LOST PAL: Carol from southern England near the tunnel

by Shirley Hodges
(Beloit, WI)

My mom, Shirley Hodges, has lost contact with her pen pal, Carol, from England. She has a letter & a post card from Carol, but can't find her address anywhere.

The post mark on the post card looks it's dated from 1994 & from what I can make out the postal code looks like OB43 7AO. That postal code doesn't exist so if anyone has information about what the right postal code could be I'd appreciate your input.

My mom thinks they may have written each other from the late 70's or early 80's into at least the mid 90's. She's afraid Carol thinks my parents, Ron & Shirley, have moved because they were making plans to do so & travel in a motor home. She wants her to know they still live in Beloit, WI at the same address.

My mom remembers Carol was married & had a son and daughter. In one of her letters she mentions someone named Jane. My mom had told Carol about beanie babies here in the states; Carol was interested in finding them but wasn't able to locate them in England. In her post card she mentions how she was planning on looking for them in Canterbury during the January sales.

She also thinks her son may have been in some kind of accident. Throughout this time she lost touch with Carol a few times but eventually they'd find each other again. My mom thinks Carol may be in her 60's; her children were still living at home when they 1st started writing. Carol had a health problem that affected her hands & her handwriting sometimes.

My mother is Swiss American & my parents visited Switzerland in June of 1991, something Carol may be aware of, but weren't able to connect with her in England.

My mom thinks she may have found the penpal ad with Carol's name in either a Woman's Household or a Good Olde Days magazine, both of which are no longer in existence.