Hanky the Octopus returned to Eastern Heights student after social media search

Ally just wanted to take her friend to school with her, that's all. That was her thinking when she folded Hank's sprawly orange body in her backpack that morning and left for Eastern Heights Elementary School. The first grader rarely took Hank — or Hanky, what she usually called him — with her, but that day was different, who knew why. It was just two days before Christmas break. All sorts of things go through kids' minds. Near as anyone can tell, Hanky must have tumbled out of her backpack at some point. As soon as they realized he was missing, Ally's mom, Anastasia Conley, alerted the school and Ally's teacher jumped into action. Custodians, her teacher and principal launched search parties and sent out alerts, looking for the missing Hanky. No one wanted the 6-year-old to be without her beloved orange octopus for the entire holiday vacation. There was some confusion at the school, Conley said; At first officials thought they knew who had it and that it would be returned the next day, only to realize it was a mistake. Classes ended, and Hanky never showed up. Conley turned to social media, posting appeals on two Elyria community pages on Facebook, asking parents of Eastern Heights students to keep their eyes open. Hank "means everything to my daughter. We know someone went home with it," she wrote, offering to meet anyone who found it. "She is devastated." Strangers responded, some offering to buy her another one. But it wouldn't be the same. Ally has a smaller "Hank," a sort-of emergency back-up Hank for such mundane events as routine washings. But even that Hank can't really fill in for the real Hanky. The real Hanky's one tentacle is completely flat, for instance. His head has lost a lot of stuffing over the years and doesn't really stand up straight any more. And his color — well, that's kind of muted, too. "He's been loved so much, he's flat. He just kind of lays to the side. He is not even really fuzzy any more. The top of him used to be soft, almost really shimmery, soft scales almost — well, those are completely kind of gone. There's really no other way to describe him other than he's orange," Anastasia Conley said. Hanky has been Ally's bestie since before she was born. He was a gift, a baby shower gift. Her nursery was "Finding Nemo"-themed, and she received all the animal characters as gifts. For some reason, the octopus stuck with her, her mom said. Ally has a favorite blanket, too: Blankie. "She's not as attached to the blanket as she is to him but Hankie and Blankie go everywhere." Until now. A few days passed and then Conley woke up to a message from a man whose daughter had brought home Hank. His wife had seen Conley's posts and their daughter had brought the octopus home after finding it on the playground and felt sorry for it, after seeing a group of boys "throwing it around and being mean with it." "She brought it home to keep it safe over Christmas. She felt bad for it and they planned to bring it back to return it to its owner after the break," Conley said. Hank isn't just a sort-of flat octopus left behind on a playground. Hank is the shield that makes a child brave, the comfort that soothes a child's heart, the friend that holds a child's hand. Hanky is such a fixture in the Conley family that Ally's dad Zach engraved him on his arm, tattooing his daughter's name into the design. They couldn't know that Hanky has gone everywhere Ally has ever been, even places her parents can't go: even school, even day care. When he was missing, Ally was worried for him — that he would be scared without her. "Hanky has literally gone everywhere with her. She was in the hospital a couple of times this year. When she went to day care, he's been with her. He sleeps with her. There has never been a time he hasn't been with her," Conley said. When she heard the news he was coming home, she screamed. "We have a No Hanky at School Rule now," Ally said, which is perfectly fine with her. And it seems to have the support of her community. On one of her first outings after Hanky's return, Ally was carrying Hanky while walking through a supermarket parking lot in Elyria with her grandmother when a stranger yelled out: "Oh my goodness, I'm so glad you got him back!" Contact Rini Jeffers at rinijeffers@gmail.com.