thedrifter
12-03-07, 09:02 AM
Missing wallet finds man recovered 29 years later
Lost - Mike Reid of Elgin stashed his wallet in a VW in Hawaii -- right before his life changed forever
Monday, December 03, 2007
EDWARD WALSH
The Oregonian
The wallet, dusty and covered with mold, arrived in the mail the first week of November, an unexpected reminder of the day that changed Mike Reid's life.
For the past 29 years, the wallet had been tucked away under the back seat of a 1978 green and white Volkswagen bus on the Hawaiian island of Oahu. Reid, 51, who now lives in the northeastern Oregon town of Elgin, had put it there as he'd prepared to hike with two friends.
They were all U.S. Marines in top physical condition. But on Nov. 28, 1978, Reid was no match for a sudden rainstorm that swept through the area. He lost his footing while hiking along the cliffs of the popular Nuuanu Pali Lookout and tumbled 75 feet, landing on his head.
That was the end of Reid's career in the Marine Corps and the beginning of an arduous rehabilitation that included eight days in a coma, a lengthy bout of depression and frequent seizures.
The wallet -- for the next three decades, at least -- was forgotten.
The story of how the wallet made its way back to its owner was first recounted by Lee Cataluna, a columnist for The Honolulu Advertiser. It was discovered by Charlie Palumbo, a Honolulu architect, who repurchased the vehicle from a surf-shop owner. Palumbo had sold the bus to the surf-shop owner for use as a store display and promised to buy it back, which he did.
Restoring the bus, Palumbo found the wallet as he was about to reupholster the seats. It didn't have any money, but it did have military identification papers, pictures of a young woman and a Nevada driver's license. The name on the license was Michael Reid.
Palumbo tracked down Reid's father, Noble, through a family Web page that the elder Reid maintains.
"You are not going to believe this," Palumbo told him in an e-mail.
Soon, the wallet was on its way to Elgin, where the entire Reid family lives.
"I was knocked off my chair," Mike Reid said of the return of the wallet. "Memories were flooding back into my heart. You know, it had been a long time. A lot of things happened since then."
Reid was born in Eugene but went to high school in Las Vegas, where his father worked for a highway construction company. He was a quarterback on the Clark High School football team in Las Vegas, then attended Portland State University before enlisting in the Marine Corps. He said the young woman in the photos is Bonnie, a friend who lived on the same street in Las Vegas.
Reid said he is able to live an independent life, taking medication to control the seizures that once afflicted him. Every Sunday morning, he gets together with other family members for breakfast at the Whitehorse Cafe in Elgin.
"He's made a life for himself," Noble Reid said of his son. "He's come a long, long way from the devastation on that mountain. He's been kicked in the teeth a few times but, I'll tell you what, he's a joy."
Edward Walsh: 503-294-4153; edwardwalsh@news.oregonian.com
Ellie
Lost - Mike Reid of Elgin stashed his wallet in a VW in Hawaii -- right before his life changed forever
Monday, December 03, 2007
EDWARD WALSH
The Oregonian
The wallet, dusty and covered with mold, arrived in the mail the first week of November, an unexpected reminder of the day that changed Mike Reid's life.
For the past 29 years, the wallet had been tucked away under the back seat of a 1978 green and white Volkswagen bus on the Hawaiian island of Oahu. Reid, 51, who now lives in the northeastern Oregon town of Elgin, had put it there as he'd prepared to hike with two friends.
They were all U.S. Marines in top physical condition. But on Nov. 28, 1978, Reid was no match for a sudden rainstorm that swept through the area. He lost his footing while hiking along the cliffs of the popular Nuuanu Pali Lookout and tumbled 75 feet, landing on his head.
That was the end of Reid's career in the Marine Corps and the beginning of an arduous rehabilitation that included eight days in a coma, a lengthy bout of depression and frequent seizures.
The wallet -- for the next three decades, at least -- was forgotten.
The story of how the wallet made its way back to its owner was first recounted by Lee Cataluna, a columnist for The Honolulu Advertiser. It was discovered by Charlie Palumbo, a Honolulu architect, who repurchased the vehicle from a surf-shop owner. Palumbo had sold the bus to the surf-shop owner for use as a store display and promised to buy it back, which he did.
Restoring the bus, Palumbo found the wallet as he was about to reupholster the seats. It didn't have any money, but it did have military identification papers, pictures of a young woman and a Nevada driver's license. The name on the license was Michael Reid.
Palumbo tracked down Reid's father, Noble, through a family Web page that the elder Reid maintains.
"You are not going to believe this," Palumbo told him in an e-mail.
Soon, the wallet was on its way to Elgin, where the entire Reid family lives.
"I was knocked off my chair," Mike Reid said of the return of the wallet. "Memories were flooding back into my heart. You know, it had been a long time. A lot of things happened since then."
Reid was born in Eugene but went to high school in Las Vegas, where his father worked for a highway construction company. He was a quarterback on the Clark High School football team in Las Vegas, then attended Portland State University before enlisting in the Marine Corps. He said the young woman in the photos is Bonnie, a friend who lived on the same street in Las Vegas.
Reid said he is able to live an independent life, taking medication to control the seizures that once afflicted him. Every Sunday morning, he gets together with other family members for breakfast at the Whitehorse Cafe in Elgin.
"He's made a life for himself," Noble Reid said of his son. "He's come a long, long way from the devastation on that mountain. He's been kicked in the teeth a few times but, I'll tell you what, he's a joy."
Edward Walsh: 503-294-4153; edwardwalsh@news.oregonian.com
Ellie