PHOENIX, Ariz. (WSVN) — The holidays are meant to be spent with family and friends. But Christmas can be a difficult time for those who have lost loved ones.
After her father Albert passed away earlier this year, 16-year-old Alina Angel said she and her mother Stephanie wanted to do something special to help her younger siblings and grandmother cope with their loss.
So Alina and Stephanie went to Build-A-Bear Workshop, choosing three teddy bears to give as presents, KPNX reports.
But these were no ordinary stuffed animals. Each bear, when squeezed, plays a recording of Albert’s voice singing an oldies song. Alina said she recorded her dad singing “You Can’t Keep a Good Man Down” by Alabama several years ago, and told KPNX she chose it because the audio was clear and his voice was instantly recognizable.
Another family member took one of her father’s shirts, using the material to make a mini shirt for each bear, sprayed with Albert’s favorite Burberry cologne.
Alina recorded her sisters, 12-year-old Aaralyn and 7-year-old Allani, as they opened their presents on Christmas Day. The touching video showed the girls crying and hugging the bears as they heard their father’s voice.
“Anytime you guys miss Daddy, you can smell him on that bear and you can hear his voice,” Stephanie can be heard telling her daughters.
The video quickly went viral, with nearly 150,000 retweets and 500,000 likes on Twitter in just three days. It’s been viewed over 6.5 million times.
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