Quest for Quinn

Cabbage Patch Kids, growing in the garden, Cabbage Patch Kids, growing in the sun...

Cabbage Patch Kids Theme Song

As a child of the 80's, I was the proud owner of many Cabbage Patch Kid dolls. To commemorate the 30th anniversary of these cute little babies with yarn hair and button noses, I would like to share a deeply personal story about my first born, Quinn Willy.

In 1998, Cabbage Patch Kids had a story contest for their 15 year anniversary. My brother Joey submitted our story about Quinn Willy and won 2nd place. He received a 15th Anniversary doll as a prize.

The 2nd place prize

Original story 

Quest for Quinn

The story begins in 1984. My sister, Tiffany, age 6 receives her first Cabbage Patch Kid. It wasn't Christmas or her birthday, just a gift. My parents sat her down and asked her the BIG question - "Are you ready to be a mother?" After the interrogation they gave her the doll.

Quinn Willy was his name. How could I forget? That's all we (my 5 brothers and I) heard day in, day out! Quinn Willy this, Quinn Willy that.

Anyways, August rolls around - vacation time! We decided to rent a motor-home and drive from Oregon to an amusement park in California, visiting relatives along the way. There were nine of us. Ten if you count Quinn Willy!

Well, after so many miles and so little space, one tends to get bored. And what do you do when you get bored? Pick on the youngest - it's an unwritten rule. I should know - it was 7 long years until Tiffany came along.

So I grab the thing dearest to Tiffany's heart - Quinn Willy! Who at this time has somehow morphed into a female doll! A game of keep-away begins. Hey, it beats counting cars! I toss it to brother Matt. He throws it to Kevin. Kevin throws it to Darren. Tiffany is screaming through all of this. 

My dad, a burly man, is trying to drive the confusing streets of California in the heat of August, in this giant motor-home! So he's yelling at us, Tiffany is screaming, we're laughing pure mayhem!

And then it happened. Like a scene out of a movie. Everything fell silent. Darren picks up Quinn to continue the game. He tosses it toward Matt in a slow-motion fashion. I could hear the wooshes every time Quinn turned in the air. It appeared that Quinn Willy was headed toward Matt's face. So he did what instinct told him to do... DUCK!

What happened next was horrible. Something a 6 year old should never have to witness. In a scream heard across California were two words I will never forget... "QUINN WILLY!!!"

Tiffany's doll had flown out the window into some serious traffic. She was crushed. Mom and dad were angry, and we were in trouble. I felt really bad, for it was I, angelic Joey who started it all!

There was no way my dad could have turned around to save Quinn Willy so throughout the rest of the vacation, Tiffany would have to deal with the fact that Quinn Willy was gone. Promises of other Cabbage Patch Kids only worked temporarily. Tiffany had racked up 7 promised Cabbage Patch Kids by the end of our vacation, but that didn't seem to fill the void. 

So when we returned to Oregon, my father - Chief of Police - wrote a few letters, made a few calls, and started the Quest for Quinn!

Sadly, Quinn Willy was never found. but what my father did for his youngest child, and only daughter was an act of love.

Unfortunately the letters my dad wrote to the LAPD have gone missing. I sent a message out to my brothers to see if they may have the only copies of the letters but so far no luck. I also have been trying to find photographic evidence of Quinn Willy's existence but can't find a photo to save my life. Then I received this quick video clip that Joey made. Here he is in a video from the summer she was lost, my she-boy Quinn Willy!

Defending Quinn - 1984