Walker Returned To Boy With Spina Bifida
ETNA (KDKA) -- A walker has been returned to a little boy and his family in Etna one day after it disappeared from the front of their home.
Connor Hollihan, 2, of Etna, has Spina Bifida and can get around thanks to his walker. Unfortunately, it disappeared on Friday after it was inadvertently left at the curb for a short while.
However, around 7 p.m. Saturday night, little Connor's mother breathed a sigh of relief when she looked down the street and saw a man with the walker in his hand.
"I like freaked out," said Amee Passione, Connor's mom. "I said, 'Oh my God, thank you so much.' I almost started crying. I cannot believe that someone was honest enough to return the walker back to us."
The man who had it apparently is a scrap metals dealer and thought the walker had been left out for the trash. A neighbor of his saw it on the news and told him where to return it.
"The guy was practically in tears when he came back here and realized what had happened," said Passione. "I wouldn't say it was anything but an honest mistake."
By the time the walker was returned, Connor was already in bed.
"He had just gone to bed when he brought it over. I'm sure when he sees it tomorrow morning, he'll be overjoyed," said Passione. "I'm sure he'll be like, 'Mommy, walker!' He loves it now."
The walker would have cost $300 to replace, and it's questionable whether insurance would have paid for it, so the offers to help that flooded in really meant a lot to the family.
Since the story first aired, people across the country have offered to buy the boy a new walker including a photographer at the New York Daily News, a police detective in Chicago, a resort in Disney World and the VFW in Carnegie.
"It brought joy to me knowing that this many people were willing to help us," said Passione.
She also said that she spent all of Saturday on Facebook and sending emails to thank people for their offers to help.
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