Man receives Father’s Day letter 20 years after his son’s death

A late Father’s Day card from a diseased son proves that it’s better late than never.

An 89-year-old Virginia man named Duane Schrock was the lucky recipient of a letter that has bounced around in the mail for nearly 30 years.

The “unbelievable” letter was mailed from his son and namesake back in 1989 – six years before AIDS took his life in 1995, WPXI reports.

The card reads: “Dear Dad, we haven’t been in touch for quite a while. I’m doing fine and am very happy in Richmond. I’d like to hear from you. Happy Father’s Day, Love Duane.”

The evocative letter finally reached Schrock, whose moving patterns were hard to keep up with, 20 years after his son’s death.

“I still kind of tear up when I think about it – to get it just a few days after Father’s Day, mailed in 1989 for Father’s Day,” he told ABC News.

The card, seemingly from beyond the grave, is extra special to Schrock because of the two’s “tumultuous relationship.”

Schrock disapproved of his son’s sexuality when he was alive, but says that this letter is like a sign from heaven that his son’s doing just fine.

Although it took nearly 30 years for the card to reach him, Schrock extends his thank yous to all the mail workers who “bent over backwards” to get him the card.

“Somebody picked up the ball and carried it,” Schrock said. “After all these years, they must have forwarded it.”

He says that receiving this letter has “restored his faith in the mail service.”