Community helps look for boy’s lost teddy bear, reward increased to $400

DENVER ( KDVR ) — Since Saturday, a Firestone mother and her son have desperately searched for a beloved teddy bear — Jelly Bear. Now, the Colorado community, and even people across the country, are trying to bring her son’s stuffed animal home .

Jessica Fey and her 9-year-old son were visiting family in Denver over the weekend. Fey recalled leaving the hotel with Jelly Bear, getting into the car and going to the Montbello Recreation Center in the Gateway-Green Valley Ranch neighborhood. The family thought Jelly Bear was somewhere in the car after they were packed up, but he was nowhere to be found.

The family searched and called all over Denver, and after no Jelly Bear sightings, she pleaded to the public for help, offering a reward of $200 for the returned teddy bear.

Soon after, the community responded.

Fey said people have messaged her from all over about looking for Jelly Bear, with someone as far as Pennsylvania asking about the teddy. One FOX31 viewer, Mike Rodriguez, was particularly touched by the search for the childhood toy.

Rodriguez said he saw the story on FOX31 and as a father of five kids, he knew he wanted to help by offering an additional $200, “from my family to their family.”

“When I read that story, I’m like, this baby has held onto that teddy for a long time, and it’s his comfort, you know, it’s what allows him to function and go through life, and so when I read it, just something in my heart told me that we’ll go ahead and match the reward,” said Rodriguez.

Rodriguez, a Longmont resident, said Fey’s story particularly resonated with him as the family is part of their community, living nearby in the Firestone area.

“We know the struggles and the stresses that we face here in America today, and I just want to try. Hopefully, someone did find that baby, and we can just kind of reward somebody with a good heart. There are good people out here willing to help other families,” said Rodriguez.

As of Thursday afternoon, there has been no word about Jelly Bear. Fey said her son is beyond distraught about the stuffed animal, which he has taken everywhere with him since he was six months old.

Fey said people can reach out to her on Instagram if they have any information on Jelly Bear.

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