Honey, it's time to return!

Zhang Baoyan, creator of an online platform to help lost children return home, has helped reunite more than 1,400 families and has been called "the most beautiful mom".

Zhang lives in Tonghua, Jilin province. One day more than ten years ago, her child was separated from his grandma when they went shopping. The entire family was frightened and quickly sprang into a flurry of action. Luckily, it was a false alarm.

However, the experience helped Zhang realize the anxiety and misfortune families who lose their children must feel.

Tingting, a girl who was kidnapped, hugs her mom after years of separation. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

As a result, she opened a website called "Baby Return Home" with her husband in 2006 to help people locate their loved ones.

It took a lot of money to make phone calls to search for people but they did not give up. They saved money in all other aspects of their lives and their website gradually gained awareness as more and more volunteers joined Zhang's team.

In 2009, a 25-year-old man named Xiaoxie contacted the volunteers, telling them that he was kidnapped and brought to Henan province 20 years ago. He yearned for a reunion with his own parents whose faces were vague to his memory.

Zhang and her volunteers started to search the internet and determined Xiaoxie's hometown was likely in Shannxi province according to his memory of a local dialect word pronounced as "yaya".

Families of Chen Tao, who was kidnapped more than 20 years ago, thank volunteers when they get reunited. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Meanwhile, volunteers also used various psychological methods to help Xiaoxie retrieve memories.

He remembered that he could always see planes and even passengers, through which Zhang speculated that Xiaoxie's hometown may be in the Hanjiang or Ankang areas, which neighbor airports.

Later, Zhang published their findings and Xiaoxie's personal information online and received a phone call from an Ankang resident. He told Zhang that his former neighbor lost a child over 20 years ago.

Zhang rushed to the family the phone caller told her about and they burst into tears when they saw Xiaoxie's photo.

It was not always that smooth helping families get reunited but Zhang and her volunteer team never give up easily.

To improve the probability and efficiency of finding kidnapped children, Zhang also suggested the police department to establish a DNA database, which has since been adopted by the police.

To encourage Zhang's actions and to inspire more people, Zhang was given many awards and recognitions by charity institutions and organization.

"The reputation not only belongs to me but also all the volunteers who work hard to help lost children return home," Zhang said.

Few children may ever have the chance to return to their families but Zhang and her team will persevere in their endeavor and will hold hopes that more families can have opportunities to reunited.

Yang Jiashuang, kidnapped when she was six years old, bursts into tears when she sees her parents after over 20 years. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]