Heart of the matter: Treasure trove of valentines uncovered

BLUFFTON — While helping their parents sort through years of memories, Kelli Foster and her sisters uncovered a treasure. "We opened up an old cigar box, and I'm like, 'Oh, my word,'" Foster recalled. Inside were more than 50 vintage Valentine's Day cards dating back to the 1940s when her dad, Ralph Gerber, was a boy. Foster said many of the cards were sent to him from cousins. "He lived in Kidron and had some cousins here in Bluffton, and some of them (the cards) had the cousins' names on them," she said. Now the public service coordinator at the Bluffton Public Library, Foster decided to use the timely find in one of the library's display cases for February. One card features a little boy and girl singing from a book titled "A Love Song." The message reads, "Please listen to my song, and you will never rue it; I want you for my Valentine, Oh! Please say you will Du-Et!" Another card shows a little boy driving a helicopter with a propeller that actually spins. The greeting says, "Just airing my thoughts, Valentine! Please be mine." Puns were popular, according to Foster, as were cards featuring cute and cuddly animals like kittens, dogs, squirrels and even monkeys. In one, a monkey holds a sign that reads, "Don't monkey with my heart. Be my Valentine!" The cards appear to be in excellent condition, said Foster. The colors are vivid and there are no tears, holes or rips — probably due to the fact that they were kept safe for years in the cardboard cigar box. Foster checked books on collectible Valentine's Day cards at the library and discovered that some of the cards were printed in Germany. Now 84, Ralph lived in Kidron until he was going into high school. The family moved to California but returned to Bluffton in 1976. Ralph worked as a purchasing agent at Blanchard Valley Hospital, while wife Melba was a registered nurse at the hospital for years, she said. Foster said her parents are currently transitioning to Maple Crest Senior Living Village in Bluffton. "We were just going through boxes, us girls, and we're trying to figure out what to save, what not to save," said Foster. That's when they came across the box. Foster said there were some other occasion cards in the cigar box, but the real prize was the collection of Valentine's Day greetings. Foster said the whole family has enjoyed getting to see the valentines again. "My mom was just laughing because they traveled with us from Kidron, Ohio, to Upland, California, then back to Bluffton. We're not sure why, but there must have been a reason," she said. Wolf: 419-427-8419