Woman wants to find her long-lost pen pal

By SUSAN BERG

Managing editor

It was 1945 and Gloria Guyer was 14 years old and living in East Salem, Pa., when she started writing to her pen pal, Lola Beth, in Hillsboro.

Gloria Guyer is now Gloria Delancey and wants to find her long-lost pen pal.

Pen pals were common at that time — connecting people from one part of the country with people from another.

Gloria lived in East Salem, Pa., which seemed like a million miles from Kansas at that time. She came from a family of 14 children. Having someone to share secrets with and to be able to read about another part of the country was enjoyable.

The two teens conversed by mail for three years.

With help from her daughter, Jill Baumgardner, the 78-year-old Mifflintown, Pa., resident is searching for Lola Beth and thought she would start in Hillsboro.

Delancey knows Lola Beth’s last name was Nickel — but she’s not sure of the spelling. It may have been Nikkel, Nichel, or Nichol. She also remembers that Lola Beth was a member of a 4-H club and she liked to sew.

Of course with the passing of time and it now being more than 60 years later, Lola Beth’s last name may be different.

“We don’t know if she is still in the Hillsboro area or if she is even still alive,” Baumgardner said.

Anyone with information about Lola Beth is asked to contact the newspaper at (620) 947-3975 or by e-mail at starj@starj.com.

“We’d love to know where she is and be able to talk to her or her family,” Baumgardner said.