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Young Waldo Canyon Fire victim reunited with her special toy
Posted: 07.09.2012 at 9:00 PM
Updated: 07.10.2012 at 8:35 AM
Abbie Burke

Abbie Burke is a general assignment reporter for FOX21 News.

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A young girl who lost everything in the Waldo Canyon Fire is reunited with her favorite toy thatnks to the staff at Penrose-St.Francis.  / FOX21: Mike Duran
Photo

COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO. -- Those looking to move on after the Waldo Canyon Fire are finding some items are harder to replace than others, like your child's favorite teddy bear. But once again the Colorado Springs community has come to the rescue.

Lily Rottemborn and her family were on vacation when the Waldo Canyon Fire ripped through the Mountain Shadows neighborhood and destroyed their home and 7-year-old Lily's "hospital bear."

The bear was given to Lily when she was being treated at Penrose-St. Francis when she was 3 years old.

"She just had a stomach bug, and we had to take her to the hospital to get her rehydrated," Carrie Rottemborn, Lily's mom, said. "So as soon as she went it and we laid her down on the bed the bear was laying there so she just immediately picked it up and closed her eyes and cuddled with it, and ever since that time that had been her special little animal."

"I stayed with her a lot, and I squeezed her super tight, and I slept with her sometimes. She was just really special," Lily said about her former bear.

Carrie said "hospital bear" was left behind because the family was trying to pack light for their trip, but it was the one thing Lily couldn't let go.

"That was the only thing that she talked about after she learned the house had burned, 'my hospital bear, I lost my hospital bear,' so that was the biggest loss in her mind," Carrie said.

"Lily, at one point she said 'can I just run up into my room and get the bear and then it will be okay?' and then I said 'well you can't, your room is gone and the house is gone,'" Jim Rottemborn, Lily's dad, said.

Lily's grandmother reached out to Penrose-St. Francis through Facebook to see if they could find another "hospital bear," and when the staff heard about Lily's loss they began a massive two-day search for an acceptable replacement.

"Everyone from the CEO down has been turning the hospital over to find a bear. They brought dozens of bears forward and tried to match it with a picture that someone found and said 'is this the bear? No. Is this the bear? No. Is this the bear? No.' And finally, finally they found a bear that was a match," Jim said.

Monday Lily and her new bear were united.

"This is a new one, and I really like her," Lily said. She named her new companion "Walda," and the two already have big plans together.

"I'm probably gonna play with her a lot and bring her like everywhere," Lily said.

The Rottemborn family said despite their loss they are doing okay and have been overwhelmed by the community's support.

"We lost everything, but we have laughed 10 times more than we've cried, and it's simply because of just the community, our family, our friends just saying we want to help you and then actually helping us," Jim said.

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