UPDATE: The meet and greet has been extended to Saturday, April 13, from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
MANISTIQUE, Mich. (WZMQ) – Last month, a Schoolcraft County tortoise escaped from his home. Now, his owner is giving the community who helped bring her pet home a chance to meet him.
Yoda is a 16-year-old African spurred tortoise, also known as a sulcata tortoise. He came into the life of Sarahjean Adolphus six years ago.
“Someone reached out stating that they were looking to rehome their friend’s tortoise for them,” Adolphus said. “They were using him to teach people about sulcata tortoises at a reptile expo. I said, ‘Why not?’ I’ve had him ever since.”
On March 11, Adolphus’ girlfriend Alicia Vargo discovered Yoda was missing.
“Both of us were out that day,” said Vargo. “I noticed his door was open and the light was on…oh no. Instantly, we both grabbed flashlights, we’re looking through the forest.”
Adolphus shared social media posts asking the community to keep an eye out for Yoda. The next day, many community members came together to help.
“We had a search party come out,” Vargo said.
“They had thermal imaging drones up,” added Adolphus. “The sheriff came down with his bird dogs, hoping they would sniff him out as well.”
“It gave us a chance to kind of breathe because if we weren’t hunting for him, we knew at least somebody out there was looking for him,” said Vargo. “We were nearly nonstop, exhausted, just wondering.”
Adolphus says she started to lose hope.
“I personally said, ‘There’s no way we’re going to find him,'” she said. “There are no homes nearby and we’re in the middle of the national forest.”
“I was like, ‘Nope,'” Vargo said. “This little buddy is rock hard. He’s a boulder with legs.”
72 hours after going missing, Yoda was spotted in someone’s driveway, having traveled further than some might expect of a tortoise.
“He was at about the half-mile mark, but honestly he probably traveled miles,” Adolphus said. “He moves pretty fast, and he likes to pace and go back and forth.”
Upon finding Yoda, Adolphus wasn’t sure he was even alive.
“He wasn’t moving and was in his shell,” she recalled. “It’s hard to feel the heartbeat. His eyes were completely sealed shut and he was cold.”
A vet diagnosed Yoda with a severe upper respiratory infection and possible organ failure. He is now doing much better.
“He improved nearly every day,” said Adolphus. “It took probably about eight hours for his eyes to finally open, and he started eating the next day. He does have a little sneeze. He’s still medicated, so every other day we have to put an injection under his skin for about another month to go.”
Adolphus and Vargo say they’re incredibly grateful to those who shared posts about Yoda on social media and those who took the time to help them search for him. To say thank you, Adolphus is hosting a meet and greet for Yoda on Friday, April 12, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. It will take place at 205 South Cedar Street, which is the home of Adolphus’ new nonprofit storefront and volunteer center, the Power of 10 Foundation.
“It’s a nonprofit I founded that serves the chronically ill, terminally ill, and disabled,” Adolphus explained.
She and Vargo say Yoda is excited to meet the community that helped him get back home safe and sound.
“I personally just want to thank everyone that was able to help look for Yoda,” Adolphus said.
“It’s nice to put a face to the people that have been out there searching, so come down,” said Vargo. “We’d love to meet you.”
“And Yoda can’t wait,” Adolphus smiled. “He’s going to have a lot of fun this Friday.”
For more details about the meet and greet, click here. To see more of Yoda, visit his Instagram or TikTok.
Visit the Power of 10 Foundation website or Facebook page for more information about Adolphus’ nonprofit.
