The dinosaur exhibit at the Mystic Aquarium was wonderful, and my son Koa and 6-year-old grandson Maximo had a wonderful time learning about all of the sea animal. They headed home exhausted, only to discover Max’s bear Mishka had not made it to the car with them.

They didn’t have a lot of hope, but Koa reached out to the aquarium on April 16 to inquire about Mishka. Nothing yet, they said, but they would keep looking.

As Koa scanned the Internet to find another bear for Max, who lives in Oakdale and Norwich, he received a text with a photo: “Is this your brown bear?”

Koa was so thrilled he ran over right after work to retrieve Mishka. It was close to closing, and he felt badly to keep them, but they asked if he had a minute.

Not only was he handed Mishka, he also received a tote bag of souvenirs and a dear picture booklet of “The brown bear’s visit at Mystic Aquarium,” created by the staff. Mishka was perched on the dinosaur, waving to spider crabs, visiting Hingy the clam, and so on.

It was so dear to have Maximo see all that his brown bear did while he was away.

Thank you to an amazing group of ladies: Ellen Maquire, front desk goddess and sender of the bear photo; Melanie Evans, director of guest services; Ashley Tougas, guest services captain, and Mary Ellen Mateleska, director of education and public conservation programs.

You all made a little boy and his dad so happy!

Talk about good news and going way above and beyond to make a difference! Koa said they were all so very nice. Great job to all, and I do hope there is some employee recognition for these wonderful ladies!

Dianne Kent of Norwich is a public relations specialist for People’s United Bank.

Kindness in Real Life is a regular feature in which we encourage writers to tell about kind acts being done in the community. To submit your own story and photos, email Lee Howard at l.howard@theday.com.