Photos of late son returned

All Paula Ciaverella had left were her memories and pictures of her late son, until the pictures were stolen last week.

On the Fourth of July, Ciaverella got her pictures back, and she says it was because of “divine intervention.”

Pictures of Ciaverella’s son, Mason Eckhart, were stolen from her Thursday afternoon when a duffle bag was taken from her boyfriend’s vehicle. The Ashley teen was killed in a car crash earlier this year.

Ciaverella said the burgundy-colored tote bag contained a camera and numerous pictures of her 18-year-old son, who was killed in a one-car crash on Middle Road in Nanticoke on April 18.

At 9:50 p.m. Saturday, Ciaverella received a call from Hanover Township police, who told her the bag and most of its contents were recovered.

“I was told a man was walking under the West Nanticoke Bridge and found the duffle bag,” Ciaverella said.

The man took the bag home and told his mother that he thought the bag was the one that was reported stolen and reported in The Times Leader. A remembrance card from Desiderio Funeral Home was in the bag, so the man called the funeral home and was directed to the Hanover Township police.

Ciaverella called Mason “Mae,” and it so happens that the woman whose son found the missing bag is also named “May.”

“I couldn’t believe it when she told me her name,” Ciaverella said. “I said ‘May, you have returned my Mae to me.’ It was divine intervention. There are a few good souls left in the world. I know there’s one Great Soul up there in heaven. May and her son earned their wings. From the bottom of my heart, I thank the two of them, God and St. Jude. Sometimes someone does hear your prayers.”

Ciaverella said May is 80 years old and her son, Fred, is around 60. She said when she got the call, she decided to meet the two good Samaritans at the bridge where the duffle bag was found.

“When we talked, we both cried. She knew how important the pictures were to me.”

Some things were missing from the duffle bag, Ciaverella said – some Zantac pills, a camera and a pair of scissors.

“I don’t care about those things,” she said. “All I wanted were my pictures of Mason.”

Because the bag was left under the bridge, it was dry despite all the rain last week.

A church envelope was found in the bag, so Fred and May called the church, but got nowhere. Then they found the remembrance card from Desiderio Funeral Home and called.

“The funeral home returned her call and gave her my cell phone number,” Ciaverella said. “Then the police called me. Everybody was so helpful.”

Ciaverella said the bag was stolen between noon and 1:30 p.m. Thursday. Someone smashed the window of a green, 1994 Jeep Grand Cherokee that was parked behind Mary Taylor’s Hair Salon on the Sans Souci Parkway and removed the duffle bag.

Ciaverella had the bag in the car because she was taking the photos to be laminated. The bag also contained life insurance papers, sympathy cards and other assorted papers.

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