There are a few phases that almost every child goes through when they’re growing up. If you have kids, or even just know a few, you’re probably familiar with most of them.
There’s the thumb-sucking phase, the phase of responding to everything by shouting “No!” — and, of course, the dreaded throwing-stuff-on-the-ground-cause-it’s-funny phase. Intertwined with all of these many stages? The stuffed animal phase.
Almost every kid has a stuffed animal that they hold near and dear throughout their childhood, and sometimes even hold onto as a memento later in life. Little Ruthie Drew is no exception; this 3-year-old girl is very attached to her well-loved plush bear, aptly named Teddy.
But Ruthie lost Teddy about three months ago on a trip to Eastview Mall. Mom Diana assumed that the careworn toy must have been thrown away long ago — but she wasn’t counting on the diligence of Sgt. Scott Woodruff.
Like these thoughtful hotel employees who reunited a little boy with his stuffed tiger, Sgt. Woodruff, who works for mall security, couldn’t rest until he knew that the teddy bear was back home. He told USA Today, “It looked so loved. My granddaughter has a little lamb like this named Lamby, and I thought of her.”
When the three-month holding period for lost-and-found items was up, he couldn’t throw the bear away, and instead took to social media to share a photo of the toy. In no time at all, his post was spotted on the news by someone very close to the owner: her 9-year-old brother Darius! Check out the touching reunion in the video below.
And if you just loved this sweet video, please SHARE to remind everyone that the world is full of wonderful people like Sgt. Woodruff!
