"Literally 15 minutes after, the guy came with the walker. He was really apologetic he thought it was scrap metal to go," Anna's father Paul said.
Anna's father had placed the walker midway up their driveway of their West Goshen Township home this morning, as he does every day before putting Anna on the bus.
Except this time when he went to retrieve it, the walker had disappeared, along with her lunchbox.
"The bus pulled up. I grabbed Anna. I just looked over and it was gone," Paul said.
It was trash day and Paul did notice a scrap metal collector in a maroon pickup driving off, but they were gone before he could see if they had picked up the $600 walker designed specially to help Anna, who has cerebral palsy.
In school, her teachers helped her get around, but it was a struggle without her walker.
"I want it back," Anna told Action News' David Henry earlier in the day.
After the story aired, Paul says West Goshen Township Police received numerous calls from people who wanted to help buy Anna a new walker. While the family is thankful for the support, they're happy to have this one back.
In the three years Paul has placed the walker outside before bringing his daughter to the bus, he says there's never been a problem. But to prevent any future misunderstandings, he says he's going to rework the system.
"I'll bring her out first and then get her stuff. This will never happen again; I learned my lesson," Paul said.
Anna wanted to make sure the scrap metal collector learned his: "He said, 'I'm so sorry.' I said, 'That's OK, please don't do it again.'"
