The Letter - a short film by Steve Date

I met Casey and Hilary Gauntt at the October Sky Festival in Coalwood, West Virginia in October of 2009. He was there to reconnect with Emily Buckberry, whom he’d met when he lived in Coalwood for a summer more than 40 years earlier. She had recently forwarded to him an unusual letter that he was supposed to have received in 1968.

I was there because I had just finished making a documentary film about the town of Coalwood. We were introduced to each other by Noni Mauck, a mutual acquaintance. Noni was a former Coalwood resident who’d just met Casey at the festival. He’d told her the story of the letter and his summer in Coalwood and she thought I might be interested in getting his story on video.

She was right. Casey and I began recording a few minutes after we met. We stood behind one of the old, crumbling coal company buildings to get out of the wind and away from the festival crowd. He spoke right into the camera. Having only heard part of the story, I didn’t quite know what to expect, and I was blown away. My eyes were filled with tears by the time he finished.

The next summer, Casey and Hilary invited me to their home in California and we filled in a few missing pieces for the film, such as him reading the actual letter on camera in his living room.

At that time we met, Casey was early in the journey that continues with the publication of his new book, “When the Veil Comes Down”. As you’ll see when you read this new book, one man’s awakening that started with the recovery of a long lost letter in 2008 has blossomed into a wonderful community of people who help each other through their darkest days.

I am grateful for that day I met Casey and Hilary in Coalwood in 2009 and I treasure their friendship today.

- Steve Date, Minneapolis, Minnesota https://www.stevedate.com

If you’d like to find out more about the making of “The Letter”, visit the webpage about it on Casey’s website Write Me Something Beautiful. Casey tells the story in more detail and has also included a number of photos.