A MOURNING mom and son have been desperate to locate a family member’s ashes after they disappeared in the mail.
The family, who resides in California, said the USPS delivered the remains to the wrong address.
The remains belong to 54-year-old Michael Voorhees who suffered from an aggressive form of cancer.
Voorhees died last month in Arizona.
Anna Garcia expressed shock when her skin cancer returned a year later, this time in a more advanced and spread form than before, catching her completely off guard, as she revealed to CBS South Carolina affiliate WCSC.
Garcia is an emergency room nurse who has a 23-year-old son with Voorhees.
His ashes were to be divided among four loved ones, as reported by WCSC.
Garcia and her son were supposed to receive the ashes in the mail directly from the cremation service.
According to USPS tracking information, the family should have received the ashes on January 18.
But Garcia and her son never received the remains.
“We investigated and we found out that USPS had delivered the ashes, but to a different address,” Garcia said.
“My son is the one who’s really distraught.”
“We’re having a celebration of life for him, and then we’re not going to have the ashes,” she added.
The United States Postal Service provided a statement regarding the unfortunate situation on Wednesday.
“The station has sent multiple representatives to the location where the item was delivered,” the USPS said.
Regrettably, no one was available to receive the package during previous delivery attempts. The case has now been referred to the Inspection Service for further action to recover the lost package.
If the ashes are sitting in someone’s mailbox or their kitchen table, their living room, we want to bring Mike home to his son.
Anna Garcia
The responsible party expressed deep regret for any inconvenience caused. They understand the importance of the misplaced item and are committed to taking all necessary steps to retrieve it.
Both Garcia and her son are grateful to the USPS for understanding the severity and sensitive nature of this issue.
To get the word out quicker, Garcia decided to take matters into her own hands.
She’s posted on a social networking app called NextDoor in an effort to get in touch with the person who might have the remains.
“If the ashes are sitting in someone’s mailbox or their kitchen table, their living room, we want to bring Mike home to his son,” Garcia said.
The USPS did not reply to The U.S. Sun’s request for comment.
