In December 2000, three days before Christmas, Gene Eyster received an unexpected call while on duty.
Three students had phoned the police to inform them about a distressing sight they had witnessed in the hallway of their apartment complex in South Bend, Indiana.
"That was one of the strangest calls I think I've ever had: 'We have found a baby in a box,'" the now-retired police lieutenant told CBS News. "You always wonder, what happened?"
Highlights
- In 2000, the now-retiered police officer Gene Eyster was called to a scene where a baby was found in a box in Indiana.
- The baby, Matthew Hegedus-Stewart, was adopted and unknowingly went on to join the same police department as Eyster.
- The reunion provided closure and filled a void for Eyster, especially after the recent loss of his son.
When the 47-year veteran arrived at the apartment, he saw the abandoned baby boy covered with blankets inside a cardboard box.
Image credits: CBS News
The newborn, identified as "Baby Boy Doe" at the time, was then taken to the hospital, where he received a visit from Eyster.
"I went back with a teddy bear. Just a symbol to let everyone that walked past know that he was cared about," he told the network.
The boy was then taken to child protective services, leaving Eyster with no information about the child's fate.
Now, over 20 years later, the retired police lieutenant has reunited with the man he saved as a baby
Image credits: CBS News
24 years later, the police veteran received another surprising phone call—this time, it carried a more comforting message.
A fellow officer had called him to ask if he recalled the case of "Baby Boy Doe," whom Eyster referred to as "Baby Jesus," given the time he found him.
"I remember it distinctively," he said.
"Well, you're not going to believe this," the officer responded. "He's sitting next to me; he's my rookie."
A few weeks ago, Eyster learned that the baby he rescued was Matthew Hegedus-Stewart and that he's working in the same police department as him
Image credits: CBS News
The baby is now 23-year-old Matthew Hegedus-Stewart. He uses the same uniform that Eyster used to wear and patrols the same streets.
"It was a blessing," Hegedus-Stewart said of the moment he was able to meet the man who saved him all those years ago. "I wondered my whole life, 'Who found me?'"
"This is a kind of closure for Gene. For over twenty years, he has wondered what happened to Baby Jesus. But here we are. We made it."
"The timing couldn't have been any better. It helped to fill a void," said the 47-year veteran of the department
As the young officer explained, his parents told him that a policeman had rescued him when he was a baby, but they weren't able to provide many more details because they didn't know about Eyster.
When asked whether his decision to join law enforcement was influenced by the knowledge of his story, he responded, "I don't think consciously, but if I had to guess, subconsciously, yes. It's probably why I ended up where I am now."
The "full circle moment," as Hegedus-Stewart described it, came at a delicate time in Eyster's life. Just months before the reunion, the retired officer experienced the unexpected loss of his only son at the age of 36.
"So the timing couldn't have been any better. It helped to fill a void that I've had to deal with," he explained.
"That gave me goosebumps," a social media user shared
