1955 Christ Church Alameda Baptism Letter Resurfaces

Christ Church in Alameda got back a letter on August 20 that it had mailed 71 years earlier: the 1955 baptismal certificate of Pamela Jean Haslam, returned by the postal service marked "insufficient address."

• Where: Christ Church, 1700 Santa Clara Ave., Alameda, CA
• What came back: A baptismal certificate for Pamela Jean Haslam, originally mailed October 26, 1955
• When it resurfaced: August 20, 2026
• Why it bounced: The original envelope was addressed to a spot on the old Alameda Naval Air Station, marked "insufficient address"
• What's next: The church's rector is trying to track down Haslam's family

Rev. Stephen McHale, the church's rector, told CBS News San Francisco the envelope showed up in the mail on August 20 marked "insufficient address," more than seven decades after it was sent. Robert and Lois Haslam had mailed the certificate to Christ Church in October 1955, addressed to what looks like military housing on the old Naval Air Station, to document their daughter's baptism.

Where was the letter all this time?

Nobody knows, and that's the part McHale can't stop thinking about. He told CBS News he's curious exactly where the envelope sat for 71 years before it finally got delivered. The church has no record of ever receiving a delivery attempt before this year.

Who was Pamela Jean Haslam?

Church records show she was baptized at Christ Church as a baby. She died in 1996 at age 41. McHale says her son is believed to be living in Michigan, and the church wants to get him a copy of the document his mother never got to keep.

What happens next

McHale told CBS News the church plans to send Haslam's family a photocopy of the certificate once they're located, since he doesn't trust the original to another trip through the mail. If you have any connection to the Haslam family, Christ Church is the place to reach out. In the meantime, the original sits safe at the church on Santa Clara Avenue, seven decades after it should have arrived.