Photos From Washington, Ill., Turning Up in Lombard, Elmhurst

When City of Elmhurst employee Tom Janito was going about his work outdoors on Clara Place this week, something in the street caught his eye.

"The job I do here has me in the streets every day," he said. "On Nov. 20, I found a picture on Clara Place of a little girl. I thought the picture I found was probably a local area resident's picture they had just dropped."

But he remembered hearing a WGN news broadcast stating that debris from the devastating tornadoes that ripped through Washington and Diamond, Ill., on Nov. 17 was landing more than 100 miles away, in suburbs all around Chicago. Elmhurst, according to Google Maps, is about 140 miles from Washington.

The newscast referred to a Facebook page that had been set up to attempt to reunite some of these belongings with their rightful owners.

"Thinking it a long shot, I posted the picture of (the little girl) on the Lost Items Facebook page," he said.

That was at about 8 a.m. Wednesday, Nov. 20. What happened next was remarkable.

"(On Thursday) a young man, Jacob Williams, commented on the picture I posted, saying that it was, indeed, his sister," Janito said Friday. "Later, his father, Jacob Sr., also commented that the picture was, indeed, his daughter."

The "Found Items from the Washington Illinois and Diamond Illinois Tornadoes" Facebook page as of Friday had nearly 15,000 likes. 

Most of the items posted are photographs found in people's back yards. These tattered photos are being picked up not only in Joliet, Morris and Shorewood, but as far northeast as Lombard, Naperville and Darien. A Washington ID card was even found at the Chicago Amtrak Station, about 150 miles away, according to one post. Multiple contributors say they found photos in Elmhurst. 

But more than just photos are being found. Requests for help finding owners of a pocket watch, stuffed animals, wedding bands, clothing and more have filled the page.

People who are looking for their items are posting, too—American Girl dolls, a blue and white quilt. One woman is looking for her wedding dress.

"The dress was in a black rolling suitcase, so we are hoping there is a chance it is still in good condition," the comment read.

Janito encourages Elmhurst residents to post any found items on the site. He even is willing to take it a step further.

"If people would like to drop off any pictures they find at City Hall (209 N. York St.) Attn: Tom Janito, I would be more than happy to post the pictures to try to find the owners and send them back," he said.

A photo of two people dancing—the date on the back is May 1997— was dropped off at City Hall Friday morning and Janito posted it the same day.

Looking at the photos, like the one of the smiling little girl with the bright red bow on her head, brings up a lot of emotions. 

"I find it not only amazing that the picture actually blew this far from the tornado hit area and that I found it, but indeed it will be reunited with a family that I'm guessing has lost everything and has had their items blown all over the state of Illinois," he said.

Visit the "Found Items" Facebook page here. 

Have you found anything here in Elmhurst from the Washington area? Do you know of people who found items? Let us know in the comments.