A post office owner in the village of Woodstock has embarked on a journey to find the 'home' a letter she received last week address to "Dad and Rich".
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Denise Norbury says it's not unusual for the tiny post office at Woodstock, an our south of Orange in the Lachlan Valley, to receive a letter addressed to either 'Dad or Dad & Rich, 2 ICAN Rd, 2793'.
Ms Norbury has posted a photograph of the letter on the post office's Facebook page with the message "Please help find this Dad ... no other info on envelope, no origin stamp etc, please share everywhere! Get it viral and we'll find him somewhere!"
The Facebook post has already been shared more than 1700 times and generated more than 100 comments.
"All the local detectives have given their ideas about what it could be," Ms Norbury said, regarding the letter's intended destination.
"They're all hard at work, but perhaps we need the help of Sherlock Holmes.
"I've had everything suggested, including it could be a child's writing or even an adult who can't write very well," she added.
... frequently out here people will send mail addressed to just mum and dad or pop.
- Denise Norbury
The way the ampersand (the &) is written grabbed the attention of one such "detective", Ms Norbury said, and they suggest it indicates an aged person has addressed the letter.
Another says "it's a kid for sure, it says dad ... as a kid I always used &".
Another suggested "the writing reminds me of letters I used to receive from a customer that had head injuries and lived in a group home".
Frustratingly for Ms Norbury the place of origin stamp on the letter is unclear.
"Sometimes this can help, especially if the origin is a small town," she said.
This aside Ms Norbury remains hopeful of finding the intended recipient of the letter.
"We do get these types of letters from time to time, frequently out here people will send mail addressed to just mum and dad or pop," she said.
"Last year I chased up one addressed to pop. When I went to that address it was no longer occupied."
Despite the obvious challenges, Ms Norbury remains hopeful the letter does end up in an unclaimed mail file.
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