Wednesday, December 31, 2014

Sheriff with a heart of gold treats boy, nine, to the hunting trip of a lifetime - after the boy mistakenly sent an adorable letter to the wrong state

Sheriff with a heart of gold treats boy, nine, to the hunting trip of a lifetime - after the boy mistakenly sent an adorable letter to the wrong state 

  • Alex Collins, 9, wrote to Chester County Sheriff Alex Underwood about a hunting program for at-risk kids
  • Alex lives in Chester County, Pennsylvania, and Underwood is sheriff of Chester County, South Carolina
  • Donors paid for Alex to fly to South Carolina for a hunting trip with Sheriff Underwood 

A 9-year-old Pennsylvania got the hunting trip of a lifetime after mistakenly writing to writing to a sheriff 600 miles away in South Carolina. 
Alex Collins' mother saw a Facebook post by Chester County Sheriff Alex Underwood's program to take small children hunting and fishing and little Alex wrote the sheriff a heartfelt letter. 
He explained that he desperately wanted to learn to hunt, but he didn't have anybody to teach him. 
Scroll down for video 
Dream come true: Little Alex Collins, from Chester County, Pennsylvania, got a hunting lesson Alex Underwood, the sheriff of Chester County, South Carolina
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Dream come true: Little Alex Collins, from Chester County, Pennsylvania, got a hunting lesson Alex Underwood, the sheriff of Chester County, South Carolina
Alex's mother sent a letter to the Chester County, Pennsylvania, sheriff after seeing a Facebook post from Sheriff Underwood offering a hunting program and getting mixed up
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Alex's mother sent a letter to the Chester County, Pennsylvania, sheriff after seeing a Facebook post from Sheriff Underwood offering a hunting program and getting mixed up
Chester County, Pennsylvania, Sheriff Carolyn Bunny Welsh picked little Alex up and took him to the airport in Philadelphia for his hunting trip
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Chester County, Pennsylvania, Sheriff Carolyn Bunny Welsh picked little Alex up and took him to the airport in Philadelphia for his hunting trip
'It's just me and my mom and she's too sick to do stuff. She has a bad heart. I think you are really nice to do this. I hope you pick me to go.' 
His mother hand-delivered it to the Chester County Sheriff's Department. 
But there was a problem: Sheriff Underwood is in Chester County, South Carolina. Alex Collins lives in Chester County, Pennsylvania. 

As luck would have it, the Pennsylvania sheriff, Carolyn Bunny Welsh, knows Sheriff Underwood and she forwarded him little Alex's letter.
Sheriff Underwood responded: 'If you can get him here, we'll take him hunting,' WBTV reports. 
When residents of both communities heard about the story, donations poured in.  
Gear: Sheriff Underwood bought Alex $220 worth of hunting gear - including camo pants, shirt and hat and fishing tackle
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Gear: Sheriff Underwood bought Alex $220 worth of hunting gear - including camo pants, shirt and hat and fishing tackle
Alex didn't bag a big buck - but he did catch a bass at one of Sheriff Underwood's favorite fishing spot
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Alex didn't bag a big buck - but he did catch a bass at one of Sheriff Underwood's favorite fishing spot
Sheriff Welsh took little Alex to the airport in Philadelphia on Monday morning and saw he got on his plane to Charlotte, North Carolina. 
Sheriff Underwood met his plane with six deputies and gave him a lights-and-sirens ride back to Chester County, South Carolina, according to the Rock Hill Herald
Then a shopping trip where little Alex got hunting gear - including boots, gloves and a camouflage coat and hat, $220. 
'You spent that much on me?!' little Alex exclaimed at the cash register.
On the way to the car, little Alex told Sheriff Underwood he wanted to shoot a dear 'as big as the parking lot,' according to the Herald.  
Then it was into the woods at one of Sheriff Underwood's favorite hunting spots. 
After a gun safety lessons, little Alex got to carry the sheriff's favorite hunting rifle, a .308-caliber camouflaged bolt-action. 
Little Alex didn't bag a deer, but he did catch a bass at one of the sheriff's favorite fishing spots.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Damn good story ! Thanks TYJM frj