Some things just can’t be replaced. A family pet, the people you meet, the love you’ve received from your mother and father, the list could go on for miles. So, when one of those things is lost, it’s heartbreaking. It’s not like you can go to the store and go purchase a replacement; that’s not how a lot of things in life work, actually. So, to be able to appreciate the things and people we have in our lives that can’t be replaced is absolutely critical.
One family almost wasn’t so lucky when they nearly lost a very special momentum forever: a VHS tape of their child taking their very first steps. The family donated their television-VCR combo to Goodwill store in Austin, Texas, not realizing that the tape was still inside the device.
Not long after the two-in-one was placed for sale at Goodwill, a local by the name of Jim McKay purchased the hard-to-find unit. As a professional filmmaker, his plan was to use it as a prop for an upcoming project. But in the meantime, he had it sitting in his home for several months.
Then one day out of curiosity, he checked to see if the television and VCR still worked. Not long after interacting with the device, he discovered that there was still a VHS tape inside. After playing the 18-minute-long tape that was recorded on September 27, 1994, he witnessed a young child taking their very first steps.
Of course, being a tape capturing such a special moment that any family would want to keep, McKay wanted to find out who the owner of the tape was, so he could rightfully return it.
He then took to social media, sharing a short snippet of the video asking if anyone recognized who it might be. McKay’s post was shared over a thousand times and even picked up by the local news. Fortunately, the rapidly-spread video reached the child in the video’s mother who was able to get in contact with McKay to retrieve the special tape.
The child in the video, Alexander Tyre who’s now in his mid-twenties, was also thrilled to get the irreplaceable video back.
“To be able to share that memory in that moment finally with my family and for the first time…it’s a treasure,” he said.
McKay, too, was overjoyed that the tape was reunited with the family.
“That was the best part, was just to hear that he was so excited,” McKay said.
Imagine if McKay never opened the VCR or opened it but decided to trash the VHS tape. Alexander would have never had the opportunity to watch himself walk for the first time. But thanks to McKay’s integrity and the power of social media, the treasured video is back in the family’s possession.
Listen to a brief interview with McKay below!
