Five-year-old Alfie reunites with Churro the Burro after ferry adventure

Five-year-old Alfie will finally meet Churro the Burro on Wednesday when the family takes the Salish Raven ferry back to Pender Island. The pink stuffed donkey was left behind during a July 17 sailing from Swartz Bay and became an unlikely internet sensation as BC Ferries staff gave it the run of the ship.

The toy, nicknamed Churro by online commenters, spent days exploring the vessel under crew supervision. It visited the bridge, engine room, and outer decks, made multiple trips to the soft-serve ice cream station in the cafeteria, and made friends with stuffed animals in the ship's gift shop. BC Ferries staff made Churro an honorary crew member, photographing its journey and posting updates to social media.

Alfie's mom, Abigail Broadribb, said the family didn't notice Churro was missing until they saw a Times Colonist story about BC Ferries' social media search for the toy's owner. The donkey was a gift from Alfie's grandmother after a recent trip to Mexico. "They were really excited," Broadribb said, adding there was "some melancholy" when their return ferry from Pender Island on Monday wasn't the Salish Raven.

The two Facebook posts documenting Churro's journey have more than 6,700 combined likes and hundreds of comments. One person even shared their own lost-and-found ferry memory, writing about a hot pink iPod Nano engraved with Miley Cyrus's "The Climb" that vanished from the Coastal Celebration in 2009—and received a response from BC Ferries offering to keep an eye out for the historic artifact.

Broadribb said the kids are hoping for a full tour of all the spots Churro visited during its maritime adventure.