Don Lee was holding up an ashtray made from a "25-pounder," a British artillery shell.

The Normal, Ill. man received the shell from his Dutch friend Chris Vries after World War II. Lee served in the 84th infantry, the first battle group to push out of Holland.

I called Don to wish him a Happy 90th birthday. I had met his daughter Pat Lee at a writer's conference in Chicago. Pat told me that her dad is a Skype fan.

Don was sharing his memories with me via Skype Video. He said being able to do the show-and-tell is one of the "great things" about Skype.

Don, a retired marketing executive from Downstate Illinois, is a "silver surfer," a senior who uses technology to stay in touch with his family, which has spread around the country--from Chicago to Ft. Collins, Colo. and Newport, R.I.

And then there's granddaughter, Allison Gardiner, 20, a junior studying design and landscape architecture at Cornell University, who is spending the year in Europe. To stay in touch with Ally, Don decided to download and use Skype and add a web camera. He talks with Ally once a week on Skype.

At a 90th celebration, about 50 friends and family members gathered at Don's home, where he connected on Skype with Ally, who happened to be in Paris--that's Paris, France, not Paris, Ill.

Pat Lee noted that following her father's example: "Now several family members have it. So far, we've used it a handful of times and have had one family conference call that included several of us. We're thrilled with it."

Don said he remembers hearing years ago about video phones and is excited that he is able to use one to stay in touch.

Chris Vries, who made Don's Jeep combat ready in World War II, died a few years ago. Don noted that Ally is planning to visit Chris' family members in Holland.

Hope they can connect with Don on Skype.