a stroke at age 71 in January 2018.
- The photograph sat in the Harwick County Sheriff's lost-and-found drawer for eleven days before Michelle Nelson found it.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1226falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-locket-that-reopened-a-41-year-family-secret-on-route-9--73104922
A tiny silver locket sold for twelve dollars in Muncie in January 2019 carried two photographs - one of them a woman who had been dead eleven years - and an anonymous note that sent the trinket back to the Pearce farm on Route 9. Who mailed a locket across ninety miles with a single line and no name, and why did that gesture pull two families toward one kitchen table?

In this episode, you'll hear how routine county mail, a county surveyor's curiosity, and a title researcher's methodical approach brought a lost locket home and reopened a forty-one-year secret. How did a pawnshop sale, a false name, and a single Wednesday night call change everything?

Person: Lois Pearce
Date: January 2019 (pawnshop sale)
Location: Muncie, Indiana
Event: Locket mailed to Calloway County property office
Case: Pawnshop transaction under the name "Kevin Alder"

- The locket was sold for $12 at Gray's Exchange in Muncie in January 2019.
- The seller used the false name "Kevin Alder" and provided a false address.
- The anonymous envelope sat unopened in county mail for four days before being opened.
- Lois Pearce died around 2008; Harold Pearce died in spring 2018.
- Julie Fisher called her father every Wednesday at 10:30 PM and visited the farm the second weekend of February 2019.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104922Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:24:14 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Locket That Reopened a 41-Year Family Secret on Route 9 A tiny silver locket sold for twelve dollars in Muncie in January 2019 carried two photographs - one of them a woman who had been dead eleven years - and an anonymous note that sent the...
A tiny silver locket sold for twelve dollars in Muncie in January 2019 carried two photographs - one of them a woman who had been dead eleven years - and an anonymous note that sent the trinket back to the Pearce farm on Route 9. Who mailed a locket across ninety miles with a single line and no name, and why did that gesture pull two families toward one kitchen table?

In this episode, you'll hear how routine county mail, a county surveyor's curiosity, and a title researcher's methodical approach brought a lost locket home and reopened a forty-one-year secret. How did a pawnshop sale, a false name, and a single Wednesday night call change everything?

Person: Lois Pearce
Date: January 2019 (pawnshop sale)
Location: Muncie, Indiana
Event: Locket mailed to Calloway County property office
Case: Pawnshop transaction under the name "Kevin Alder"

- The locket was sold for $12 at Gray's Exchange in Muncie in January 2019.
- The seller used the false name "Kevin Alder" and provided a false address.
- The anonymous envelope sat unopened in county mail for four days before being opened.
- Lois Pearce died around 2008; Harold Pearce died in spring 2018.
- Julie Fisher called her father every Wednesday at 10:30 PM and visited the farm the second weekend of February 2019.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1392falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/he-hid-a-letter-in-the-septic-hatch-your-sister-might-not-be-mine--73104921
Cold, deliberate secrecy met a concrete rim: a sealed manila envelope labeled "For my children" sat dry on a septic hatch in nineteen-degree weather, preserved exactly where a septic contractor would find it. Inside were three handwritten pages and a medical photocopy that made a biological impossibility undeniable - so why did the father keep the truth for fifty years, and what did that silence cost his family?

In this episode, we follow the discovery and the immediate aftermath as one daughter reads her father's letter in a gas station parking lot and confronts a fact confirmed by medical records: her mother's prenatal form lists O-negative blood while the daughter's blood type is AB-positive. How does a family rearrange itself when a long-kept secret becomes a clear-cut biological truth?

Person: Alan Fitzgerald
Event: Envelope found on septic hatch
Date: January 9, 2019
Location: Birchwood Court, Harwick County, Indiana
Document: Prenatal intake form dated February 1968

- Temperature at discovery: 19 degrees on the morning of January 9, 2019.
- Length of service: Dawn Meyer had serviced the property for 17 years.
- Envelope contents: three handwritten pages and one medical photocopy.
- Prenatal form detail: Meredith Fitzgerald (née Calloway) listed blood type O-negative dated February 1968.
- Daughter's blood type: Lauren Tillman recorded as AB-positive.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104921Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:24:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaHe Hid a Letter in the Septic Hatch - Your Sister Might Not Be Mine Cold, deliberate secrecy met a concrete rim: a sealed manila envelope labeled "For my children" sat dry on a septic hatch in nineteen-degree weather, preserved exactly where a...
Cold, deliberate secrecy met a concrete rim: a sealed manila envelope labeled "For my children" sat dry on a septic hatch in nineteen-degree weather, preserved exactly where a septic contractor would find it. Inside were three handwritten pages and a medical photocopy that made a biological impossibility undeniable - so why did the father keep the truth for fifty years, and what did that silence cost his family?

In this episode, we follow the discovery and the immediate aftermath as one daughter reads her father's letter in a gas station parking lot and confronts a fact confirmed by medical records: her mother's prenatal form lists O-negative blood while the daughter's blood type is AB-positive. How does a family rearrange itself when a long-kept secret becomes a clear-cut biological truth?

Person: Alan Fitzgerald
Event: Envelope found on septic hatch
Date: January 9, 2019
Location: Birchwood Court, Harwick County, Indiana
Document: Prenatal intake form dated February 1968

- Temperature at discovery: 19 degrees on the morning of January 9, 2019.
- Length of service: Dawn Meyer had serviced the property for 17 years.
- Envelope contents: three handwritten pages and one medical photocopy.
- Prenatal form detail: Meredith Fitzgerald (née Calloway) listed blood type O-negative dated February 1968.
- Daughter's blood type: Lauren Tillman recorded as AB-positive.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1340falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-deed-that-split-a-man-two-names-one-hidden-family--73104916
Cold curiosity turned into a private reckoning when a deed filed December 9, 1989 revealed a grantor named Leon Schultz and a grantee named Leon Schults - same address, two letters different, and forty-one pages into a county folder. Which life was real, and what had one man quietly divided across two counties for decades?

In this episode, you’ll hear how a chance photo at a deeds office set a twenty-two-year-old accounting student on a path that uncovered a second family living four miles down a gravel road. What did the deed, tax records, and a woman who “had known since nineteen eighty-seven” reveal about Leon’s double life?

Person: Leon Schultz
Person: Leon Schults
Date: December 9, 1989
Location: Callum County Register of Deeds
Event: Deed transfer recorded (41 pages into folder)

- The deed was filed on December 9, 1989 and was forty-one pages into a public folder.
- The property described was sixty-two acres with a boundary referenced at a stone marker on the Callum-Fenwick Road.
- Leon Schults had been assessed on the Callum County property every year from 1973 onward.
- Kevin Peterson was twenty-two years old and found the image sent by his aunt Sharon Wills.
- Denise Kohler’s mother Pauline told her about Leon around 1987, and Denise had lived at Rural Route 4 her entire life.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104916Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:23:50 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Deed That Split a Man: Two Names, One Hidden Family Cold curiosity turned into a private reckoning when a deed filed December 9, 1989 revealed a grantor named Leon Schultz and a grantee named Leon Schults - same address, two letters different,...
Cold curiosity turned into a private reckoning when a deed filed December 9, 1989 revealed a grantor named Leon Schultz and a grantee named Leon Schults - same address, two letters different, and forty-one pages into a county folder. Which life was real, and what had one man quietly divided across two counties for decades?

In this episode, you’ll hear how a chance photo at a deeds office set a twenty-two-year-old accounting student on a path that uncovered a second family living four miles down a gravel road. What did the deed, tax records, and a woman who “had known since nineteen eighty-seven” reveal about Leon’s double life?

Person: Leon Schultz
Person: Leon Schults
Date: December 9, 1989
Location: Callum County Register of Deeds
Event: Deed transfer recorded (41 pages into folder)

- The deed was filed on December 9, 1989 and was forty-one pages into a public folder.
- The property described was sixty-two acres with a boundary referenced at a stone marker on the Callum-Fenwick Road.
- Leon Schults had been assessed on the Callum County property every year from 1973 onward.
- Kevin Peterson was twenty-two years old and found the image sent by his aunt Sharon Wills.
- Denise Kohler’s mother Pauline told her about Leon around 1987, and Denise had lived at Rural Route 4 her entire life.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1305falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-hidden-name-in-the-family-bible-that-changed-everything--73104914
Cold air pouring from an unlocked door, an eighty-one-year-old living alone, and a pencil note in a 1938 King James Bible that names a child no one in the Corrigan family had ever heard of - could one seven-word sentence rewrite a family history? Who wrote "Thomas born March ninth, fifty-seven" and why was "Father acknowledged" pressed into the margin for sixty-seven years?

In this episode, we follow Beverly Doyle's discoveries after finding the faded annotation in her mother Edna Corrigan's Bible and the matching penciled return address, tracing clues from Tanner Creek to Pell Junction and a surprising DNA match that opens a new question about family ties.

Person: Dawn Nelson, age 14
Person: Edna Corrigan, age 81
Person: Beverly Doyle, age 38
Date: November 4, time 6:17 AM; November 5 arrival of Beverly
Location: 412 Birchwood Terrace, Tanner Creek

- Temperature at Tanner Creek at 6:17 AM on November 4 was 19°F.
- Dawn Nelson had delivered papers to 412 Birchwood Terrace for 11 months with no prior anomalies.
- The Bible was a 1938 King James version given as a wedding gift to Arthur and Louise Corrigan.
- The marginal pencil note reads seven lines: "Thomas born March ninth, fifty-seven. Mother was Margaret. Father acknowledged. Child placed. God keep him."
- The rear cover note in the same handwriting reads "C. Holmes, RFD 2, Pell Junction." and Pell Junction is 60 miles north.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104914Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:23:38 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Hidden Name in the Family Bible That Changed Everything Cold air pouring from an unlocked door, an eighty-one-year-old living alone, and a pencil note in a 1938 King James Bible that names a child no one in the Corrigan family had ever heard of...
Cold air pouring from an unlocked door, an eighty-one-year-old living alone, and a pencil note in a 1938 King James Bible that names a child no one in the Corrigan family had ever heard of - could one seven-word sentence rewrite a family history? Who wrote "Thomas born March ninth, fifty-seven" and why was "Father acknowledged" pressed into the margin for sixty-seven years?

In this episode, we follow Beverly Doyle's discoveries after finding the faded annotation in her mother Edna Corrigan's Bible and the matching penciled return address, tracing clues from Tanner Creek to Pell Junction and a surprising DNA match that opens a new question about family ties.

Person: Dawn Nelson, age 14
Person: Edna Corrigan, age 81
Person: Beverly Doyle, age 38
Date: November 4, time 6:17 AM; November 5 arrival of Beverly
Location: 412 Birchwood Terrace, Tanner Creek

- Temperature at Tanner Creek at 6:17 AM on November 4 was 19°F.
- Dawn Nelson had delivered papers to 412 Birchwood Terrace for 11 months with no prior anomalies.
- The Bible was a 1938 King James version given as a wedding gift to Arthur and Louise Corrigan.
- The marginal pencil note reads seven lines: "Thomas born March ninth, fifty-seven. Mother was Margaret. Father acknowledged. Child placed. God keep him."
- The rear cover note in the same handwriting reads "C. Holmes, RFD 2, Pell Junction." and Pell Junction is 60 miles north.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1296falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/daughter-buries-her-father-he-keeps-cashing-checks-the-marvin-fleming-case--73104911
A government pension check addressed to Marvin R. Fleming arrived at a Harwick mailbox in October 2011 - twenty-two years after his burial. The forwarding order that had redirected his mail for decades was signed in handwriting no one in his family recognized; who set the mail to keep coming, and why?

In this episode, we walk through the timeline from Marvin Fleming's reported death and funeral in 1989 to the discovery of active pension payments in 2011, detailing the family dynamics, the postal and bank documents, and the unanswered choices that shaped the aftermath. How did a man buried in 1989 continue to receive federal pension checks into 2011?

Person: Marvin R. Fleming
Date of reported death: September 2, 1989
Event: Forwarding order filed at Redfield post office in fall 1989
Location: 44 Creston Road, Harwick, Minnesota
Investigator: Postal investigator Susan Cleave

- Marvin R. Fleming retired from the Army Corps of Engineers in 1985 after more than three decades of service.
- Marvin was pronounced dead at Redfield Regional Hospital on September 2, 1989, and his casket was closed at the funeral.
- A forwarding order filed days after the funeral redirected Marvin's federal pension mail to a post office box in Harwick, Minnesota.
- In September 1989 a bank account in Marvin R. Fleming's name was opened at Northgate Federal in Harwick with a signature later described as a practiced imitation.
- On October 9, 2011, a federal government pension check for Marvin R. Fleming was slipped into the mailbox at 44 Creston Road, a property vacant since spring.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104911Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:23:26 +0000Creator at ObomediaDaughter Buries Her Father - He Keeps Cashing Checks: The Marvin Fleming Case A government pension check addressed to Marvin R. Fleming arrived at a Harwick mailbox in October 2011 - twenty-two years after his burial. The forwarding order that had...
A government pension check addressed to Marvin R. Fleming arrived at a Harwick mailbox in October 2011 - twenty-two years after his burial. The forwarding order that had redirected his mail for decades was signed in handwriting no one in his family recognized; who set the mail to keep coming, and why?

In this episode, we walk through the timeline from Marvin Fleming's reported death and funeral in 1989 to the discovery of active pension payments in 2011, detailing the family dynamics, the postal and bank documents, and the unanswered choices that shaped the aftermath. How did a man buried in 1989 continue to receive federal pension checks into 2011?

Person: Marvin R. Fleming
Date of reported death: September 2, 1989
Event: Forwarding order filed at Redfield post office in fall 1989
Location: 44 Creston Road, Harwick, Minnesota
Investigator: Postal investigator Susan Cleave

- Marvin R. Fleming retired from the Army Corps of Engineers in 1985 after more than three decades of service.
- Marvin was pronounced dead at Redfield Regional Hospital on September 2, 1989, and his casket was closed at the funeral.
- A forwarding order filed days after the funeral redirected Marvin's federal pension mail to a post office box in Harwick, Minnesota.
- In September 1989 a bank account in Marvin R. Fleming's name was opened at Northgate Federal in Harwick with a signature later described as a practiced imitation.
- On October 9, 2011, a federal government pension check for Marvin R. Fleming was slipped into the mailbox at 44 Creston Road, a property vacant since spring.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1172falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-floorboard-secret-a-birth-certificate-that-rewrote-a-family--73104909
A hidden envelope under a bedroom floorboard contained a Delaware birth certificate dated September 14, 1972, naming Thomas Dale Andrews and a mother who kept the secret for nearly fifty years - she died in October 2021 without ever telling anyone. Who was the fifty-year-old man in Richmond whose life would be altered by a lineman's boot and a faded blue-inked name?

In this episode, we follow the discovery, the people tied to the house at 412 Sutter Lane, and the paper trail left behind in ledgers, adoption records, and an index card that hints at a teenage father. How did an envelope hidden less than two feet from a grandson's childhood bed change a family's private history?

Person: Erin Louise Andrews
Date of birth: circa 1948
Event: Envelope found under floorboard by Jerry Adams on a Tuesday morning in September 2022
Case: Birth certificate dated September 14, 1972, Name Thomas Dale Andrews
Agency: Covenant Placement Services, payment of $340 in March 1973

- The envelope was cream-colored with blue ink faded to gray and labeled with the single word "Thomas."
- The birth certificate lists Mother: Erin Louise Andrews, age 22, and Father: blank.
- Erin died in October 2021 at age 74, having kept the envelope hidden for nearly 50 years.
- The index card sent to the adoption agency in 1973 states "Your middle name is your uncle's name" and notes the uncle was fifteen years old at the time.
- Eric Perry, Erin's grandson, discovered the envelope was hidden less than two feet from where he slept and sat in his car for 45 minutes after seeing the birth certificate.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104909Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:23:14 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Floorboard Secret: A Birth Certificate That Rewrote a Family A hidden envelope under a bedroom floorboard contained a Delaware birth certificate dated September 14, 1972, naming Thomas Dale Andrews and a mother who kept the secret for nearly...
A hidden envelope under a bedroom floorboard contained a Delaware birth certificate dated September 14, 1972, naming Thomas Dale Andrews and a mother who kept the secret for nearly fifty years - she died in October 2021 without ever telling anyone. Who was the fifty-year-old man in Richmond whose life would be altered by a lineman's boot and a faded blue-inked name?

In this episode, we follow the discovery, the people tied to the house at 412 Sutter Lane, and the paper trail left behind in ledgers, adoption records, and an index card that hints at a teenage father. How did an envelope hidden less than two feet from a grandson's childhood bed change a family's private history?

Person: Erin Louise Andrews
Date of birth: circa 1948
Event: Envelope found under floorboard by Jerry Adams on a Tuesday morning in September 2022
Case: Birth certificate dated September 14, 1972, Name Thomas Dale Andrews
Agency: Covenant Placement Services, payment of $340 in March 1973

- The envelope was cream-colored with blue ink faded to gray and labeled with the single word "Thomas."
- The birth certificate lists Mother: Erin Louise Andrews, age 22, and Father: blank.
- Erin died in October 2021 at age 74, having kept the envelope hidden for nearly 50 years.
- The index card sent to the adoption agency in 1973 states "Your middle name is your uncle's name" and notes the uncle was fifteen years old at the time.
- Eric Perry, Erin's grandson, discovered the envelope was hidden less than two feet from where he slept and sat in his car for 45 minutes after seeing the birth certificate.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1198falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-photograph-that-outlived-a-family-who-was-neil-graham--73104906
A shoebox left on a rainy curb contained a wallet-sized black-and-white photo inscribed "For my Della, always" and a March 1946 letter signed "N.G." - a man the town believed dead in 1944. Who was the Neil Graham whose name Della never spoke, and why did that image and a brass uniform button survive seventy-three years in a cousin's sealed box?

In this episode, we follow the discovery of the box on Dellwood Avenue and the quiet family silence that met it, tracing what the photograph, dated materials, and relatives' memories reveal about identity, loss, and a choice kept from descendants. Can a single photograph reopen the story a family refused to tell?

Person: Della Marsh
Person: Vernon Marsh
Person: Patricia Marsh
Event: shoebox found on curb on August 4, 2019 at 6:15 a.m.
Document: letter dated March 1946 signed "N.G."

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104906Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:23:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Photograph That Outlived a Family: Who Was Neil Graham? A shoebox left on a rainy curb contained a wallet-sized black-and-white photo inscribed "For my Della, always" and a March 1946 letter signed "N.G." - a man the town believed dead in 1944....
A shoebox left on a rainy curb contained a wallet-sized black-and-white photo inscribed "For my Della, always" and a March 1946 letter signed "N.G." - a man the town believed dead in 1944. Who was the Neil Graham whose name Della never spoke, and why did that image and a brass uniform button survive seventy-three years in a cousin's sealed box?

In this episode, we follow the discovery of the box on Dellwood Avenue and the quiet family silence that met it, tracing what the photograph, dated materials, and relatives' memories reveal about identity, loss, and a choice kept from descendants. Can a single photograph reopen the story a family refused to tell?

Person: Della Marsh
Person: Vernon Marsh
Person: Patricia Marsh
Event: shoebox found on curb on August 4, 2019 at 6:15 a.m.
Document: letter dated March 1946 signed "N.G."

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1239falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-grandmother-no-one-knew-birthday-card-left-unsent--73104905
Fear and curiosity collide when a routine meter reading in July 2019 uncovers a 77-year-old woman dead in her armchair and a sealed, stamped birthday envelope never mailed - and a line in a pressed note that reads, "The people who should know are not who you might expect." Who was Darlene Baker to a family forty miles away in Columbus, and why did seventeen birthday cards arrive for her over seventeen years signed only with the letter P?

In this episode, we follow the discovery at Sycamore Creek Road, the probate inventory, and the chain of memories that connects a hidden grandmother to a Grove Hill family; the episode traces the sealed past, the unopened mail, and the moment a stranger on social media sparks a reunion of questions. What kept this grandmother invisible for thirty-three years, and what changes when the last unsent card is finally found?

Person: Darlene Baker
Date: July 2019
Location: Sycamore Creek Road, Addison Township, Ohio
Age: 77
Cause of death: Cardiac arrest

- The note pressed into notebook paper was found inside a residential gas meter housing by meter reader Jerry Burns.
- Darlene was estimated by the coroner to have been deceased approximately forty-eight hours before discovery.
- Probate inventoried Darlene's estate in September 2019 at approximately $400 in a checking account, a car, furniture, and two boxes of personal papers.
- Inside her boxes were 17 birthday cards sent between 1986 and 2003, each postmarked from a Columbus PO box and signed only with the letter "P."
- A stamped, sealed envelope on Darlene's kitchen counter was addressed to Jennifer Ford with an intended send date of July 21, Jennifer's birthday, but Darlene died before mailing it.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104905Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:22:50 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Grandmother No One Knew: Birthday Card Left Unsent Fear and curiosity collide when a routine meter reading in July 2019 uncovers a 77-year-old woman dead in her armchair and a sealed, stamped birthday envelope never mailed - and a line in a...
Fear and curiosity collide when a routine meter reading in July 2019 uncovers a 77-year-old woman dead in her armchair and a sealed, stamped birthday envelope never mailed - and a line in a pressed note that reads, "The people who should know are not who you might expect." Who was Darlene Baker to a family forty miles away in Columbus, and why did seventeen birthday cards arrive for her over seventeen years signed only with the letter P?

In this episode, we follow the discovery at Sycamore Creek Road, the probate inventory, and the chain of memories that connects a hidden grandmother to a Grove Hill family; the episode traces the sealed past, the unopened mail, and the moment a stranger on social media sparks a reunion of questions. What kept this grandmother invisible for thirty-three years, and what changes when the last unsent card is finally found?

Person: Darlene Baker
Date: July 2019
Location: Sycamore Creek Road, Addison Township, Ohio
Age: 77
Cause of death: Cardiac arrest

- The note pressed into notebook paper was found inside a residential gas meter housing by meter reader Jerry Burns.
- Darlene was estimated by the coroner to have been deceased approximately forty-eight hours before discovery.
- Probate inventoried Darlene's estate in September 2019 at approximately $400 in a checking account, a car, furniture, and two boxes of personal papers.
- Inside her boxes were 17 birthday cards sent between 1986 and 2003, each postmarked from a Columbus PO box and signed only with the letter "P."
- A stamped, sealed envelope on Darlene's kitchen counter was addressed to Jennifer Ford with an intended send date of July 21, Jennifer's birthday, but Darlene died before mailing it.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1305falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/a-letter-to-a-dead-man-the-thomas-aldrich-secret--73104903
A found sealed envelope addressed to a man declared dead 30 years earlier turns a tidy family story into a live question: why did Helen Aldrich hide a letter dated June 1991 addressed to Thomas Aldrich, two years after his recorded drowning? The discovery includes a pawnshop receipt, a disconnected Millhaven number, and a photo strip - but who wrote the letter and what secret did it protect?

In this episode, we follow how a volunteer's discovery at a church donation room sent Sandra Ward back to her childhood home to open a sealed note and unearth items that contradict the official record. What did the sealed letter, the Seiko pawn receipt dated August 1989, and the photo-booth strip mean for a family that had accepted a drowning as final?

Person: Thomas Aldrich
Date: June 1989 (drowning declared)
Location: Cutter Fork reservoir
Date: June 1991 (letter postmark)
Location: Millhaven (post office box and pawnshop receipt)

- A church volunteer in Denton Falls, Ohio found a sealed envelope tucked inside a donated tablecloth on a Tuesday morning in June 2019.
- The envelope was addressed to Thomas Aldrich at a Mercer Street house; Thomas had been declared drowned in June 1989 and no body was recovered.
- The envelope bore a Millhaven post office box return address and a postmark dated June 1991.
- Sandra Ward discovered in her mother's closet a tin box containing a pawnshop receipt from Millhaven dated August 1989, a disconnected Millhaven phone number, and a strip of four photo-booth frames.
- The sealed letter inside the envelope was short, signed "Julie," dated June 1991, referenced "his daughter," and stated the writer would not write again.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104903Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:22:38 +0000Creator at ObomediaA Letter to a Dead Man: The Thomas Aldrich Secret A found sealed envelope addressed to a man declared dead 30 years earlier turns a tidy family story into a live question: why did Helen Aldrich hide a letter dated June 1991 addressed to Thomas...
A found sealed envelope addressed to a man declared dead 30 years earlier turns a tidy family story into a live question: why did Helen Aldrich hide a letter dated June 1991 addressed to Thomas Aldrich, two years after his recorded drowning? The discovery includes a pawnshop receipt, a disconnected Millhaven number, and a photo strip - but who wrote the letter and what secret did it protect?

In this episode, we follow how a volunteer's discovery at a church donation room sent Sandra Ward back to her childhood home to open a sealed note and unearth items that contradict the official record. What did the sealed letter, the Seiko pawn receipt dated August 1989, and the photo-booth strip mean for a family that had accepted a drowning as final?

Person: Thomas Aldrich
Date: June 1989 (drowning declared)
Location: Cutter Fork reservoir
Date: June 1991 (letter postmark)
Location: Millhaven (post office box and pawnshop receipt)

- A church volunteer in Denton Falls, Ohio found a sealed envelope tucked inside a donated tablecloth on a Tuesday morning in June 2019.
- The envelope was addressed to Thomas Aldrich at a Mercer Street house; Thomas had been declared drowned in June 1989 and no body was recovered.
- The envelope bore a Millhaven post office box return address and a postmark dated June 1991.
- Sandra Ward discovered in her mother's closet a tin box containing a pawnshop receipt from Millhaven dated August 1989, a disconnected Millhaven phone number, and a strip of four photo-booth frames.
- The sealed letter inside the envelope was short, signed "Julie," dated June 1991, referenced "his daughter," and stated the writer would not write again.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1303falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-lost-marriage-hidden-in-a-tree-why-my-aunt-vanished-from-our-family-record--73104899
Fear of a hidden family secret claws at you from the first line: a church register missing for thirty-four years was found water-swollen and stuffed into the base of a rotting elm by a beagle named Pocket. The register records a 1961 marriage that everyone in the family denies - so why did Douglas Hughes later sign a 1981 lien listing the groom as his brother-in-law, and what did "the family had agreed" really mean?

In this episode, hear the sequence of discoveries that reopen a buried chapter of one family’s past, from the dog’s find to probate paperwork and a reluctant family denial. We follow the tangible records and the gaps they reveal and ask: what story did the family try to erase, and who decided it should disappear?

Person: Patricia Ann Hughes
Date: September 9, 1961
Event: Marriage recorded in Cartwell First Methodist Church Annex Register Volume 4
Person: Kenneth Ray Bell
Date: April 2019 (death of Kenneth Ray Bell was noted in probate letter)

- A rescued beagle named Pocket found the water-swollen church register on a Tuesday morning in May 2019.
- The register identified is Cartwell First Methodist Church - Annex Register - Vol. 4, missing for thirty-four years.
- Patricia married Kenneth Ray Bell on September 9, 1961; Reverend Dale Combs officiated and Helen Pace witnessed.
- Patricia gave birth prematurely in February 1962; the infant did not survive.
- A property lien dated 1981 was co-signed by Douglas Hughes and Kenneth Ray Bell, with their relationship listed as brothers-in-law.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104899Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:22:26 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Lost Marriage Hidden in a Tree: Why My Aunt Vanished from Our Family Record Fear of a hidden family secret claws at you from the first line: a church register missing for thirty-four years was found water-swollen and stuffed into the base of a...
Fear of a hidden family secret claws at you from the first line: a church register missing for thirty-four years was found water-swollen and stuffed into the base of a rotting elm by a beagle named Pocket. The register records a 1961 marriage that everyone in the family denies - so why did Douglas Hughes later sign a 1981 lien listing the groom as his brother-in-law, and what did "the family had agreed" really mean?

In this episode, hear the sequence of discoveries that reopen a buried chapter of one family’s past, from the dog’s find to probate paperwork and a reluctant family denial. We follow the tangible records and the gaps they reveal and ask: what story did the family try to erase, and who decided it should disappear?

Person: Patricia Ann Hughes
Date: September 9, 1961
Event: Marriage recorded in Cartwell First Methodist Church Annex Register Volume 4
Person: Kenneth Ray Bell
Date: April 2019 (death of Kenneth Ray Bell was noted in probate letter)

- A rescued beagle named Pocket found the water-swollen church register on a Tuesday morning in May 2019.
- The register identified is Cartwell First Methodist Church - Annex Register - Vol. 4, missing for thirty-four years.
- Patricia married Kenneth Ray Bell on September 9, 1961; Reverend Dale Combs officiated and Helen Pace witnessed.
- Patricia gave birth prematurely in February 1962; the infant did not survive.
- A property lien dated 1981 was co-signed by Douglas Hughes and Kenneth Ray Bell, with their relationship listed as brothers-in-law.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1261falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-sneaker-in-the-river-that-unraveled-a-30-year-family-secret--73104897
A yellow child's sneaker with a cartoon sun, size four, surfaced in the Esten River in April 2019 with the interior dry and a name-ZELLER-written inside; that same shoe had last been seen on a five-year-old at a church camp 25 years earlier, eight miles upstream. How did a sealed shoe tied to a March 1989 hospital mix-up reappear decades later and point to a secret no one spoke of for thirty years?

In this episode, we follow the chain of events that links a hospital nursery error, a switched identification band, and a family secret that remained hidden until a retired fisherman found a shoe and a DNA database and a grandmother’s coupon helped untangle the truth. What did the shoe finally reveal about the babies born on March 7, 1989?

Date: March 7, 1989
Event: Two baby girls born in Fenwick County Memorial nursery
Person: Loretta Haines
Person: Warren and Nadine Zeller
Date: April 9, 2019

- A child's sneaker found by Larry Gallagher on April 9, 2019 in the Esten River was pale yellow canvas, size four, with a cartoon sun stitched on the toe.
- The sneaker's outside was caked in river sediment and algae while the inside was dry and bore "ZELLER" written in marker on the interior lining.
- On March 7, 1989, two baby girls slept in separate cribs at Fenwick County Memorial nursery with bands reading HAINES and ZELLER; by morning both bands had been switched.
- Loretta Haines was admitted March 3, 1989, delivered a daughter who stayed in the nursery, and signed herself out on March 5, 1989 without the baby; the infant's discharge record showed release on March 9, 1989.
- Nurse Karen Pruett noticed a mismatch on March 8, 1989 between an ID band and the handwritten census, replaced the band, and a transposed crib numbering on the census caused the corrected band to be placed on the wrong infant.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104897Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:22:15 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Sneaker in the River That Unraveled a 30-Year Family Secret A yellow child's sneaker with a cartoon sun, size four, surfaced in the Esten River in April 2019 with the interior dry and a name-ZELLER-written inside; that same shoe had last been...
A yellow child's sneaker with a cartoon sun, size four, surfaced in the Esten River in April 2019 with the interior dry and a name-ZELLER-written inside; that same shoe had last been seen on a five-year-old at a church camp 25 years earlier, eight miles upstream. How did a sealed shoe tied to a March 1989 hospital mix-up reappear decades later and point to a secret no one spoke of for thirty years?

In this episode, we follow the chain of events that links a hospital nursery error, a switched identification band, and a family secret that remained hidden until a retired fisherman found a shoe and a DNA database and a grandmother’s coupon helped untangle the truth. What did the shoe finally reveal about the babies born on March 7, 1989?

Date: March 7, 1989
Event: Two baby girls born in Fenwick County Memorial nursery
Person: Loretta Haines
Person: Warren and Nadine Zeller
Date: April 9, 2019

- A child's sneaker found by Larry Gallagher on April 9, 2019 in the Esten River was pale yellow canvas, size four, with a cartoon sun stitched on the toe.
- The sneaker's outside was caked in river sediment and algae while the inside was dry and bore "ZELLER" written in marker on the interior lining.
- On March 7, 1989, two baby girls slept in separate cribs at Fenwick County Memorial nursery with bands reading HAINES and ZELLER; by morning both bands had been switched.
- Loretta Haines was admitted March 3, 1989, delivered a daughter who stayed in the nursery, and signed herself out on March 5, 1989 without the baby; the infant's discharge record showed release on March 9, 1989.
- Nurse Karen Pruett noticed a mismatch on March 8, 1989 between an ID band and the handwritten census, replaced the band, and a transposed crib numbering on the census caused the corrected band to be placed on the wrong infant.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1523falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-grave-they-built-for-her-daughter-rediscovered-after-41-years--73104895
The discovery of a granite headstone for "Dawn Norris, Born 1951, Died 1978" sixty feet inside a farm boundary exposed a 41-year family secret: a living mother who carried her newborn's photo with "Keep her" written on the back, while her parents raised that child as their own. How did a one-dollar land deed, a retired stonecutter, and a crossed-out church ledger keep a hidden family life buried for four decades?

In this episode, we follow the sequence of facts as they unfolded from a routine boundary survey to a meeting decades in the making, tracing the actions recorded in deeds, church registers, and personal keepsakes to ask whether silence was enforced or chosen.

Person: Dawn Norris
Date: March 8, 2019
Location: central Indiana farm east field
Event: discovery of grave marker photograph in survey report
Case: family secret involving a misrepresented parentage

- The granite marker measured two feet and sat sixty feet inside the eastern boundary under an overgrown cedar.
- The survey report with a photograph was filed with Harwick County on March 8, 2019.
- Dawn Norris was born in 1951 and listed on the stone as having died in 1978.
- In September 1978 George and Evelyn Norris transferred one acre to Harold Bates for the consideration of one dollar.
- Dawn kept a hospital photograph of herself holding her newborn for 41 years with "Keep her" written on the reverse.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104895Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:22:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Grave They Built for Her Daughter - Rediscovered After 41 Years The discovery of a granite headstone for "Dawn Norris, Born 1951, Died 1978" sixty feet inside a farm boundary exposed a 41-year family secret: a living mother who carried her...
The discovery of a granite headstone for "Dawn Norris, Born 1951, Died 1978" sixty feet inside a farm boundary exposed a 41-year family secret: a living mother who carried her newborn's photo with "Keep her" written on the back, while her parents raised that child as their own. How did a one-dollar land deed, a retired stonecutter, and a crossed-out church ledger keep a hidden family life buried for four decades?

In this episode, we follow the sequence of facts as they unfolded from a routine boundary survey to a meeting decades in the making, tracing the actions recorded in deeds, church registers, and personal keepsakes to ask whether silence was enforced or chosen.

Person: Dawn Norris
Date: March 8, 2019
Location: central Indiana farm east field
Event: discovery of grave marker photograph in survey report
Case: family secret involving a misrepresented parentage

- The granite marker measured two feet and sat sixty feet inside the eastern boundary under an overgrown cedar.
- The survey report with a photograph was filed with Harwick County on March 8, 2019.
- Dawn Norris was born in 1951 and listed on the stone as having died in 1978.
- In September 1978 George and Evelyn Norris transferred one acre to Harold Bates for the consideration of one dollar.
- Dawn kept a hospital photograph of herself holding her newborn for 41 years with "Keep her" written on the reverse.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1206falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/grandmother-buried-her-entire-life-under-the-foundation-the-eleanor-rogers-case--73104892
A rusted padlock, an olive‑green shoebox, and a wristwatch engraved C.M. dug up beneath a Birchwood Road foundation after an auger hit solid at fourteen inches-an object sealed and untouched for decades that would unravel a hidden identity. What was buried under the house would reveal letters and a life erased: why did Eleanor Rogers spend eighty-one years living as someone else, and what did she carry into her grave?

In this episode, we follow the discovery and the documents that emerged from the buried box to trace the life behind the name Eleanor Rogers. You will hear where the box was found, what was inside, and the key details that link Eleanor back to Clara Maddox-and what questions remain about the transfer that turned Clara into Eleanor.

Person: Eleanor Rogers (born Clara Maddox)
Date: Death in January 2019 at age 81
Location: House on Birchwood Road, Millhaven, Ohio
Item found: Olive‑green metal box with rusted padlock containing a 1974 Ohio road map and a man's wristwatch engraved "C.M."
Documented correspondence: 29 letters from Clara to Louise Maddox postmarked 1958-1963

- The auger struck the box at fourteen inches while cutting a trench for a new septic line.
- Eleanor Rogers died two weeks before the box was found, in January 2019, at age eighty-one.
- The wristwatch inside the box bore the engraving "C.M." and a cracked crystal.
- Louise Maddox, Aunt Lou, was ninety‑three and living near Lexington, Kentucky, as of February 2019 and kept the letters.
- Twenty‑nine letters postmarked between 1958 and 1963 were sealed in the box for more than fifty years.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104892Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:21:50 +0000Creator at ObomediaGrandmother Buried Her Entire Life Under the Foundation: The Eleanor Rogers Case A rusted padlock, an olive‑green shoebox, and a wristwatch engraved C.M. dug up beneath a Birchwood Road foundation after an auger hit solid at fourteen inches-an...
A rusted padlock, an olive‑green shoebox, and a wristwatch engraved C.M. dug up beneath a Birchwood Road foundation after an auger hit solid at fourteen inches-an object sealed and untouched for decades that would unravel a hidden identity. What was buried under the house would reveal letters and a life erased: why did Eleanor Rogers spend eighty-one years living as someone else, and what did she carry into her grave?

In this episode, we follow the discovery and the documents that emerged from the buried box to trace the life behind the name Eleanor Rogers. You will hear where the box was found, what was inside, and the key details that link Eleanor back to Clara Maddox-and what questions remain about the transfer that turned Clara into Eleanor.

Person: Eleanor Rogers (born Clara Maddox)
Date: Death in January 2019 at age 81
Location: House on Birchwood Road, Millhaven, Ohio
Item found: Olive‑green metal box with rusted padlock containing a 1974 Ohio road map and a man's wristwatch engraved "C.M."
Documented correspondence: 29 letters from Clara to Louise Maddox postmarked 1958-1963

- The auger struck the box at fourteen inches while cutting a trench for a new septic line.
- Eleanor Rogers died two weeks before the box was found, in January 2019, at age eighty-one.
- The wristwatch inside the box bore the engraving "C.M." and a cracked crystal.
- Louise Maddox, Aunt Lou, was ninety‑three and living near Lexington, Kentucky, as of February 2019 and kept the letters.
- Twenty‑nine letters postmarked between 1958 and 1963 were sealed in the box for more than fifty years.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1365falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-photo-the-box-the-secret-sister-hidden-sixty-years--73104888
Fear and stunned curiosity: a cardboard box in a sycamore by the Scioto River held eleven letters, a baptismal card, and a photograph that named a woman Brian Moore had never known existed - his mother's secret child. How did a name written in Evelyn Moore's hand stay hidden for sixty years, and why was a neighbor the one to find the box?

In this episode, we follow the chain of discoveries from a found box and an unused DNA kit to a Close Family Match labeled "Predicted Half Sibling" that connects Hartwell to Delphos; the episode traces each step of Brian's decision to call, the two-hour-plus conversation that followed, and the family choices that kept Nancy unknown for decades. What choices will finally close the circle?

Person: Brian Moore
Person: Evelyn Moore
Person: Nancy Evans
Date: January 13, 2019
Location: Sycamore tree hollow by the Scioto River

- A neighbor found a cardboard box in the hollow of a sycamore tree by the Scioto River on January 13, 2019.
- The box contained eleven letters, a baptismal card from St. Brendan's Church, and a photograph of a young woman holding an infant.
- Brian Moore submitted a consumer DNA kit in December 2018 and received results in January 2019 showing "Close Family Match - Predicted Half Sibling."
- The DNA match named Nancy Evans, age fifty-nine, listed in Delphos, Allen County, Ohio, approximately ninety miles northwest of Hartwell.
- Nancy's birth certificate listed her mother as Evelyn Louise Hartman, age nineteen, and the baptismal card recorded a baptism in October 1959 under the name Nancy Louise.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104888Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:21:38 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Photo, The Box, The Secret Sister Hidden Sixty Years Fear and stunned curiosity: a cardboard box in a sycamore by the Scioto River held eleven letters, a baptismal card, and a photograph that named a woman Brian Moore had never known existed -...
Fear and stunned curiosity: a cardboard box in a sycamore by the Scioto River held eleven letters, a baptismal card, and a photograph that named a woman Brian Moore had never known existed - his mother's secret child. How did a name written in Evelyn Moore's hand stay hidden for sixty years, and why was a neighbor the one to find the box?

In this episode, we follow the chain of discoveries from a found box and an unused DNA kit to a Close Family Match labeled "Predicted Half Sibling" that connects Hartwell to Delphos; the episode traces each step of Brian's decision to call, the two-hour-plus conversation that followed, and the family choices that kept Nancy unknown for decades. What choices will finally close the circle?

Person: Brian Moore
Person: Evelyn Moore
Person: Nancy Evans
Date: January 13, 2019
Location: Sycamore tree hollow by the Scioto River

- A neighbor found a cardboard box in the hollow of a sycamore tree by the Scioto River on January 13, 2019.
- The box contained eleven letters, a baptismal card from St. Brendan's Church, and a photograph of a young woman holding an infant.
- Brian Moore submitted a consumer DNA kit in December 2018 and received results in January 2019 showing "Close Family Match - Predicted Half Sibling."
- The DNA match named Nancy Evans, age fifty-nine, listed in Delphos, Allen County, Ohio, approximately ninety miles northwest of Hartwell.
- Nancy's birth certificate listed her mother as Evelyn Louise Hartman, age nineteen, and the baptismal card recorded a baptism in October 1959 under the name Nancy Louise.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1407falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-missing-name-the-rabbit-the-letter-the-hidden-draper--73104885
A gray-white cloth rabbit with one button eye missing tied two families together across four blocks in a small Pennsylvania town - and a single circled line on a 1941 immigration manifest finally surfaced in a town annex in 2003. What did that circled "M. Draper, age one, sex female" mean, and why had a two-page Polish letter never been answered?

In this episode, we follow the lives recorded in probate files, an immigration manifest, and a donated box of family papers to trace how a name was quietly removed from one family and quietly lived another life nearby. Can the documents and a long-kept promise reveal what was kept from a librarian who lived four blocks away?

Person: Shannon Draper
Date: December 2003
Location: Crestfield, Pennsylvania
Event: Immigration manifest from 1941 with one line circled in red ballpoint pen
Case: Probate inventory filed October 1997 listing a gray-white cloth rabbit

- The cloth rabbit was listed in Dorothy Marlow's probate inventory filed in Crestfield in October 1997 and had one button eye missing.
- Marta Szymanski (later Marta Draper) arrived in Baltimore in December 1941 with three children and handed the youngest, Zosia, to Irena Bielak at a resettlement office on December 9, 1941.
- Two days after giving Zosia to Irena, Marta boarded a train to Pennsylvania on December 11, 1941, with her other children Edward and Clara.
- A fifteen-year-old named Gloria Osborne discovered the 1941 immigration manifest in the town annex during the first week of December 2003, finding one line circled in red ballpoint pen reading "M. Draper, age one, sex female."
- Shannon Draper had donated a box of family documents to the town annex in November 2001 and was 61 years old and a librarian of 34 years when she examined the circled line in 2003.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104885Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:21:26 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Missing Name: The Rabbit, The Letter, The Hidden Draper A gray-white cloth rabbit with one button eye missing tied two families together across four blocks in a small Pennsylvania town - and a single circled line on a 1941 immigration manifest...
A gray-white cloth rabbit with one button eye missing tied two families together across four blocks in a small Pennsylvania town - and a single circled line on a 1941 immigration manifest finally surfaced in a town annex in 2003. What did that circled "M. Draper, age one, sex female" mean, and why had a two-page Polish letter never been answered?

In this episode, we follow the lives recorded in probate files, an immigration manifest, and a donated box of family papers to trace how a name was quietly removed from one family and quietly lived another life nearby. Can the documents and a long-kept promise reveal what was kept from a librarian who lived four blocks away?

Person: Shannon Draper
Date: December 2003
Location: Crestfield, Pennsylvania
Event: Immigration manifest from 1941 with one line circled in red ballpoint pen
Case: Probate inventory filed October 1997 listing a gray-white cloth rabbit

- The cloth rabbit was listed in Dorothy Marlow's probate inventory filed in Crestfield in October 1997 and had one button eye missing.
- Marta Szymanski (later Marta Draper) arrived in Baltimore in December 1941 with three children and handed the youngest, Zosia, to Irena Bielak at a resettlement office on December 9, 1941.
- Two days after giving Zosia to Irena, Marta boarded a train to Pennsylvania on December 11, 1941, with her other children Edward and Clara.
- A fifteen-year-old named Gloria Osborne discovered the 1941 immigration manifest in the town annex during the first week of December 2003, finding one line circled in red ballpoint pen reading "M. Draper, age one, sex female."
- Shannon Draper had donated a box of family documents to the town annex in November 2001 and was 61 years old and a librarian of 34 years when she examined the circled line in 2003.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1248falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-letter-that-stole-twelve-acres-a-30-year-family-secret--73104882
Cold morning, silver frost, and a storage unit unlocked to reveal forty-eight letters - one notarized confession dated November 14, 1993 that admitted a nineteen-year-old had forged his brother's signature and sold twelve acres; how did a secret like that vanish for thirty years and what happens when it finally resurfaces?

In this episode, you’ll hear the chain of events from a storage unit in Holt County to a ranch outside Keswick as a daughter and granddaughter read a four-page confession that claims a land transfer and a $62,000 sale were built on a forgery, and you’ll follow the single question at the center: what do you do when a family’s quiet life is interrupted by a buried fraud?

Person: Harold Sanders
Person: Beverly Sanders
Person: Lloyd Sanders
Date: November 14, 1993
Event: Sale of twelve acres in 1984 for $62,000

- A storage unit in Holt County, Indiana was opened at 9:00 AM on November 9, 2023 and contained forty-eight letters.
- The notarized letter was postmarked November 14, 1993 and consisted of four pages written by Lloyd Sanders.
- Lloyd confessed to falsifying Harold Sanders’s signature in the spring of 1967 to transfer twelve acres to himself.
- Lloyd sold the twelve acres in 1984 for $62,000 and later set aside $41,200 he calculated as Harold’s share.
- Beverly Sanders was 61 years old in 2023 and had been administering insulin to the family cat every twelve hours for fourteen years.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104882Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:21:14 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Letter That Stole Twelve Acres: A 30-Year Family Secret Cold morning, silver frost, and a storage unit unlocked to reveal forty-eight letters - one notarized confession dated November 14, 1993 that admitted a nineteen-year-old had forged his...
Cold morning, silver frost, and a storage unit unlocked to reveal forty-eight letters - one notarized confession dated November 14, 1993 that admitted a nineteen-year-old had forged his brother's signature and sold twelve acres; how did a secret like that vanish for thirty years and what happens when it finally resurfaces?

In this episode, you’ll hear the chain of events from a storage unit in Holt County to a ranch outside Keswick as a daughter and granddaughter read a four-page confession that claims a land transfer and a $62,000 sale were built on a forgery, and you’ll follow the single question at the center: what do you do when a family’s quiet life is interrupted by a buried fraud?

Person: Harold Sanders
Person: Beverly Sanders
Person: Lloyd Sanders
Date: November 14, 1993
Event: Sale of twelve acres in 1984 for $62,000

- A storage unit in Holt County, Indiana was opened at 9:00 AM on November 9, 2023 and contained forty-eight letters.
- The notarized letter was postmarked November 14, 1993 and consisted of four pages written by Lloyd Sanders.
- Lloyd confessed to falsifying Harold Sanders’s signature in the spring of 1967 to transfer twelve acres to himself.
- Lloyd sold the twelve acres in 1984 for $62,000 and later set aside $41,200 he calculated as Harold’s share.
- Beverly Sanders was 61 years old in 2023 and had been administering insulin to the family cat every twelve hours for fourteen years.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1231falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-day-a-hospital-bracelet-unraveled-a-27-year-twin-secret--73104881
A navy peacoat left on a stranger’s porch with a hospital bracelet reading DEBORAH ANN MERRITT pulled a secret buried for twenty-seven years into the light; how did a bracelet stamped October 1989 connect a Calloway birth record from October 1963 and a mislabeled hospital file in a basement? Who decided to leave that coat, and why now?

In this episode, we follow the chain of small, concrete details that link a porch on Breckenridge Avenue to a storage file in Calloway General’s basement and to phone calls that reunite lives separated by decades. We trace the coat, the hospital records, and the people who noticed them to ask whether a hidden twin could finally be found.

Person: Janet Wells
Location: Breckenridge Avenue, Calloway, Ohio
Date: January 1991 (four-degree morning)
Event: Navy peacoat with hospital bracelet reading DEBORAH ANN MERRITT found on porch
Record: Hospital obstetrics file dated October 14, 1963 listing Cheryl A. Merritt and delivery of twin girls (one named DEBORAH ANN MERRITT; second line blank)

- The hospital bracelet threaded through the coat’s buttonhole showed an admission date of October 1989.
- The coat was found folded neatly on a porch on a four-degree morning in January 1991 with no note and no one in sight.
- Cheryl Bennett’s obstetrics record dated October 14, 1963 lists twin girls with one official name entry: DEBORAH ANN MERRITT.
- Frank Ostrander had rented the apartment above his garage between September and December 1990 to a woman who drove a beige car and whose name began with D.
- The obstetrics file had been mislabeled and left in Calloway General’s basement storage since 1985, untouched through six administrators and two renovations.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104881Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:21:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Day a Hospital Bracelet Unraveled a 27-Year Twin Secret A navy peacoat left on a stranger’s porch with a hospital bracelet reading DEBORAH ANN MERRITT pulled a secret buried for twenty-seven years into the light; how did a bracelet stamped...
A navy peacoat left on a stranger’s porch with a hospital bracelet reading DEBORAH ANN MERRITT pulled a secret buried for twenty-seven years into the light; how did a bracelet stamped October 1989 connect a Calloway birth record from October 1963 and a mislabeled hospital file in a basement? Who decided to leave that coat, and why now?

In this episode, we follow the chain of small, concrete details that link a porch on Breckenridge Avenue to a storage file in Calloway General’s basement and to phone calls that reunite lives separated by decades. We trace the coat, the hospital records, and the people who noticed them to ask whether a hidden twin could finally be found.

Person: Janet Wells
Location: Breckenridge Avenue, Calloway, Ohio
Date: January 1991 (four-degree morning)
Event: Navy peacoat with hospital bracelet reading DEBORAH ANN MERRITT found on porch
Record: Hospital obstetrics file dated October 14, 1963 listing Cheryl A. Merritt and delivery of twin girls (one named DEBORAH ANN MERRITT; second line blank)

- The hospital bracelet threaded through the coat’s buttonhole showed an admission date of October 1989.
- The coat was found folded neatly on a porch on a four-degree morning in January 1991 with no note and no one in sight.
- Cheryl Bennett’s obstetrics record dated October 14, 1963 lists twin girls with one official name entry: DEBORAH ANN MERRITT.
- Frank Ostrander had rented the apartment above his garage between September and December 1990 to a woman who drove a beige car and whose name began with D.
- The obstetrics file had been mislabeled and left in Calloway General’s basement storage since 1985, untouched through six administrators and two renovations.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1151falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-boy-on-the-gravestone-a-stranger-s-crayon-a-family-lie--73104878
Fear and curiosity collide when a photocopied crayon drawing signed "Love, Biscuit" arrives at a family home - a child's handwriting tied to a boy listed as dead for twenty-six years. Who sent it, and how did a family move from a hospital report to a grave while the living boy grew up miles away?

In this episode, we follow the chain of events triggered by that envelope: the 1991 hospital admission, a child welfare investigation, a mother's decision to keep the child in Columbus, a death certificate and headstone in Greenview Cemetery, and the man who mailed the drawing decades later - what made him reach out now?

Person: Robert Alan Snyder
Date: September 14, 1991
Location: Greenview Cemetery
Event: Child hospitalized with severe respiratory infection and reported bruising
Case: Investigation by Franklin County Children Services closed without charges

- A plain white envelope with a Columbus postmark arrived at Calder Street in Fennwick in September 2017.
- The photocopy inside was a child's crayon drawing signed "Love, Biscuit," the nickname Raymond Snyder used for his son.
- Robert Alan Snyder's headstone lists his life as 1987-1991 and a death certificate dated September 14, 1991, was issued.
- Raymond Snyder arranged for the child to be driven to Columbus to a licensed foster caregiver named Sandra Keele in October 1991.
- Vernon Richardson, Raymond's cousin and a retired Franklin County Children Services caseworker, later stated the bruising was determined to be accidental and no formal charges were filed.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104878Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:20:50 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Boy on the Gravestone: A Stranger's Crayon, A Family Lie Fear and curiosity collide when a photocopied crayon drawing signed "Love, Biscuit" arrives at a family home - a child's handwriting tied to a boy listed as dead for twenty-six years. Who...
Fear and curiosity collide when a photocopied crayon drawing signed "Love, Biscuit" arrives at a family home - a child's handwriting tied to a boy listed as dead for twenty-six years. Who sent it, and how did a family move from a hospital report to a grave while the living boy grew up miles away?

In this episode, we follow the chain of events triggered by that envelope: the 1991 hospital admission, a child welfare investigation, a mother's decision to keep the child in Columbus, a death certificate and headstone in Greenview Cemetery, and the man who mailed the drawing decades later - what made him reach out now?

Person: Robert Alan Snyder
Date: September 14, 1991
Location: Greenview Cemetery
Event: Child hospitalized with severe respiratory infection and reported bruising
Case: Investigation by Franklin County Children Services closed without charges

- A plain white envelope with a Columbus postmark arrived at Calder Street in Fennwick in September 2017.
- The photocopy inside was a child's crayon drawing signed "Love, Biscuit," the nickname Raymond Snyder used for his son.
- Robert Alan Snyder's headstone lists his life as 1987-1991 and a death certificate dated September 14, 1991, was issued.
- Raymond Snyder arranged for the child to be driven to Columbus to a licensed foster caregiver named Sandra Keele in October 1991.
- Vernon Richardson, Raymond's cousin and a retired Franklin County Children Services caseworker, later stated the bruising was determined to be accidental and no formal charges were filed.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1324falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/a-dying-man-left-a-grocery-card-sealed-in-a-bag-the-rebecca-allen-secret--73104877
Fear and curiosity collide when a Kroger loyalty card, sealed in a gallon bag and placed by a gas meter, points to fourteen years of monthly transfers and a shoebox of 41 birthday cards-so who was Rebecca Allen to Dennis Tillman, and why did he arrange for a secret to survive him? The sealed bag, the steady $400 monthly payments, and a chronological archive of cards open a quiet, stubborn mystery: what compelled a solitary man to carry and protect a hidden relationship for decades?

In this episode, we follow the sequence of discoveries from the morning the bag was found to the opening of the shoebox after Dennis Tillman’s death, tracing bank records, neighborhood memories, and family ties to ask whether a lifetime of small acts can reveal a larger truth.

Person: Dennis Tillman
Date: August 7, 2019 (bag discovery); August 14, 2019 (death)
Location: 4417 Greer Street, Millhaven, Ohio
Transaction: $400 monthly transfers from 2005 through death (approx. $67,000 total)
Item: 41 birthday cards arranged chronologically in a shoebox

- A one-gallon ziplock bag containing a Kroger loyalty card for Rebecca Allen was found flat against the gas meter on August 7, 2019.
- Kroger records show transactions for Rebecca Allen stretching back 14 years and the last transaction on August 3, 2019.
- Dennis Tillman made $400 transfers to Rebecca Allen on the first of every month from 2005 until his death, totaling approximately $67,000.
- Dennis Tillman died on August 14, 2019, leaving no will and a house at 4417 Greer Street where he lived for more than 30 years.
- Heather Hunt discovered a shoebox with 41 birthday cards in Dennis’s bedroom closet when she arrived two days after his death.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104877Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:20:38 +0000Creator at ObomediaA Dying Man Left a Grocery Card Sealed in a Bag: The Rebecca Allen Secret Fear and curiosity collide when a Kroger loyalty card, sealed in a gallon bag and placed by a gas meter, points to fourteen years of monthly transfers and a shoebox of 41...
Fear and curiosity collide when a Kroger loyalty card, sealed in a gallon bag and placed by a gas meter, points to fourteen years of monthly transfers and a shoebox of 41 birthday cards-so who was Rebecca Allen to Dennis Tillman, and why did he arrange for a secret to survive him? The sealed bag, the steady $400 monthly payments, and a chronological archive of cards open a quiet, stubborn mystery: what compelled a solitary man to carry and protect a hidden relationship for decades?

In this episode, we follow the sequence of discoveries from the morning the bag was found to the opening of the shoebox after Dennis Tillman’s death, tracing bank records, neighborhood memories, and family ties to ask whether a lifetime of small acts can reveal a larger truth.

Person: Dennis Tillman
Date: August 7, 2019 (bag discovery); August 14, 2019 (death)
Location: 4417 Greer Street, Millhaven, Ohio
Transaction: $400 monthly transfers from 2005 through death (approx. $67,000 total)
Item: 41 birthday cards arranged chronologically in a shoebox

- A one-gallon ziplock bag containing a Kroger loyalty card for Rebecca Allen was found flat against the gas meter on August 7, 2019.
- Kroger records show transactions for Rebecca Allen stretching back 14 years and the last transaction on August 3, 2019.
- Dennis Tillman made $400 transfers to Rebecca Allen on the first of every month from 2005 until his death, totaling approximately $67,000.
- Dennis Tillman died on August 14, 2019, leaving no will and a house at 4417 Greer Street where he lived for more than 30 years.
- Heather Hunt discovered a shoebox with 41 birthday cards in Dennis’s bedroom closet when she arrived two days after his death.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1273falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-hymnal-the-discharge-paper-and-the-life-he-hid--73104875
A burgundy hymnal left in a donation bin for at least three weeks contained a folded military discharge paper for Walter R. Colton - a man everyone in his Ohio town believed had never served. The paper listed a home of record in Berea, Kentucky, and a discharge date in autumn 1961, but the federal enlistment file was missing; what caused that gap, and why did he keep two lives apart for decades?

In this episode, we follow how a hymnal found outside Calvary Lutheran led two volunteer catalogers and a records manager to reexamine family memory, probate files, and federal records, and to ask whether Walter's quiet life concealed a separate past that only surfaced after his death.

Person: Walter R. Colton
Location: Sycamore Lane, Milford, Ohio
Event: Discharge dated autumn 1961
Document found: Military discharge paper inside a burgundy hymnal
Family connection: Diane Jenkins is Walter's great-niece

- The hymnal sat in a donation bin outside Calvary Lutheran Church for at least three weeks before being opened.
- Michelle Dalton opened the hymnal on a Tuesday morning in July 2023 and found the folded discharge paper behind the ribbon marker.
- The discharge paper lists Berea, Kentucky as Walter's home of record and notes four years of service with an honorable discharge.
- A request to the National Personnel Records Center returned "No record found" for Walter's enlistment file within one week.
- A three-page cream-colored letter signed "Judith" was found tucked inside Walter's probate file at the Hamilton County Probate Court.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104875Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:20:26 +0000Creator at ObomediaThe Hymnal, the Discharge Paper, and the Life He Hid A burgundy hymnal left in a donation bin for at least three weeks contained a folded military discharge paper for Walter R. Colton - a man everyone in his Ohio town believed had never served. The...
A burgundy hymnal left in a donation bin for at least three weeks contained a folded military discharge paper for Walter R. Colton - a man everyone in his Ohio town believed had never served. The paper listed a home of record in Berea, Kentucky, and a discharge date in autumn 1961, but the federal enlistment file was missing; what caused that gap, and why did he keep two lives apart for decades?

In this episode, we follow how a hymnal found outside Calvary Lutheran led two volunteer catalogers and a records manager to reexamine family memory, probate files, and federal records, and to ask whether Walter's quiet life concealed a separate past that only surfaced after his death.

Person: Walter R. Colton
Location: Sycamore Lane, Milford, Ohio
Event: Discharge dated autumn 1961
Document found: Military discharge paper inside a burgundy hymnal
Family connection: Diane Jenkins is Walter's great-niece

- The hymnal sat in a donation bin outside Calvary Lutheran Church for at least three weeks before being opened.
- Michelle Dalton opened the hymnal on a Tuesday morning in July 2023 and found the folded discharge paper behind the ribbon marker.
- The discharge paper lists Berea, Kentucky as Walter's home of record and notes four years of service with an honorable discharge.
- A request to the National Personnel Records Center returned "No record found" for Walter's enlistment file within one week.
- A three-page cream-colored letter signed "Judith" was found tucked inside Walter's probate file at the Hamilton County Probate Court.

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© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1158falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/a-stranger-signed-her-wedding-gift-the-thomas-cooke-secret--73104865
Fear and a quiet family lie collide when a name nobody remembered appears in three places: a birth certificate, a baby-book death entry, and a wedding registry card signed “With love on your day.” The registry entry was written in left-leaning cursive and listed Thomas Cooke as gift-giver, but Patricia Hall was raised to believe her brother died in June 1961-so who signed her wedding gift decades later?

In this episode, we follow how a misdelivered box revealed documents that reopen a family story: a valid Oregon birth certificate for Thomas Alan Cooke dated June 3, 1961, a handwritten sibling entry in a baby book claiming Thomas died the same month, and a wedding registry card from June 1983 with that same name-so which of these records tells the truth?

Person: David Hall
Person: Patricia Hall
Person: Meredith Cooke
Date: June 3, 1961
Event: Wedding gift registry dated June 1983

- David Hall found the water-damaged box at his duplex on June 9, 2022 after it had been misdelivered and left at a neighbor's house for three weeks.
- Patricia and Robert Hall were married in June 1983 on the Oregon coast and used a department-store gift registry.
- The registry card entry at line 41 reads “Thomas Cooke” and the message “With love on your day.”
- An Oregon Certificate of Live Birth found in the box names Thomas Alan Cooke, born June 3, 1961, mother Meredith Cooke, father Howard Cooke, county Tillamook, stamped VALID in red ink.
- Oregon Center for Health Statistics had no death certificate on file for Thomas Alan Cooke for any year after David called to check the records.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104865Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:20:14 +0000Creator at ObomediaA Stranger Signed Her Wedding Gift: The Thomas Cooke Secret Fear and a quiet family lie collide when a name nobody remembered appears in three places: a birth certificate, a baby-book death entry, and a wedding registry card signed “With love on...
Fear and a quiet family lie collide when a name nobody remembered appears in three places: a birth certificate, a baby-book death entry, and a wedding registry card signed “With love on your day.” The registry entry was written in left-leaning cursive and listed Thomas Cooke as gift-giver, but Patricia Hall was raised to believe her brother died in June 1961-so who signed her wedding gift decades later?

In this episode, we follow how a misdelivered box revealed documents that reopen a family story: a valid Oregon birth certificate for Thomas Alan Cooke dated June 3, 1961, a handwritten sibling entry in a baby book claiming Thomas died the same month, and a wedding registry card from June 1983 with that same name-so which of these records tells the truth?

Person: David Hall
Person: Patricia Hall
Person: Meredith Cooke
Date: June 3, 1961
Event: Wedding gift registry dated June 1983

- David Hall found the water-damaged box at his duplex on June 9, 2022 after it had been misdelivered and left at a neighbor's house for three weeks.
- Patricia and Robert Hall were married in June 1983 on the Oregon coast and used a department-store gift registry.
- The registry card entry at line 41 reads “Thomas Cooke” and the message “With love on your day.”
- An Oregon Certificate of Live Birth found in the box names Thomas Alan Cooke, born June 3, 1961, mother Meredith Cooke, father Howard Cooke, county Tillamook, stamped VALID in red ink.
- Oregon Center for Health Statistics had no death certificate on file for Thomas Alan Cooke for any year after David called to check the records.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1306falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/father-buys-a-grave-one-year-before-his-daughter-is-born-the-marie-cooper-case--73104846
A headstone at Sycamore Hill Cemetery showed two impossible dates: a birth and death on April 14, 1968, and a plot acquisition dated October 1967 - six months before the child was born. Who bought a burial plot before the daughter existed, and what secret did that purchase hide for fifty-one years?

In this episode, we follow how a photo of that headstone posted to a local history group set off a chain of discoveries connecting a cemetery plot, a 1968 infant grave, an 18-year-old woman who kept a secret, and a 2019 DNA match that reopened the case. How did a routine DNA kit and one surprising headstone bring family histories back into daylight?

Location: Harlan County, Kentucky
Event: Headstone dated April 14, 1968 with plot acquisition year 1967
Person: Troy Parker (took the photograph in May 2019)
Person: Dottie Holmes (was 18 in 1968; 79 in 2019)
Person: Daniel Voss (born 1988; adopted; first-degree DNA match to Sandra Holmes)

- The headstone at Sycamore Hill Cemetery lists birth and death as April 14, 1968.
- The same headstone lists plot acquisition year as 1967, six months before the April 1968 birth.
- Troy Parker photographed the headstone at 6 a.m. on a Thursday in May 2019 and posted it to a Harlan County history Facebook group.
- Dottie Holmes was 18 years old the night the events began in 1968 and was 79 in 2019 living in her childhood home.
- Daniel Voss, age 31 in 2019, was adopted in 1988 and his adoption paperwork listed his biological mother as "Marie" with Harlan County, Kentucky as the county of origin.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73104846Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:20:02 +0000Creator at ObomediaFather Buys a Grave One Year Before His Daughter Is Born: The Marie Cooper Case A headstone at Sycamore Hill Cemetery showed two impossible dates: a birth and death on April 14, 1968, and a plot acquisition dated October 1967 - six months before...
A headstone at Sycamore Hill Cemetery showed two impossible dates: a birth and death on April 14, 1968, and a plot acquisition dated October 1967 - six months before the child was born. Who bought a burial plot before the daughter existed, and what secret did that purchase hide for fifty-one years?

In this episode, we follow how a photo of that headstone posted to a local history group set off a chain of discoveries connecting a cemetery plot, a 1968 infant grave, an 18-year-old woman who kept a secret, and a 2019 DNA match that reopened the case. How did a routine DNA kit and one surprising headstone bring family histories back into daylight?

Location: Harlan County, Kentucky
Event: Headstone dated April 14, 1968 with plot acquisition year 1967
Person: Troy Parker (took the photograph in May 2019)
Person: Dottie Holmes (was 18 in 1968; 79 in 2019)
Person: Daniel Voss (born 1988; adopted; first-degree DNA match to Sandra Holmes)

- The headstone at Sycamore Hill Cemetery lists birth and death as April 14, 1968.
- The same headstone lists plot acquisition year as 1967, six months before the April 1968 birth.
- Troy Parker photographed the headstone at 6 a.m. on a Thursday in May 2019 and posted it to a Harlan County history Facebook group.
- Dottie Holmes was 18 years old the night the events began in 1968 and was 79 in 2019 living in her childhood home.
- Daniel Voss, age 31 in 2019, was adopted in 1988 and his adoption paperwork listed his biological mother as "Marie" with Harlan County, Kentucky as the county of origin.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.]]>1377falsefull