- Mara Soriano’s stuffed custom bear, which contained a voice recording of her mother’s last message for her, was stolen.
- The stolen stuffed animal has been found and returned to its owner, in “perfect condition.
- Mara explained that the voice recording was her mother’s, telling her how much she loves her, and how she is proud of her.
Ryan Reynolds offered a 5,000-dollar reward for one stolen custom bear, which contained a voice recording of a mother’s last message to her daughter before she died. On Wednesday, the actor posted on social media that the stolen stuffed animal has been found and returned to its owner.
In happier news… thank you everyone who searched high and low. To the person who took the bear, thanks for keeping it safe. Vancouver is awesome. #FoundMarasBear https://t.co/X7FlyiR89P
— Ryan Reynolds (@VancityReynolds) July 29, 2020
“In happier news… thank you everyone who searched high and low. To the person who took the bear, thanks for keeping it safe. Vancouver is awesome. #FoundMarasBear,” the actor said.
Mara Soriano was distraught when the bear disappeared. The important keepsake was placed inside her backpack, during the time her friend ran into a traffic accident while she was helping her move into her apartment. She helped her out but misplaced her backpack.
Vancouver: $5,000 to anyone who returns this bear to Mara. Zero questions asked. I think we all need this bear to come home. https://t.co/L4teoxoY50
— Ryan Reynolds (@VancityReynolds) July 25, 2020
The “no questions asked” reward from the actor started a search effort for the missing stuffed animal. After four days, the stolen custom bear was returned in “perfect condition,” with the voice recording intact.
“She’s home,” Mara said. “I didn’t think she would come back, but she did.”
For days, she searched dumpsters for the stolen stuffed animal. One day, received an email from a stranger who said he had some information about the missing keepsake. From there, her hopes for the bear’s safe return were rekindled.
“Of course, I jumped on it, because it was a lead,” she said. “I called [CBC News reporter] Deborah Goble because she was the person who broke the story, and I couldn’t have done this without her, so I wanted her to be there, too. Plus, she’s a grown-up, and I wanted to make sure everybody was safe.
“They brought the bear over to CBC, which was a safe meeting place … and we did it,” she continued.
The incident about the stolen stuffed animal, placed inside a backpack, was documented in a surveillance video camera from the location where her friend ran into an accident. In the video, a man is seen walking towards the backpack and picking it up.
On Tuesday, the stolen stuffed animal was returned to its owner. She explained that the voice recording was her mother’s—recorded and placed inside the stuffed animal about the time her mother started with her treatments. This was before her mother’s condition worsened when she was still able to speak her normal voice.
“The bear has a message in it in Filipino. It says ‘I love you,’ but in our language,” she said. “She said that she loved me and she was proud of me and that she’ll always be with me.”
Source: Fox News
