An Oregon family is hoping that their search for a lost family heirloom, a high school letterman sweater that was owned by Walter Skowhede, who passed away in June, will find some answers in Meaford.
Over the holidays, Skowhede’s grandson William Farnbach, who lives in Arkansas, contacted The Independent in hopes that someone might recognize the sweater and contact him with information.
Farnbach says that his grandfather’s high school varsity sweater was a dark coloured wool cardigan with a large yellow ‘S’ on the left side, and a yellow patch with 55 on the right side below the front pocket. The name Walt Skowhede is embroidered on the tag inside the back collar of the sweater. There are three yellow bands on the left sleeve.
He said that the family discovered the sweater was missing when they were going through Skowhede’s belongings following his death last summer, and he suspects that the sweater had been stolen during a break-in of a family home in the years prior. As the family was searching for the sweater, a family friend discovered a listing for the sweater on the website Grailed, which sells men’s vintage clothing, apparently having been sold in 2021.
The family was certain that it was the correct sweater as they could see the name Walt Skowhede emblazoned on the collar tag in the image on the website. The seller told the family he sold it online to a buyer in Collingwood. The buyer owns a vintage shop in Collingwood, and he told the family that the sweater was sold at a pop-up Christmas market in Meaford in 2021, hosted by Still Fields Brewery, which ceased operations in 2023.
If the family can locate the sweater, Farnbach says he is planning to gift it to his mother as a surprise after Skowhede’s celebration of life, which is planned for January 23, 2026.
Farnbach told The Independent that he is willing to pay for the sweater if it can be located.
If you have information about the sweater, contact editor@themeafordindependent.ca
