Soft and cuddly Teddy Bears are children’s favorite stuffed plush toys that they can’t sleep without hugging at night. Recently, staff at an airport in Virginia, USA, took to social media in hopes of helping people reunite a found teddy bear toy with its rightful owner.
Norfolk International Airport in Virginia posted on Facebook on December 30th, saying, “Can you help me find my owner? I was brought to the lost and found at Norfolk International Airport around 4 p.m. Please help spread the word!”
The post included a photo of the teddy bear toy in question.
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to view the post and photo.)
The post has garnered about 2,000 shares and nearly 90 comments to date, but there has been no response from the owner or anyone related.
Some netizens commented saying, “Let’s get that plush toy back home!” while others mentioned that it is a teddy bear sold by the Missouri-based retailer “Build-A-Bear Workshop,” and that their daughter had bought one in 2022. They suggested contacting the shop to scan the barcode inside the teddy bear’s back cover to locate the owner.
However, some people expressed dissatisfaction with the airport focusing only on finding the owner of the teddy bear, rather than looking for their lost luggage. One netizen said, “Can you stop losing our luggage!”
The National Park Service of the United States pointed out that the teddy bear was invented to honor President Roosevelt. It all started on November 14, 1902, when Roosevelt went on a bear hunting trip near Onward, Mississippi but was unable to find any bears.
Roosevelt’s assistants cornered a black bear and tied it to a tree, suggesting Roosevelt shoot it. However, Roosevelt deemed it highly unethical and refused. This incident quickly spread across the nation through newspapers.
Political cartoonist Clifford Berryman decided to satirize Roosevelt’s refusal to shoot the bear in a light-hearted and humorous manner. His cartoon was published on November 16 in The Washington Post.
Upon seeing this cartoon, a candy shop owner in New York named Morris Michtom decided to create a stuffed bear toy as a tribute to the president who refused to shoot the bear. He named this bear “Teddy Bear.”
With Roosevelt’s approval, Michtom began mass producing this toy bear, and it quickly gained popularity. He soon founded the Ideal Toy Company. Till this day, the Teddy Bear remains popular worldwide.