Having your stuff stolen is never pleasant regardless of what it is. Besides the obvious inability to use said stuff and the financial burden that it entails because of the need for replacement, there’s also the stress you have to go through and the idea that someone has violated your privacy and now has their dirty fingers all over your stuff.
Mara Soriano, a 28-year-old storyboard artist from Vancouver, Canada with whom Bored Panda got in touch, was recently moving apartments. When she and her fiance were unloading the moving truck, Mara got a call from a friend who was on their way to help, but unfortunately got into a cycling accident.
Besides being a bit tired from all of the moving, the call also derailed her train of action and she rushed to help her friend, leaving her bag with her most valued possessions unattended. And, unfortunately, those few minutes were enough for someone to come by and to snag it away.
Mara Soriano recently had her Build A Bear stolen, which was a gift from her mother who had passed away
Image credits: Mara Soriano
“My fiance and I were moving into a new apartment with the help of our two friends. We rented a uHaul truck to bring all of our belongings over, one of our friends decided to bike over to the new apartment and meet us there. As soon as we got to the loading bay however, we got a call that my friend was hit by a van! Of course, I started to panic, he was on his way to help us after all, so not only was I afraid that he was hurt, I also felt responsible,” explained Mara.
She continued: “I ran out of the uHaul and went to see my friend immediately, I dropped everything I had and just assumed my fiance would pick up the backpack full of important items. Unfortunately, the backpack was in front of the uHaul and my fiance and the other friend were in the back unloading, so he didn't even realize that the bag was there to get. Thankfully, my friend was okay, but by the time we realized the bag was gone, it was already too late.”
It was an especially special bear as it had a module with Mara's mother's voice saying that she loves her built in
Image credits: Mara Soriano
The bag contained a number of things, including passports, SIM cards, a Canadian Citizenship certificate, an iPad full of videos unfortunately not on iCloud, and a Nintendo Switch. Most importantly, it contained two things that Mara’s late mother gave her before her passing—a Mickey Mouse wallet and a Build a Bear teddy bear.
Now, the teddy bear is especially special to Mara not only because it’s a memento that her mother gave the Christmas before passing away after a 9-year-long battle with cancer, but because this bear had a built-in module with her mother’s voice saying that she loves her, that she is proud of her, and she will always be with her.
Mara turned to the internet for help, hoping that she could at least get her beloved Mamabear back
So, after the incident, Mara went on social media appealing to the internet for help in finding the stolen belongings. She has posted a picture of the teddy bear with the caption of where, when, and what was stolen. She also put up some video footage (video one and two) from the security cameras in the vicinity that have caught the thief on tape.
And the internet took it upon itself to be the detective and the support that Mara needed so much at this crucial time. News of the stolen teddy bear spread online like wildfire, with CBC’s Deborah Goble urging people in Vancouver to be on the lookout for a Herschel backpack with the abovementioned belongings in the West End.
Mara's mother, who died after battling cancer for 9 years, gave Mara the Mamabear over their last Christmas
Image credits: Mara Soriano
What started as a hope to have friends and family looking for the teddy bear ended up as an internet-wide search and support group
Image credits: Mara Soriano
It wasn’t long until Vancouver-born actor, film producer, and overall awesome guy Ryan Reynolds retweeted this and issued a 5,000 dollar reward to whoever finds and returns the bear. His tweet read: “$5,000 to anyone who returns this bear to Mara. Zero questions asked. I think we all need this bear to come home.” A number of others, including PJ Byrne and Zach Braff, have also joined the cause and spread the word in hopes of reuniting the bear with Mara.”
Mara was left in awe at the response that her plea for help got. Not only was it making headlines all over the continent, but many have made it their mission to find the bear, as explained Mara:
"People from all over the world have expressed their sorrow with me, and people in Vancouver have made it their personal missions to find this bear with me! I've been so busy keeping up with media outlets and putting up posters that I haven't had the time to keep my eyes constantly open for possible postings on Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace and I've had so many people who have volunteered to do that.”
Everyone and their mothers were now looking for the bear, with Ryan Reynolds even putting out a $5,000 dollar reward for it
Image credits: VancityReynolds
Many others joined the cause by either retweeting, getting involved in the search or offering help directly
Image credits: zachbraff
Image credits: PJ_Byrne
Image credits: dan levy
“So many people have offered to foot the bill for a new Build a Bear, someone was even so kind as to remaster the recording I have of my mom's voice! It's so wonderful and I am so humbled and grateful. I wish so badly I could tell my mom about how so many people came together so that I could be reunited with my Mamabear.”
Mara told Bored Panda that it has been rather chaotic since the search began. Besides all of the media outlets covering the story and adding to the many eyes that are on the lookout on the streets, Mara has also been hanging up “missing” posters and talking to local restaurants and shops to see if they can provide any info regarding any leads as to where the thief is.
Image credits: happyerinb
Image credits: drawmaradraw
Mara also expressed her deepest gratitude to all who reached out to help: “I know this was in part my fault, but people have been so kind that it is honestly making me feel a bit better and I am so grateful for it. I don't know how I could have made it through this ordeal without the outpouring of love and support from everybody. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.”
Update: Fortunately, after almost a week of hectic searching, Mara was happy to announce on her Twitter that Mamabear has been found and returned. Bored Panda has reached out again to Mara to elaborate on how it all went down, so stay tuned for another update.
Here's how the internet reacted to the news
Image credits: ChefThorne
Image credits: Leon66873438
Image credits: Tomnahurich1
Image credits: CyritaP
Image credits: sqwabb
Image credits: brich974
Image credits: lmvpanda
Image credits: littlelazo75
Image credits: TeddylovesMarwa