The story about a very special stuffed bear has been tugging at the heartstrings of people in Airdrie. We’re happy to report ‘Momma Bear’ is on her way home to Nova Scotia to be reunited with her family.

It was less than a week ago that we put out the call on the radio and through social media to help find a little boy’s missing bear.

A family had been visiting Airdrie where the boy and his brother were born, when 7-year-old Duncan lost his backpack with his toys and his special bear. His step mom Ranelle MacMaster reached out to AIR 106.1 and asked for our help.

The stuffy, known as Momma Bear, has a voice recording from Duncan’s late mother. It was a very personal message of love and encouragement, one of the only things he has left of her.

Dozens of Airdrie residents began searching, and several hundred shared the posts on social media, hoping everyone would keep their eyes open. Monday night the bear was found by Heidi Erickson in Nose Creek Park.

We wanted to make sure Duncan didn’t feel bad about losing the bear, so Leah and Claire took Momma Bear on a tour of Airdrie and invited Heidi to come along. Together they took the bear to several Airdrie landmarks, snapping photos along the way. AIR 106.1 put them together in a photo album and included a special letter from the bear.

The letter explains that Momma Bear wasn’t lost, she was just on vacation, spending a few nights sleeping under the stars, going to lots of cool places, and meeting some new friends along the way.

Knowing just how precious this bear is we didn’t want to have it shoved in a box and shipped across the country. So instead we contacted our friends at WestJet. They offered to fly Momma Bear home free of charge, but not before making sure she had a buddy bear for the plane ride.

Her flight will leave Calgary Thursday night. She’ll be buckled in and fly direct to Halifax, where she will be back in the arms of the boy who loves her most early Friday morning.

Check out the video below to see the photo album and the special send-off Momma Bear got at the Calgary Airport.

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