A few years ago, Susan Vaughn and her daughter Clair found something in a box that changed their lives forever.

It had been years since Clair's grandparents, community leader Judge Clarence Vaughn Jr. and his wife Doris, passed away. So mother and daughter felt it was time to clean out some things up in the attic.

As Clair was looking through piles of old goods, she came across a trunk full of letters. But these weren't just any letters. This was handwritten correspondence between lovers - her grandparents. As Clair began to read, she realized that the letters were written before and during World War II, from 1938 to 1945.

The letters were so touching, Susan and Clair shared many heartfelt moments getting to know Clarence and Doris before they became grandparents and in-laws. Susan later had copies of the letters made into books for immediate family members.

Members of the public will get a glimpse into the letters and life during World War II when excerpts are read at the Nov. 7 meeting of the Rockdale County Historical Society. The meeting is at 7 p.m. at the Conyers Depot, in Olde Town.

The first letter started off with Clarence Vaughn Jr. telling Doris Henson, his girlfriend at the time, how much he missed her and how he couldn't wait to see her again. He was attending North Georgia College then moved onto University of Georgia when the letters began to be sent back and forth.

On December 7, 1941, after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, these pleasant letters soon changed. Clarence wrote a letter on this day telling Doris about how his day was, the movie he was soon going to go watch, and how much he missed her, of course. Then, on the same day, he wrote a letter about the crisis of the war that was declared, knowing it would be his duty to go overseas. "Nobody knows what is coming," wrote Clarence in his second letter.

Shortly after that news, Clarence and Doris were married. They were together for 5 months before he was shipped to New York and after that to the Northern Islands, where he stayed until he was shipped overseas. Two days after D-Day, he was finally shipped out. "He was a brave soldier," said Susan. Clarence fought at the Battle of the Bulge and was one of the soldiers in the first unit to free the prisoners in the infamous concentration camp, Ohrdruf. Other places he where he fought were France, Czechoslovakia, and Germany.

Throughout this time overseas, he continued writing letters to Doris. Although many of the letters were not detailed about the war, as Clarence tried to avoid frightening Doris, he did not hesitate to explain to her about the horrendous things he saw at the concentration camp. Susan said she found this very surprising.

Clarence's last letter to Doris showed how excited he was to come back home.

"Anybody who saw me would think I was jet propelled," exclaimed Clarence in that letter. The letters with the latest dates were ones that Doris had written and sent to Clarence but were returned due to his being in transit back from the war.

The Nov. 7 meeting of the Rockdale County Historical Society is free and open to the public. For more information, contact (770) 483-3715.