A Brantford man said he was elated to finally receive his father’s cremated remains which went missing in the mail for more than a month.
The ashes were delivered to Jim Graham’s Able Avenue home on Feb. 16. His stepsister, Lori Mills, who lives in Peterborough, mailed the ashes on Jan. 7.
“When the delivery truck pulled up to the house I thought it was something for my son,” said Graham. “But when they passed me the box I knew right away what it was.
“I was quite elated. It has been 17 years since my father passed. It has been a long time waiting.
“He was big on travelling, so maybe he decided to go on a last little adventure.”
After their father’s death in 2004, Graham and Mills lost touch. When they reconnected last year, Mills said she’d send him what she had of their father, Bertram’s, ashes.
Graham said she followed Canada Post’s guidelines for mailing cremated remains. They were supposed to arrive at Graham’s house in three days.
“Canada Post didn’t explain anything or even let me know they found them,” said Graham, adding that there was sufficient postage on the package and no errors in the mailing address.
When contacted by The Expositor in January, Canada Post spokesperson Phil Rogers said he “understood the importance of the item” and an investigation started immediately after they were notified the parcel hadn’t arrived.
“We regret and apologize to the customer for their experience,” Rogers said.
With the ashes safely in his care, Graham said he’s now looking for a suitable container for them. He said his dad was an avid golfer and, back in the 1970s, had a whiskey decanter and glasses housed inside what looked like a large golf ball.
“I’m hoping to find an original set. Whenever I see one it instantly reminds me of him.”
Graham is also planning to put some ashes into a small container on a chain for Mills.
“But that I won’t be putting in the mail.”