Alvin Bamburg was a deer hunter in Grand Cane, Louisiana. In late December, when he was on a hunting trip he suddenly spotted a balloon tangled in a tree, which was sent from almost 650 miles away. He was full of surprises to see a Christmas list that included candy, a Spider-Man ball, a Frozen doll, a puppy, and a My Little Pony toy.
It was one of the balloons sent by Leticia Flores-Gonzalez for her 4-year-old twin children Luna and Gianella. Their Christmas wish lists were tied with balloons and released into the sky above their home in Liberal, Kansas. It was their innovative way to reach Santa.
She thought they would deflate and would just disappear somewhere in a tree nearby. She never thought that one of these balloons would be found by some generous people and their wishes would be fulfilled.
“It was important doing something special for my girls because of the hard year we had during the Coronavirus pandemic. I wanted them to feel like 2020 was another year spent with mom making beautiful memories,” said Flores-Gonzalez.
To their surprise, one of those balloons was spotted by a man with Alvin Bamburg who was with white facial hair — and a big generous heart.
“I saw that balloon and God spoke to me. He said, ‘You need to get this, and, second of all, you need to get the trash out of the woods. When I got it I noticed a folded yellow piece of paper sealed with a red star, and it was a Christmas list from a girl named Luna.” Alvin said.
The holidays kept Alvin and his wife, Lee Ann Leopard Bamburg busy, but they didn’t forget about the list. In early January, he shared this on Facebook, and it was shared by many people and it eventually reached Leticia.
“Would love to know when it was launched. Looks like it traveled over 600 miles. Feel free to share,” Alvin wrote.
New Update: I’ve talked to the mom! What we decided would be best is for anyone who would like to send gifts, send me…
Posted by Alvin Bamburg on Saturday, 2 January 2021
Leticia was asked to share Gianella’s list, as well. After she did, both girls began receiving gifts from Alvin’s family, friends, co-workers, and even old schoolmates.
“When we found out someone actually found Luna’s balloon, we were just in shock,”. We couldn’t believe how kind people were; we were overwhelmed with love. That’s what really mattered.” Leticia said.
The story did not end there. They had communicated with Alvin by texting, talking before they met one day.
Alvin visited them after a six hours drive in April and fulfilled the last wish of Luna. He gifted her a dachshund puppy. Her joy reached its zenith and she immediately named it Max. Then they shared a meal together, where they laughed and bonded over shared values.
”To us, it isn’t the number of gifts or the value that the girls are receiving. It’s the love they received. It meant the world to us we see their smiles, and the lifelong friendship we have made with Alvin and his wife.” said Leticia.
Alvin said, “There’s so much sadness in the world right now, the world is a freaking mess, It’s really not hard to spread kindness, and you can never underestimate the impact even just a smile will have on someone’s day.”
Surely Alvin’s story would inspire others to take a break from their busy lives and find a way to make someone else’s day a little bit brighter.
