On March 4, 2005, then-Lance Corporal Lynn Craig of the Marine Corps wrote to his parents while deployed in Iraq. Somewhere between Iraq and Craig’s hometown of Roanoke, the letter sat undelivered for 11 years before finally getting a U.S. post mark on Jan. 2, 2016.

When Craig returned home from duty in September 2005, he didn’t think to ask his parents about the letter because he assumed to reached its destination already. That’s why his parents, Edith and David Craig, were so shocked to find it with the morning mail last week.

“I almost cried of course,” Edith said. “I’m a mom and he’s my baby. He’s 40 years old, but he’s still my baby.”

The letter was written only a month into Craig’s deployment. In it he describes how his platoon was locating and disposing of enemy munitions and defending the area from insurgents. Craig also talks about bonding with his superiors over cars.

Craig now serves in the Marine Corps Reserve and works for Volvo. Rereading the letter with his parents took all three of them back in time to a more stressful and uncertain time.

“It’s wonderful to go back 10 years and know that he was OK,” Edith said.

The family contacted the post office to figure out how this letter got so off track. Apparently, it’s common for letters that get stuck in military vehicles to be sent the moment they are discovered, whether its 10 days or 10 months. Mail sent from combat zones are also more likely to get lost along the way. However, it is highly unusual for a letter to be lost for 11 years and still delivered.

[Roanoke Times]

(Photo Credit: Erica Yoon | Roanoke Times)