ResQgeek

Sometime during our first afternoon at the Magic Kingdom, I found myself sitting at a table with my parents while my wife and MIL stood in line for the Dumbo ride with the girls. While we waited for them to get on the ride, we reviewed the map and event schedules, trying to figure out what we might want to do next. ( Lunch in the 100 Acre Woods )

(I have photos, and will try to post some later.)

On our second day at Disney World, we decided to stay late at the Magic Kingdom to see the fireworks. The day had started out rainy, but we managed to remain mostly dry throughout most of the day, and by late afternoon, the weather cleared, ensuring that there would be no cancellation of the fireworks. As evening approached, we headed to the parking lot to unload bags and umbrellas and to get jackets in preparation for the cooler temperatures after sunset. By the time we returned to the park, the evening parade was underway, and we watched it from just inside the main entrance. We followed the end of the parade up Main Street, USA towards Cinderalla's Castle, where we staked out our spots in the circle in front of the castle. I set up my tripod and took some test shots, hoping to find the best exposure settings for the fireworks before they began. At 8pm, the fireworks began, beautifully timed to the story and music playing on the parks public address system. At the end of the display, we gathered ourselves up, and merged into the crowd making its way to the monorail station and the parking lots beyond.

It wasn't until the next morning that we discovered that the younger Qgeeklet was missing her camera (a Kodak digital camera that she'd received for Christmas). We thoroughly searched the condo and the van, but couldn't find any sign of it. My wife had thought it was left in the van when we went out before the fireworks, but my mother clearly remembered seeing it during the fireworks. My wife had carried our daughter out of the park after the fireworks, and was sure the camera was missing at that point.

We came to the conclusion that she'd set it down during the fireworks, and that she'd forgotten it when we left. The camera wasn't labeled, so I was convinced that it was gone, claimed by someone who was happy to claim a digital camera left unclaimed on the ground. But there was always a chance that it had been found by a Disney employee or that someone had turned it in, so we headed back to the Magic Kingdom to check with Lost & Found. We found the claim window, described the camera and its case, and sat back to wait while they looked for it in the pile of lost property from the previous day. Several minutes later, we had my daughter's camera in hand and were on our way to enjoy our day.

Inside the camera was a business card, which I assumed was from the person who found the camera and turned it in to Lost & Found. Today I sent him an e-mail, thanking him for turning in the camera and letting him know we appreciated his actions. I just received a reply from him that reads:

You are correct and welcome. We have lost things ourselves before that could not replaced if their where not honest people in the world. Disney is a once in a life time experience that the moments can not be replaced.

I'm so very glad that the camera made it back to the rightful owners. Finding your camera made me realize that we should have our name and phone number engraved on our camera.

A most pleasant ending to a stressful vacation moment.