We're used to seeing "Lost Cat" and "Lost Dog" posters on telephone poles around town.
More unusual is the one spotted by Patch recently in the Thousand Oaks neighborhood of North Berkeley, near the Albany border:
"Help! Missing Ukulele – $200 Reward"
According to the poster, Berkeley resident Beryl Baker's beloved blue uke was stolen from her car right before Christmas when it was parked on Miramar Avenue, a one-block street between San Lorenzo and Capistrano avenues.
It's still missing, Baker told Patch, and though it's been a month, she still hopes she'll find it. She said it's not valuable as a musical instrument in itself but that, as explained on her poster, it has sentimental value to her as "a family heirloom" given to her by her grandmother before she died.
She said her grandmother's mother bought it many years ago in Hawaii as a kind tourist-type souvenir. She said she's tried to advertise the reward and reach people who might have seen it – getting the word out with the posted flyer and other ways, including contacting a pawn shop or two – but so far to no avail.
"No questions asked – I just want it's safe return," the flyer says.
Baker has videos of her playing the uke, so those who want to see what it looks like can search for "Beryl Baker Music" on YouTube or Google.
If anyone finds it, she asks them to call 510-418-5075.
