Finding Glenn Fisher: He was a friend when she badly needed one. Then they lost touch

These days, Taylor Levesque radiates joy. Her conversations are punctuated with frequent, boisterous laughter, her messages and social media posts generously sprinkled with exclamation marks and heart emojis.

It's a far cry from six years ago.

At age 15, Levesque was not in a good place. She was depressed, lonely, struggling with some dark days.

"I was going through a rough time," said Levesque, now 21. "I was having problems with my father … he left when I was 11 and it's been on and off speaking with him for years."

And then one day, a delivery truck rolled into the Tim Hortons she was working at in Saint John, and an older gentleman with a broad smile hopped out of the cab.

Levesque didn't know it yet, but she was about to make a very dear friend.

She helped the driver, Glenn Fisher, unload the truck and they got to chatting, and she was immediately struck by his cheeriness and easy banter.

"Normally, I'm a pretty shy person," Levesque said, "but he was just so nice to talk to."

Levesque found herself opening up to Fisher and looking forward to his delivery days.

"He would help me unload the truck, even though I don't think he was supposed to … and we'd talk for hours while we worked. We joked around a lot, but we had quite a few serious talks too."

Sometimes he'd offer advice, she said. Other times, he'd just let her vent.

But always, inevitably, she said, he'd get her laughing and feeling good about herself.

Lots of laughs, but serious talks, too

Levesque was well aware that Fisher was becoming a father figure. In fact, she said, she joked about it.

"When he'd pull in to work I'd say 'Oh there's my stepdad.' "

This went on for years, with Levesque sharing news of milestones in her life: she'd met a nice guy. Things got serious. She was happy.

Then one day, abruptly, their visits came to a halt.

Early last year, Levesque, who had just learned she was expecting a baby with her boyfriend, Calvin Ives, was laid off because of the pandemic.

"Everything happened so fast," Levesque said. "I never had the chance to say goodbye to Glenn."

As the months passed, she thought of him often. She'd heard he was no longer delivering to the Tim Hortons she'd worked at, and every now and then she'd check to see if he was on Facebook.

"I always wondered where he was and how he was doing," she said.

Especially after her daughter, Lillian, was born.

"He would have loved to know that," she said.

Like losing touch with family

People drift into and out of each other's lives all the time, strangers meet, become friendly, then move on to new cities, new jobs, new lives.

Levesque knows that. "Life goes on," she said.

But losing touch with Glenn Fisher wasn't sitting well with her. She felt like she'd lost a family member.

Finally, about a month ago, Levesque decided to try one last time to track him down.

She knew Fisher wasn't on Facebook, but she figured someone might know someone who knew him.

So she posted a callout:

This is going to be a long shot BUT when I worked at Tim Hortons in Saint John, NB there was a man who did our Monday deliveries named GLEN. I don't know his last name but he is an amazing, funny man who I joked around with and called my step dad ... Glen helped me with a lot. About 2 months into my pregnancy I got laid off and never saw him again. I now have a 6 month old baby girl named Lillian and a home and getting married in 6 short months. I want him at my wedding and to meet my baby girl. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE SHARE THIS IN HOPE THAT SOMEBODY KNOWS HIM AND GETS HIM TO CONTACT ME!! MESSAGE ME IF YOU KNOW ANYTHING!!

"I really didn't expect to find him," Levesque said.

'Do you have something you haven't told me?'

But within minutes, Facebook sleuths were on the case. Dozens of people, then hundreds, began commenting and sharing the post.

Within a few weeks, it had been shared more than 19,000 times and seen by people across the country.

About an hour and a half away, in Moncton, Glenn Fisher's wife was one of those people.

She stumbled across the post and was aghast. She looked across the room at her husband.

"Uh, Glenn," she said. "Do you have something you haven't told me?"

Fisher was perplexed.

"About a step-daughter?" she prompted. "In Saint John?"

And then the penny dropped.

"Taylor!" Fisher exclaimed.

'Bowled over' by her search

Shortly after his wife saw the post, people began calling and messaging from across the Maritimes and as far away as Ontario and British Columbia.

"Taylor Levesque is looking for you," they'd say.

Fisher was surprised that Taylor would go to the trouble of looking him up.

"I was bowled over," he said in an interview, that infectious chuckle bubbling up within the first sentence. "It made me feel pretty special."

He recalled their years-long work friendship fondly, recounting pretty much exactly the same reminiscences as Levesque did.

"We laughed and joked and carried on all the time," he said. "She was a really good person, so full of bubbles and laughs."

But Fisher, who has kids of his own, said he knew that deep down, Levesque was struggling.

"She was quite sad, quite down in the dumps about what went on with her dad and stuff," he said.

"I'd just sit down and listen to her and give her my perspective."

Eventually, Fisher and Levesque reconnected by phone and talked for hours.

Levesque invited him and his wife to her wedding and asked him to come to her house for a visit.

"She said 'I want you to come and see Lillian and hold Lillian,' " Fisher said. "I was overwhelmed."

The reunion

Finally, on April 10, Fisher and his wife pulled into the driveway of Levesque's home in Grove Hill.

Levesque, her mom, her sisters, baby Lillian, fiancé Calvin — an entire welcoming committee — streamed out to greet them, Fisher recalled with a laugh.

"Taylor hasn't changed a bit. She came out of the garage laughing, all smiles," he said. "Her fiancé said 'Omigosh, I'm so glad you're here because she wouldn't shut up about you!' I got to meet them all and hold the baby, and Taylor was grinning from ear to ear."

Now that they've reconnected, both Levesque and Fisher say they won't lose touch again.

They're already planning their next visit, and chatting regularly on Facebook.

Fisher, who uses his wife's Facebook profile, comments on Levesque's every post, frequently praising baby Lillian, whom he calls "my little cuddlebug."

When Levesque posted that she'd sent out the wedding invitations, Fisher immediately commented.

"Hey my kiddo, we will be there!"

Fisher said he's eagerly anticipating the big day, and Levesque said her "heart is full" knowing that Fisher will be in attendance and is back in her life.

"I guess I really am her stepdad now — and a grandpa," Fisher said, with a laugh. "I'm okay with that."