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‘Lifeline’ cochlear implant miraculously returned to owner in Urmston after going missing

Jessica Mortimer called the anonymous return of her electronic hearing assistance device a "miracle".

Emily Sergeant - 4th January 2021

A woman has called the anonymous return of her cochlear implant a “miracle” after she misplaced it on a shopping trip last month.

Urmston resident Jessica Mortimer was devastated to have lost her electronic hearing assistance device – which she said was “literally [her] lifeline” and is unable to hear without it – whilst out shopping in Barton Square at the Trafford Centre only a couple of days before Christmas.

The cochlear implant was sadly nowhere to be found, and had not been handed in to staff at the shopping centre or left inside the Uber vehicle she rode home in either.

Hoping a member of the public may have come across the device, Jessica took to Facebook – and also to the over 32K members of the popular Urmston M41’ers group – to ask people to keep an eye out for it and contact her should they have any information as to its potential whereabouts.

Accompanied by a picture of the implant for reference, Jessica said: “Lost this implant on the 23rd of December. Was in Primark at the Trafford Centre, got an Uber there and back from the side of Barton Square. Unfortunately, nothing has been handed in to either Trafford Centre or Primark [and] I went to look outside Barton Square yesterday [and] couldn’t see it anywhere.

Been in touch with Uber [and] nothing’s been reported [either].

“I cannot hear without this, it’s literally my lifeline. I’m devastated and just want to find it. It’s an awful feeling not being able to hear anything [and] I’m hoping I’ll get a miracle and it’s found.”

The post was shared hundreds of times by people all across the country, but this was unfortunately not enough to help locate the device before Jessica had arranged for a replacement, which was due to be fitted this morning.

Luckily though, in what was some “good news to end a rubbish year”, she managed to arrange to only pay £80 for the replacement – when such devices can often set an individual back close to £6,000 – and admitted she would be looking into insuring the implant should it ever be misplaced again in the future.

But this was all up until yesterday evening when Jessica was re-united with the device after an anonymous source posted it through her letterbox.

Astonished at the gesture, Jessica took to the Urmston M41’ers group once again to share the news saying: “Just come home and found this in my letterbox. No note left [but] oh my god [I’m] totally in shock. Wish I knew who left it [but] whoever it was, thank you so much, I’m in tears with happiness [and] my faith has been totally restored in human kindness.”

How brilliant is this?

“[I] feel like it’s a late Christmas miracle,” Jessica told The Manc.

“[I] was so sure I wasn’t going to find it. Hundreds of people shared my post, but we heard nothing [so it] was a huge shock when myself and my mother came home yesterday from shopping and saw [my cochlear implant] in a money bag.

“Just wish I could thank the person who left it.”

Although Jessica is yet to find out which kind stranger is to thank for reuniting her with her “lifeline”, in an equally as impressive gesture, she revealed that the £80 she would have spent on the replacement device today has instead been donated to “an amazing local charity”.

“I’ve donated to Jonny Spangles Community Charity, ” Jessica said.

You can find more information about DJ Jonny Spangles and the Jonny Spangles Community Charity via its website here.