Social media has solved a 13-year-old mystery born in the horrors of the aftermath of Sept. 11 with answers that make that bleak period a little brighter.Elizabeth Stringer Keefe, an assistant professor at Lesley University, had become the caretaker of a crinkled wedding photo found by a friend at ground zero soon after the attacks.The photo shows the smiling newlyweds with several friends. Since 2001, Keefe had been trying to identify those in the picture and feared that at least one of them had died in one of the World Trade Center towers.Each year, on the anniversary of the attacks, Keefe had tried to find the photo's owner, but it was not until the explosion of social media that she was able to extend the reach of her efforts."I’ve been posting it for years, and it’s literally never gone anywhere," Keefe told the Boston Globe.But this year, when she posted it on Twitter, it was retweeted over 40,000 times. Friday night, she found out who the people are and, happily, they are very much alive.Fred Mahe, of Colorado, found Keefe's post and contacted her. The photo had been on his desk at the World Trade Center, but he was not in the office on Sept. 11.The wedding took place in Aspen, Mahe said. Some of the participants have been friends since childhood and the bride and groom now live in California. Mahe will soon be reunited with his photo.

Social media has solved a 13-year-old mystery born in the horrors of the aftermath of Sept. 11 with answers that make that bleak period a little brighter.

Elizabeth Stringer Keefe, an assistant professor at Lesley University, had become the caretaker of a crinkled wedding photo found by a friend at ground zero soon after the attacks.


The photo shows the smiling newlyweds with several friends. Since 2001, Keefe had been trying to identify those in the picture and feared that at least one of them had died in one of the World Trade Center towers.

Each year, on the anniversary of the attacks, Keefe had tried to find the photo's owner, but it was not until the explosion of social media that she was able to extend the reach of her efforts.

"I’ve been posting it for years, and it’s literally never gone anywhere," Keefe told the Boston Globe.

But this year, when she posted it on Twitter, it was retweeted over 40,000 times. Friday night, she found out who the people are and, happily, they are very much alive.

Fred Mahe, of Colorado, found Keefe's post and contacted her. The photo had been on his desk at the World Trade Center, but he was not in the office on Sept. 11.

The wedding took place in Aspen, Mahe said. Some of the participants have been friends since childhood and the bride and groom now live in California. Mahe will soon be reunited with his photo.