MESA, AZ — A neighborhood in Mesa, in efforts to entertain families during quarantine, organized a "teddy bear walk."
Massive, colorful bears lined the sidewalks of the Mesa neighborhood for weeks. "It was just a way for us to kind of brighten the mood of the neighborhood, come together and to give back to the community," says Mesa resident Ericka Pendley.
Her family put out four bears, two large and two small, for their neighbors to enjoy on daily walks. "We woke up one morning and noticed right away they were missing."
These bears are huge. So, it was pretty noticeable they were missing," says fellow Mesa resident and Pendley's boyfriend Darren Rosselli.
They would later discover other bears were missing too. Pendley says, "It was posted on Nextdoor. It was like fire after that."
Missing bear signs were posted around the neighborhood. People even donated replacement bears with sweet handwritten notes.
The Roselli-Pendley family doesn't expect the bears to be returned and hope they're safe in a new home.
Still, the family is finding joy in the act of kindness gone wrong. Pendley says, "We live in a very crazy world right now so you have to find humor wherever you can to keep yourself going."
