A Weyburn woman played a vital role in returning a set of important documents, missing for well over 30 years, to a church in the Torquay area.

Margaret Lackey returned a long-lost framed "cradle roll" and an "honour roll" to the Salem Lutheran Church in Torquay over the weekend.

She had discovered them in a collection kept by her husband Herman Lackey, who passed away eight years ago.

Herman had likely acquired the cradle roll and honour roll from an auction sale, probably over 20 years ago, Margaret said. He had an extensive collection of historical items.

"He liked history. That's why he brought it here," she said.

Margaret said a cradle roll is a list of names, kept by a church, of local births in a community. An honour roll is essentially the same, except it catalogues names of church members.

Margaret discovered the rolls when she was searching for an item to donate to an auction in the Oungre-Colgate area. The auction was an annual fund-raiser conducted by Lackey Auctions, with proceeds going to support the Dr. Brown Park in Oungre.

She recognized only one name on the rolls - Axle Vinge. Margaret then contacted Glenn Vinge, a pharmacist in Weyburn, to inquire about the rolls.

He didn't know what they were for, but he contacted people in his hometown of Torquay.

Margaret then received a call from the Howard Johnson family of Torquay. The Lutheran Church to whom the rolls belonged had not seen them for many years, and did not know their whereabouts.

After a get-together with the Lackeys, the two items were returned. The church wanted to give a reward, but Margaret declined.

"A story such as this, in itself, is priceless," she said.

Margaret said she wanted to thank everyone who helped get the rolls back to Torquay. "We are so glad they are back home," she added.