In November 2023, 71-year-old Thea Culbreth Chamberlain was treated to a wonderful surprise from her local movie theater. The thing that took her breath away seemed straight out of a Hollywood tearjerker, but it wasn’t. It was an item intimately connected to her past—something she’d never seen before, yet there it sat, plain as day … her mother’s wallet.
Floy Culbreth passed away in 2005 at the age of 87. But in 1958, when Thea was just six-years-old, Floy lost her wallet. Inside contained several mementos that served as snapshots of her mother’s life 65 years prior: some raffle tickets, a library card, and a few family photos. At the time, they might not have seemed like much to Floy. But to Thea, six and a half decades later, they were everything.
The wallet's discovery came during renovations of the Atlanta theater when a contractor found it hidden behind the walls. Christopher Escobar owned the Atlanta theater where Floy’s wallet was discovered. Escobar found the name Thea Culbreth written on a reminder card for a dental appointment. After an online search, he contacted the family and arranged a meeting at the theater to return the long-lost item.
Thea said, “I don’t even know how to say how flabbergasted I was. And it took a while for it to sink in.”
Chamberlain says the family plans to get the wallet’s contents framed—a preservation of memories they hope won’t be lost again.
Possible Preaching Angle:
There are many life lessons and wonderful family memories which can influence succeeding generations. We must make an effort to not let them slip away and learn from them.
