Call it a coincidence, but on the twelfth day of Christmas Morganton town officials recovered a Baby Jesus figure washed away in 2024 by Hurricane Helene.

“In the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, several things were lost, damaged, recovered, etc. The nativity set that we had stored in one of the warehouses at Catawba Meadows was eventually accounted for except for Baby Jesus ... until yesterday,” the town wrote in a Jan. 6 Facebook post.

“Parks and Recreation crews found a debris pile in the woods near Catawba Meadows and after cleaning it up they found Baby Jesus buried underneath.”

The announcement came on the Epiphany, an ancient Christian holiday that marks when the Three Wise Men visited Mary, Joseph, and their newborn child, according to History.com. The day marks the culmination of “traditional Christmastide celebrations” for many Christians, Catholic.com reports.

Morganton was among many mountain towns devastated when the remnants of Hurricane Helene dumped 30 inches of rain on western North Carolina. More than 120 homes and businesses were damaged or destroyed in the city, and among the casualties was a warehouse where the Nativity figures were stored.

Town officials say they are still deciding whether to buy a new Nativity scene set or restore the old one.

Comments on the city’s Facebook post indicate people want the old one back, and they don’t think it needs to be restored. This includes several who quoted the gospel classic “Amazing Grace”: “I once was lost, but now I’m found.”

“I think the old one has even more significant meaning now and should be used as a lasting tribute,” Phil Reeves posted on the town’s Facebook page.

“I say leave it as is ‘cause how does he tell us to come to him ... come as you are! Broken, dirty and tired, and that’s a great reminder of what he went through when he was found,” Crystal Gianchetti wrote.

“You need to keep it to remind us all of the miracle. Maybe even put a plaque saying what happened,” Miriam Davis Guffey Walker said.

Morganton is about a 75-mile drive northwest from uptown Charlotte.

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