Fochler holds a treasured piece of the old school in front of the new VSS.
(CHARLOTTE HELSTON / iNFOnews.ca)
February 20, 2013 - 3:43 PM
By Charlotte Helston
When Scott Fochler stopped by the old Vernon Secondary School yesterday, he found a big gaping hole where his heart was supposed to be.
For weeks, Fochler has been trying get his hands on a piece of plywood on which he wrote his and his wife's names thirty years ago. The graffiti tattooed a wall in the old VSS drama room where Fochler and his future wife Doreen spent much of their time together.
But when Fochler went to ask the demolition crew if they could spare the heart, it was already gone.
"I was shocked, dismayed, just heartbroken," Fochler says. "Somebody stole my heart."
The heart was removed with care, cut neatly out of the wall. The crew told him they'd ask around about it, but couldn't promise it wasn't buried in some recycling bin already.
Fochler went home empty handed and broken hearted. But the next day, he got a call. Someone had his heart, and they were waiting to give it to him.
"I couldn't believe it," Fochler says.
The individual had removed the heart just hours before Fochler went to the school. But the hero's identity cannot be revealed.
"I'd rather give the heart back than get someone in trouble," Fochler says of the gesture that technically wasn't allowed.
The individual told InfoTel News he heard the story and wanted to help.
Fochler's just happy he can bring the square of plywood home, make a frame and a plaque for it, and hang in on the wall. This all comes just before the Fochler's wedding anniversary, May 19.
The heart stands out boldly on the plywood, a smear of red stage make-up. "Probably lipstick, it held up pretty well. I don't know what brand it is," Fochler says.
He doesn't know how he'll ever top the romantic anniversary gift. "But that's how a marriage lasts," he says. "You build up points, and they count down the road."
To contact a reporter for this story email Charlotte Helston at chelston@infotelnews.ca or call (250)309-5230
News from © iNFOnews, 2013