Elderly Father Gets 26-Year-Old Letter From His Deceased Son

— -- A father got a message from his son from beyond the grave that had been delayed for 26 years.

Duane Schrock Jr. sent his father a note for Father's Day in 1989 but it never made it to him.

The pair had a sometimes strained relationship because Duane Schrock Sr. did not approve of his son's homosexuality, the father told ABC affiliate WSET in Lynchburg, Virginia.

The note was an effort to bridge that divide of sorts, but it never made it to his father before Duane Jr. died of AIDS in 1995.

"Dear, Dad, we haven't been in touch for quite a while, I'm doing fine and am very happy in Richmond, I'd like to hear from you. Have a Happy Father's Day, Love Duane," the letter read.

Now, 20 years after Duane's death and 26 years after it was originally postmarked, the letter finally made it to the intended recipient.

"Somebody picked up the ball and carried it and after all these years they must still have forwarded it," Schrock, who is now 87, said.

"I still kind of tear up when I think about it," Schrock said.

Schrock said that before his son died, he had asked him "if he made peace with God because I want to see him in heaven."

The letter was a happy surprise.

"It was sure welcome and it restored faith in the mail service," Schrock said.