Schoolchildren help city woman recover stolen purse

Barbara Minissale, 69, learned that her purse had been stolen when a neighbor came to her West Mount Airy home yesterday morning with a plastic bag containing some items that should have been in her pocketbook.

Another bummer day in the big city.

But after a few fretful hours, Minissale could not contain her joy when her purse was recovered by a search party of 20 children mobilized by Kimberly Newman, the principal at Henry H. Houston Elementary, to scour the short walk between the school and Minissale's home on Bryan Street.

"We get a bad rap," Minissale said of Philadelphia, and she wanted to share "an uplifting experience" of urban life here.

And she wanted to give the kids some kudos.

The last time Minissale remembers seeing her purse was the evening before, when she was removing groceries from her silver Ford Focus. Because her car windows had been smashed in prior thefts, police advised her to leave the doors unlocked and keep nothing in the car. Unfortunately, on Tuesday night she didn't realize that she left her purse behind.

The next morning, the neighbor came by with the plastic bag. He had found one of her credit cards and other items along the sidewalk while walking his children to the school, at 7300 Rural Lane.

Then a panicked Minissale figured that maybe other children had spotted more of her stuff on their way to school, so she called over there.

Newman made a schoolwide announcement after lunch asking students to keep an eye out for the purse and its contents.

"When you walk home," Newman recalled saying, "please help her."

Newman joined the hunt and found about 20 children combing the sidewalks on their way home. A young girl helped direct everyone to where she may have seen a credit card that morning. Finally, one boy found the purse under bushes while another found the wallet and keys.

With each discovery, Newman said, a kid would shout: "I found it!"

As she walked to Minissale's house with what had been recovered, one of the sixth-grade boys joined her.

"He was excited and proud of himself and ran over," Newman said.

When the sixth grader came to her door, she was overcome, Minissale said.

"I hugged him. I was crying so hard, I probably scared the kid," she said.

Minissale had wanted to give a reward, but she was a little short of cash because her wallet had been emptied.

Minissale, who scrapes by on Social Security and food stamps, eventually offered to buy pizza for all the children of Houston Elementary, Newman said.

Newman said Minissale didn't have to do anything, but if she insisted, one pie was good enough.

Minissale said she would send one today or tomorrow.