It is a painting that costs only a dollar to buy, but it is priceless for a Calgary family.
The painting in question is of a bouquet of flowers, and Melissa Pawley purchased it at Goodwill in Cincinnati, Ohio.
When she did a reverse Google image search of the signature, she came across a painting of poppies with the same signature. She sent a message to the poster.
“I thought she would either think I was crazy or she would be happy,” Pawley said.
The woman on the other end of the conversation was Julie Van Rosendaal, CBC Calgary Food Guide. She recognized Pawley’s untouched artwork right away.
“It was pretty clearly my grandfather’s painting,†Van Rosendaal said.
His grandfather, Frans Van Rosendaal, disappeared while flying a small plane in Hawaii in the late 1960s and has never been found. Now his family has another piece of his life to remember him.
Are you ready for an amazing story ?? ARE YOU?? A few days ago, someone I didn’t know messaged me on Facebook… She had picked up an old oil painting from Goodwill in Cincinnati for $ 1, brought it home and made a reverse Google image search on the signature. pic.twitter.com/iKObhgLEpX
Van Rosendaal has no idea how her grandfather’s painting ended up in Cincinnati, but she is on her way home. Pawley sends the painting to Calgary free of charge.
When the painting arrives, Van Rosendaal gives it to his father as a birthday present.
