Stuffed moose uniting first responders across Canada and the United States returns home

After a whirlwind trip across North America visiting various first responders and policing agencies, including some in Alberta, a stuffed moose that goes by 'Mr. Moosey' has returned home to his original owner in Pennsylvania, U.S.

Seven years ago, in December 2016, then five-year-old Mackenzie Brown dangled a stuffed moose outside her car window, offering it to a Towamencin Township police officer who had pulled her mom’s car over on the way home from dance class.

“I thought it would keep him safe,” said Mackenzie, now 12 years old, in an interview with CTV News Edmonton. “I really thought that it would sit in his car and keep him safe.”

Sgt. James Gibbas said he was surprised by the little girl’s gesture.

“I was in absolute shock when Mackenzie first tried to hand it out the window,” recalled Gibbas. “I have kids of my own and I know how important stuffed animals are, so I tried to say no, but she insisted.”

The officer had planned to keep the stuffed moose in his police cruiser during his work shifts, but after telling people the toy’s origin story, he came up with the idea to share Mr. Moosey with as many people as he could, by sending it to various police agencies and first responders across the United States.

“It just took off, as soon as he started the tour everyone fell in love with the story and wanted to be a part of it,” said the sergeant.

The stuffed toy would spend a week or two with each department before being handed off to the next, its adventures being chronicled on a Facebook page where Mackenzie and her family, as well as the public, could follow along.

Mr. Moosey's Canadian tour

In 2018, Mr. Moosey made his way up north to Canada, after an Alberta Highway Patrol Sheriff spotted the moose on social media.

“[James] and I were able to coordinate and he got sent up to Canada, which was pretty cool, because we got to be the first organization to have him here,” said sheriff Matt Butcher in an interview.

Mr. Moosey’s first Canadian stop was with the RCMP and the Alberta Sheriff’s Integrated Traffic Unit in Boyle, Alta. From there, the toy spent time with Alberta Fish and Wildlife, the Edmonton Police Service and RCMP detachments throughout the province.

Mr. Moosey with Edmonton Police Service officers. (Credit: Alberta Sheriffs)

During the moose’s time in Alberta, it attended an RCMP graduation, flew in an RCMP helicopter, and saw its first live moose.

“Up in Boyle and the Athabasca area there’s quite a few moose,” said Butcher. “It didn’t take too long before we had a cow and a calf roadside, so I was able to slowly get out of the car and get Moosey out to get a picture. It was great.”

Mr. Moosey encounters a moose. (Credit: Alberta Sheriffs)

After Mr. Moosey’s experience in Alberta, Sgt. Gibbas asked sheriff Butcher if he would be willing to coordinate the rest of the Canadian tour.

“I would just cold call these agencies. I would call Victoria or Vancouver, Winnipeg police, the RCMP,” said Butcher.

“You go, 'Hey, I got this moose, here’s the story,' and it doesn’t take long before people want to get involved.”

One of those Canadian trips included the stuffed animals' most remote destination — the North Pole.

Mr. Moosey visits the arctic ocean. (Alberta Sheriffs)

Mr. Moosey spent around a year travelling throughout Canada, according to Gibbas, who said that sheriff Butcher was a huge help organizing that leg of the tour.

“It was a lot of fun to see a lot of different people get involved from all across the country,” said Butcher. “A lot of the stuff we do is serious in nature, but at the end of the day we are fun loving people too, and we care.”

Although the concept of a travelling stuffed moose is lighthearted in nature, Sgt. Gibbas said it helped him form meaningful connections with officers across the continent.

“Policing is a very difficult job, and at the time Mackenzie gave me Moosey it was an extremely difficult time in policing. It just goes to show that first responders are all family and Moosey helped connect that,” he said.

Mr. Moosey returns home

In 2019, Mr. Moosey came back to stay with Sgt. Gibbas in the lobby of the Towamencin Township Police Department where local school children and the public could visit the moose, hear its story, and see a wide collection of shoulder flashes, and challenge coins accumulated in its travels.

Requests to have the moose visit continued to come in from all across the world. Sgt. Gibbas briefly considered a tour to Australia after a United States Air Marshal volunteered to fly Moosey overseas to personally ensure its safety, but the sergeant didn’t want to risk losing the precious stuffed toy in the mail during its return trip, and ultimately decided that it was time for Mr. Moosey and Mackenzie to be reunited.

In December 2023, Mackenzie and her family made their way to the police department to see the souvenirs, to be reunited with Sgt. Gibbas, and for Mr. Moosey’s official return.

Mr. Moosey reunites with Mackenzie. (Credit: Sgt. James Gibbas)

Six members from policing agencies across North America were there for the occasion, including sheriff Butcher as the sole Canadian officer.

“A big honour for myself was to be included in the return of Mr. Moosey and all the items,” said Butcher.

"It was a great opportunity.”

Sgt. Gibbas said he enjoyed being able to meet face to face with those involved in the toy's travels.

“Having the connection and meeting people first hand that were part of the tour to just help build the family is just an amazing experience,” he said.

Mackenzie is grateful to have Mr. Moosey back in her arms once again, although he looks a bit different now compared to when she first gave him away.

“It just makes me really happy and just excited to have him back,” she said.

“I’m just so proud of Mackenzie and I’m so happy it got us connected with Sgt. Gibbas,” said Mackenzie’s mother Megan Brown of the experience.

“I know that Mackenzie’s interested in police work and so forth because of all this and it’s just been such a really great experience as her mom to watch, and it’s full circle now,” said Brown.

Inspiring Mackenzie to follow in his policing footsteps may not have been part of the original plan, but giving Mr. Moosey back to the little girl who once gifted it to him always was, according to the Philadelphia area sheriff.

“The ultimate goal from day one was to return him to Mackenzie and I’m happy that we were finally able to make that happen.”