Community rallies to help Merry Dairy recover missing ice cream bike
There was a swift response from the community to help find a missing ice cream bicycle cart.
The Merry Dairy on Fairmount Avenue, in Ottawa’s Hintonburg neighbourhood, posted on social media that their blue and white bicycle cart had gone missing Friday night.
“This bike went missing overnight,” the Merry Dairy said, showing a picture of the pedal-powered cart with pictures of ice cream and a bicycling Canada goose and goslings on it. “Any information on its whereabouts would be so appreciated.”
People reacted swiftly to the disappearance of the bike, wondering how anyone could take it and hoping it would be found.
“One tire was flat,” the Merry Dairy said in a reply to a Facebook comment, “so shouldn’t be too far away!”
Several people quickly pointed out they had seen the bike on Elgin Street, about 3.5 km away from the Merry Dairy’s main location.
Within 30 minutes, the popular ice cream shop said their bike had been found, right where some eagle-eyed residents said it was.
“It has been found near Elgin Street! Thank you everyone for sharing,” an updated post said.
Owner Marlene Haley tells CTV News the cart is being used as a flower box at the moment. It’s part of the morning routine that staff bring it out front each day.
“They went to move it and noticed it was gone,” Haley said. “They looked around the immediate area and realized it had been taken.”
The post about the missing cart was put out on social media channels and Haley said the response was very quick.
“The community was amazing. We had people offering to share it on missing bike pages. On Facebook, it was shared 115 times in 45 minutes. It reached so many people,” Haley said.
Tips came in almost immediately. Someone said they saw someone riding it on Gladstone Avenue. Others said they spotted it on Elgin. It wasn't long before the cart was recovered.
“We followed the path where we found it and got our flowers back, too,” she said.
The cart is now safe and sound.
Haley said it was originally purchased with the intention of doing bicycle deliveries, but they found it was a bit heavy.
“There are a lot of hills near us, so we’re using it as a flower box right now,” she said. The shop is looking at acquiring an e-bike for deliveries.
The Merry Dairy was in the news recently when it ran into an issue with its wholesale operation, following a visit by the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, which said the store could not sell its wholesale products because it was not a dairy plant under the Milk Act.
The community came out to help the shop then, too.
In a post on the shop’s blog, owner Haley said the community response helped highlight to provincial representatives that there is “an opportunity here to update regulations to accommodate small enterprises and reflect the realities of life in 2022.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
How quietly promised law changes in the 2024 federal budget could impact your day-to-day life
The 2024 federal budget released last week includes numerous big spending promises that have garnered headlines. But, tucked into the 416-page document are also series of smaller items, such as promising to amend the law regarding infant formula and to force banks to label government rebates, that you may have missed.
Which foods have the most plastics? You may be surprised
'How much plastic will you have for dinner, sir? And you, ma'am?' While that may seem like a line from a satirical skit on Saturday Night Live, research is showing it's much too close to reality.
opinion I've been a criminal attorney for decades. Here's what I think about the case against Trump
Joey Jackson, a criminal defence attorney and a legal analyst for CNN, outlines what he thinks about the criminal case against Donald Trump in the 'hush money trial.'
$3.8M home in B.C.'s Okanagan has steel shell for extra wildfire protection
A home in B.C.'s Okanagan that features a weathering steel shell designed to provide some protection against wildfires has been listed for sale at $3.8 million.
Diver pinned under water by an alligator figured he had choice. Lose his arm or lose his life
An alligator attacked a diver on April 15 as he surfaced from his dive, nearly out of air. His tank emptied with the gator's jaws crushing the arm he put up in defence.
Psychologist becomes first person in Peru to die by euthanasia after fighting in court for years
A Peruvian psychologist who suffered from an incurable disease that weakened her muscles and had her confined to her bed for several years, died by euthanasia, her lawyer said Monday, becoming the first person in the country to obtain the right to die with medical assistance.
Mystery surrounds giant custom Canucks jerseys worn by Lions Gate Bridge statues
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
Celebrity designer sentenced to 18 months in prison for smuggling crocodile handbags
A leading fashion designer whose accessories were used by celebrities from Britney Spears to the cast of the 'Sex and the City' TV series was sentenced Monday to 18 months in prison after pleading guilty in Miami federal court on charges of smuggling crocodile handbags from her native Colombia.
Wildfire leads to evacuation order issued for northeast Alberta community
An evacuation order was issued on Monday afternoon for homes in the area of Cold Lake First Nation.