4-year-old twins released balloons with a wish for a puppy — they weren’t prepared for an incredible surprise waiting 650 miles away

Gonzalez said that it had been so cold and windy that she didn’t expect the balloons to travel that far.

PUBLISHED 9 HOURS AGO

(L) Happy little girls releasing pink balloons; (R) Portrait of brown cute puppy. (Representative Cover Image Source: Getty Images | (L) Grekov; (R) blanscape)

After a tough 2020, Leticia Gonzalez of Liberal, Kansas, wanted to give her 4-year-old twins, Luna and Gianella, a holiday memory they’d hold onto. On December 1, she helped them write letters to Santa, adding their wishes, tied them to balloons, and let them drift into the sky. It felt like a simple gesture, something fun and different. She never expected anyone would even find them, much less respond, until one person did, and how.

Girls holding a ballon - Representative Image Source: Pexels | Photo by
Ivan Samkov — Girls holding a ballon. (Representative Image Source: Pexels | Photo by Ivan Samkov)

"It was just so cold and windy. I didn't expect them to go that far," Gonzalez told GMA. The family then traveled to Mexico, her husband’s home country, to give gifts to children who had less. When they returned, Gonzalez was surprised to see a post on Facebook (now-deleted). She found out that one of Luna's balloons was discovered by Alvin Bamburg while hunting, who lived more than 650 miles away in Grand Cane, Louisiana. "I dreamed all my life of finding a balloon with just a name and number and calling and saying, 'I found your balloon,'" he told CBS News. When he picked it up, he saw something attached. "I saw a note attached to it. And on this note, it was sealed with a single red star, and I thought, 'What is this?' So, I broke it open, and it was Luna's Christmas list," he said.

Twins with a dog - Representative Image Source: Pexels | Photo by KATRIN BOLOVTSOVA — Twins with a dog. (Representative Image Source: Pexels | Photo by KATRIN BOLOVTSOVA)

The list included candy, a Spider-Man ball, a "Frozen" doll, My Little Pony, and a puppy. "I just thought it was something cute and a different way to send a letter to Santa, other than the usual way of sending it by mail," Gonzalez later said. Bamburg knew the list mattered, so he shared the balloon on Facebook. Within hours, it spread across the community. "All my friends started saying, 'I'd like to donate this,' or 'I'd like to donate that.' And we got all the gifts we could—the puppy was the hardest to find," Bamburg said. With the help of family, friends, and strangers, he managed to track down almost everything on the list.

Close up shot of a puppy - Representative Image Source: Pexels | Photo by
Clarissa Roley — Close up shot of a puppy. (Representative Image Source: Pexels | Photo by Clarissa Roley)

In April, months after finding the balloon, Bamburg and his wife loaded their car with gifts and set out to deliver them, and drove from Shreveport, Louisiana, while the Gonzalez family drove from Kansas, meeting in Oklahoma. There, Luna and Gianella were handed their surprises, including the puppy they named Max. "We did not expect it," Gonzalez said. "It was a big surprise to us." The families shared food and gifts during the meeting. "I just felt like they were family now," Bamburg said. "And we're going back up there in about a month or two. We're going to give them some Louisiana treats."

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For Bamburg, it was about more than toys or even the puppy. "If you can make one person smile—trust me, not only will it help them, it will make you feel so much better," he said. Gonzalez agreed, saying the Bamburgs will always be part of her family. She added, "So many wonderful people still exist in this Earth. Even if it's a stranger who takes time out of their day to make somebody happy."