An emotional family has been reunited with a VHS tape documenting a boy’s first steps—and it’s all thanks to filmmaker Jim McKay.
McKay first found the tape inside of an old television set that he bought from a Goodwill store in Austin, Texas.
Since he had bought the TV as a prop for a film project, it sat around his house for several months before he finally turned it on—but when he did, he was shocked by what he found.
Inside the TV was an 18-minute VHS tape which captured the moment that a baby named TyRe took his first steps on September 24th, 1994.
RELATED: Woman Finally Finds Long-Lost Father After 56 Years Thanks to ‘Suggested Friends’ Facebook Feature
McKay was floored by the heartwarming footage—and he knew he had to return the video to the original family.
“It’s a very important moment in the child’s life and it’ll never happen again. I want to see that returned,” McKay told KVUE. “I just fell in love with this family. I think they’re amazing and if I can help them out and bring this back to them, that would be like the perfect closure.”
McKay then took to social media with a quick clip of the tape in hopes of tracking down the family. It was shared thousands of times until it finally caught the eye of TyRe Alexander’s mother.
Alexander was the little boy who was filmed taking his first steps in the video, and he says he had no idea of the tape’s existence until his mother saw the footage featured on a local news channel.
Not only has the tape been returned to the family, it has also sparked a new friendship between McKay and Alexander.
“That was the best part, was just to hear that he was so excited,” Alexander told the news outlet. “To be able to share that memory in that moment finally with my family and for the first time … it’s a treasure.”
(WATCH the news coverage below) – Photo by KVUE
Be Sure And Share This Sweet Story With Your Friends On Social Media…