LEWISTON — All summer long, Ruth Slovenski rode her bicycle, a classic Huffy she had been riding for more than 60 years.

Earlier, in the spring, it looked like she might never ride it again.

In early April, someone stole the bike after the 83-year-old Slovenski parked it by her favorite eatery near Bates College. She lamented the loss of her childhood bike and expected never to see it again.

Enter the press and the police.

After a story ran in the Sun Journal about the theft, a strange thing happened. The person who had Slovenski’s Huffy came forward to give it back. He said it had been given to him by a stranger.

It was a flimsy story, but Ruth didn’t mind at all. Police — including the deputy chief and several officers — surprised her by returning her bicycle the very afternoon the Sun Journal story ran.

It was a happy ending that made for a happy year, even if it rained through most of it.

“I used my bike all summer long,” Ruth said in December, her riding season over. “My son got me a good bike lock. I lock it up every time.”

She still credits the police and the community at large for rallying around her and getting her bike back once the news began to spread.

“If there hadn’t been a story in the paper,” she said, “it probably wouldn’t have been returned.”

And now, with a shiny new lock to keep the old Huffy safe, she can’t wait until spring when she can ride again.

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