A little boy, killed by a plane, kept a teddy bear by his side. His mom is on a mission
Taylor Bishop found his sidekick, Chevy, on his third birthday.
He saw Chevy for the first time at Build-A-Bear Workshop, where Taylor’s mother, Megan Bishop, went to get her son the pay-your-age birthday bear. But another companion caught his eye: a blue Hot Wheels teddy bear with dark blue cars printed on its body.
The pair became inseparable. Everything Taylor did, Chevy had to do, too.
When Taylor was tucked in and got a goodnight kiss, Chevy would have to be tucked in and get a goodnight kiss. When he was buckled into his seat, Chevy would have to be buckled into his seat. When he was greeted, Chevy, too, had to be greeted.
Chevy was in Taylor’s embrace when a plane coming from North Perry Airport crashed into the family’s SUV last year in Pembroke Pines. Four-year-old Taylor, 4 was killed.
The tragedy inspired Taylor’s mother to establish a nonprofit to donate teddy bears to first responders. Through December, students at Hollywood Hills Elementary School collected thousands of bears in Taylor’s memory.
Bringing comfort and healing
Looking back, Bishop notices how Chevy comforted her son. That motivated her, in May 2022, to establish Taylor’s Teddy Bears, a nonprofit that donates bears to first responders.
“I wanted to do something to ensure that his legacy could live just as long as he was supposed to live,” Bishop said.
In the months following the crash, the sounds of police and ambulance sirens would take Bishop back to the tragedy. But now, Chevy — and the teddy bears that will be donated — help her healing.
“Even though my son didn’t survive the accident, having his bear back with me did bring me some comfort,” she said.
Bishop hopes the bears will bring others dealing with stressful situations the same comfort. The teddy bears can also allow first responders to improve their relationships with the communities they serve. Police officers, for example, can gift bears to kids they see playing on the street.
Collecting bears, honoring Taylor
The idea for a bear drive at Hollywood Hills Elementary began when the student council president floated the possibility to Laurie Kraus, the school’s literacy coach. The student knew Bishop, who is a paraprofessional at the Broward public school, and wanted to plan something that honored Taylor’s memory and gave back to the community.
When Kraus asked if Bishop approved of the idea, she was touched.
“People always assume that young children aren’t in tune with what’s going on,” Bishop said. “That just showed that they really are.”
So, students spent time after school making posters and decorating collection boxes with green construction paper. Green was Taylor’s favorite color.
And through December, they collected 2,000 bears. Some were already donated to Hollywood police and fire-rescue.
Bishop said she’s hoping to expand donations to other local departments. She previously did a drive at Archbishop McCarthy High School in Southwest Ranches and has had several schools reach out about hosting drives of their own.
The school will continue accepting donations, Kraus said, whether they’re dropped off or delivered via Amazon.
“I hope this ... becomes Taylor’s legacy,” Bishop said. “He’s so much more than the boy who died in the plane crash. He’s now helping children in distress and for me, that’s so much more important than how he passed.”
This story was originally published December 25, 2022 at 10:02 AM.
