John Higgins and his grandmother, Martha Ann Consolvo, are shown with the Bible that was recently found by volunteers at the Catholic Charities’ Wee Care Shoppe in Winston-Salem. (Photos provided by Catholic Charities Diocese of Charlotte)WINSTON-SALEM — Sorting through donated books is a routine chore for Catholic Charities Diocese of Charlotte Wee Care Shoppe volunteers. But volunteers Kelly Thomas and Judy Moore recently discovered a priceless treasure for one West Coast family – a long-lost Bible with a history that has touched many hearts.
It all started when the pair of Catholic Charities volunteers were going through the latest donation of used books, some collected from another agency that Moore had brought to the Wee Care Shoppe. They found an old Bible among the assorted titles, and they became curious.
“I think God had a huge hand in all of it,” Thomas says. “Judy collects Bibles from another agency that doesn’t accept them. She opened the Bible up and showed the personal message inside. She said we should try to find who this belongs to.”
Thomas, a college student who is adept at research, went online and found a memorial page on Facebook with one of the names inscribed in the front of the Bible.
According to the inscriptions, the Bible was given to U.S. Army Lt. Col. John W. Consolvo Sr. by his mother-in-law and father-in-law, Major and Mrs. R.A. Merchant, on Easter, April 26, 1943, just before he left for World War II. Consolvo ended up serving in both the Second World War and in the Korean War.
In 1969 Consolvo passed on the Bible to his son, Capt. John Consolvo Jr., when the younger Consolvo was deployed to Vietnam with his Marine Corps unit.
According to the websites Thomas researched, the younger Consolvo was shot down over hostile territory on May 7, 1972. His body was never found.
Says Thomas, “They had no idea where the Bible was, that it even still existed. I think it’s miraculous that the Bible fell into our hands and that Judy took the time to open the Bible to see the writing inside.”
Thomas reached out and connected with John Higgins, a nephew of the dead Marine. Consolvo family members now live in Washington State and Oregon.
“The family was stunned to hear that we had found the Bible,” says Becky DuBois, Catholic Charities’ Winston-Salem office director. “We mailed the Bible to them, and John Higgins and his mother took the Bible to the widow of John Sr., who is 93 years old.”
DuBois shares that “the family has been overjoyed to have the Bible back in the family and amazed that the volunteer took the time to find them, and that we sent the Bible back to them.”
In a taped video of the Bible being returned to the family, tears of joy can be seen on Martha Ann Consolvo’s face as her husband’s and son’s Bible is put in her hands. She reads the inscription out loud and says, “This is priceless.”
“I thank you more than I can express in words. You don’t know what this means to me. I remember the day my parents gave this Bible to my husband, and I am so grateful to you. I never thought I would ever see it again. I see the pages are well worn and I know they used it – both of my boys.”
— SueAnn Howell, Senior reporter. Catholic Charities Diocese of Charlotte contributed.
The inside of the Bible shows the handwritten inscription by Lt. Col. John Consolvo Sr. to his son, Capt. John Consolvo Jr. upon his departure to fight in Vietnam in 1969.
The tombstone of Capt. John Consolvo Jr., who was shot down over Vietnam on May 7, 1972.