Tell Us Your Stuffed Animal Story

Connecticut Public Radio | By Chion Wolf

Published July 14, 2014 at 12:31 PM EDT

1 of 12

Lucy Nalpathanchil has had this koala since she was a little girl, and she used to put marbles and pebbles inside it. Her son Cormac (pictured) sometimes puts the koala in a diaper.

Lucy Nalpathanchil

2 of 12

WNPR's Catie Talarski poses with her favorite Monchichi monkey. She also loved her Cabbage Patch Kid and her Popple.

Catie Talarski

3 of 12

WNPR's John Dankosky doesn't have a photo of his favorite stuffed animal.

4 of 12

Chion Wolf's big brother, Michael, tore the head off Sylvester, who she had since birth. Then their German Shepherd ate its face. It was hard on both of them.

Lydia Brown

5 of 12

Marc Dodge's mother bought this 1980 Vermont Teddy Bear Fireman for his father after he retired as a fire chief. It stayed with his parents until they both died, and now resides on his bed.

6 of 12

Benjamin Lovejoy's Pink Bear reminds him of his grandmother, "Always in the background, always distant, but always right there, just like my Gram Gram."

7 of 12

Christa Tubach's Beanie Baby cat, Crystal, has been with her since third grade, and has visited Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Denmark, Iceland, Spain, India, Mexico, Canada, and Italy.

8 of 12

This is Mr. Dü, given to Amy Peek by Chion Wolf in the late 1990s. Neither party remembers how he got his name, but he's been watching over Amy ever since."

9 of 12

Pat Smith received Bunny for her first Easter in 1948. Every Easter, her mom would mend him and put a new ribbon around his neck. She says Bunny represents "a story of a lifetime of love."

10 of 12

Nichole Lehman's Pooh is 29 years old. Pooh originally belonged to her older sister, but Nicole didn't like the way Pooh the bear was treated, so she "rescued" him.

11 of 12

Caroline Dinnegan's Teddy was taken away by Caroline's mom when she decided that Caroline was too old (8) to have a stuffed animal. After much searching, Teddy was found and liberated!

12 of 12

Due to her infatuation with Despicable Me, in 2011, WNPR Intern Katie Peikes's parents sent her Dave the Minion as a "start-of-college" present. Dave has been enjoying college life ever since.

The Colin McEnroe Show is working on a show all about stuffed animals: the history of being attached, or developing a sentiment towards an object that comforts; the business of building them, and the awesome stories people have about their precious squishy toys.

That's where you come in! We want you to tell us about your favorite stuffed animal. Do you still have it? Do you still sleep with it? Did it disappear (and re-appear)?

Was it destroyed by your mean older brother right in front of your face, while you screamed and screamed, but he did it anyway, and now it's collecting dust in a closet, still in two pieces? Or whatever else!

Here's how to participate:

Call us at (860) 580-9677.
No one will pick up! We promise.
Tell us your story. Technically, you'll get cut off after 3 minutes, but try to be as to-the-point as possible. We radio folks love that.

If you're phone-shy, then please send us a photo of your stuffed animal with a caption. What's its name? What should we know about it? Email Chion Wolf at CWolf@wnpr.org.

Tell Us Your Stuffed Animal Story

The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.

The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.