A young boy's lost teddy bear made its way back to him, all because of one social media post by Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport.
When he threw his beloved teddy bear up into the rafters, five-year-old Ezekiel Burnett didn't think he would ever see it again.
But miraculously, he was eventually reunited with the stuffed toy when a social media post from the airport started gaining traction.
“I’m so happy!” said Ezekiel since the reunion.
The toy got lost when the family was in town for a Thanksgiving trip, and it hadn't been discovered until sometime in January. The airport took to social media and shared a snap of the Teddy and the post ultimately went wildly viral.
“The bear actually reached 1.9 million people on Facebook, 1.8 million people on TikTok, and more than 400,000 people on Twitter. In total, this story about Ezekiel’s lost bear was followed by more than 4 million people around the globe,” said Harold Mester, Director of Public Affairs and Marketing, Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport, per CBS 58.
After hearing about the story, Southwest Airlines flew young Ezekiel and his family from Dallas to Milwaukee for the reunion.
The tale of a boy's loved for his teddy tugged on the world's heartstrings after some commenters online pointed out that teddy is often given to children with heart defects.
While Ezekiel doesn't have health concerns related to his heart, his father said they are grateful that his story raised awareness on the issue.
“We're just a lucky vessel to help other people out. We're fortunate to have a child that’s, you know, 100% healthy, but to raise awareness for children with that sort of disease; we can't fathom that those kinds of families go through and families that have lost children that have gone through that. And so just to be able to raise awareness and support as well, it's huge; I can't even put into words,” said David Burnett, Ezekiel’s father.
On their way back home to Dallas, Ezekiel's dad said he would make sure he held onto it for the entire ride.
