When I started this blog, I did it mostly for myself. So I’ve been continuously surprised and delighted to find out other people (non-relations even) read and enjoy see my postcard collection.
I’ve even been more delighted by people sharing their postcards with me and helping to get this medium alive!
I was contacted last month by a fellow Torontonian. Like me, he believes postcards are best when they are shared with others.
He sent me this postcard from his personal collection:

It’s a postcard commemorating a Boy Scouts Jamboree, Jamboree on the Air (JOTA) 2007. It was held in Montecassino, Italy (although I can’t figure out the fleurs-de-lis).
I assume this postcard was given only to Boy Scouts who attended this special event, making it more of a historical genre postcard (commemorating an event of historic importance) more so than an announcement postcard (an advertisement distributed in advance of an event to drum up attendance). I have very few postcards of the historic type, so this was particularly excited to receive this one.
Here’s the back of the postcard:

Postcard message:
“Hi Glen! This postcard celebrates 50 years of the Scouts. JOTA event – look it up! It took place in my hometown a couple of years before I left for Canada (when I was still a boy scout)!”
I love postcards that combine a visual artefact of our times and culture with a chronicle of people’s related personal narratives! So thanks so much to the new donor and pen pal!