'Flat Stanley' Survives Miracle On The Hudson

This from WLWT by way of First Coast News:

CINCINNATI -- Flat Stanley goes on a lot of adventures. Kids all over the world send the cut-out cartoon character on voyages with friends or strangers and then look forward to hearing about Stanley's travels.

Gina Kemp, a third grader at St. Henry Elementary in Erlanger, Ky, joined the fun in December and sent her Flat Stanley on a trip with a family friend to New York City.

She finally heard back from her Stanley -- and he had quite the story to tell. Turns out Stanley was aboard Flight 1549, which ditched into the Hudson River minutes after taking off from LaGuardia Airport.
Kemp gave her Flat Stanley to a close friend of her family, Eric Stevenson, last December. Stevenson used to live in Cincinnati but now calls Paris home.

When Stevenson made a trip to New York City, he decided to take some pictures of Flat Stanley in Times Square and send them to Gina when he returned to Paris. But
Times Square wasn't the most exciting thing that happened to Stevenson, or Flat Stanley, that trip.


Stevenson was one of the 153 people who survived the US Airways emergency landing into the Hudson River.

While many people left their belongings on the plane, Stevenson was able to grab his briefcase with Flat Stanley inside. Both made it out in one piece.

Stevenson returned to Paris safely, with Flat Stanley in tow, and wrote an e-mail to Gina with the tale of his harrowing experience, as always, from Flat Stanley's perspective.

Hello Gina,

It's taken me a long time to write … sorry I've been out of touch for so long.

I've been really busy travelling. After several days in Paris, I went to New York!

Here are a couple photos when I visited Times Square. It's ull of lights and big billboards.

Then I saw the Empire State Building. Amazing!

After that, I was on a plane that landed in the river near New York. At the time I was in Eric's briefcase. Luckily he carried me off the plane! Here's a photo he took after we were safely on a rescue boat.

What an adventure! I'm safe and dry now … and no need for you to worry.

What have you been up to lately?

I'm back in Paris and hoping it will get warm soon. Spring is on its way.

All the best from Paris,

your friend,

Flat Stanley

Stevenson said he had planned to return Flat Stanley to Gina soon so he could have adventures with someone else.

He also wrote a story about his experience.
Read Eric Stevenson's first-hand account of the day he survived the "Miracle On the Hudson".