Couple who saved a baby magpie named Penguin open up about the day she left

Sam Bloom still remembers the day she and her son Noah stumbled on a weak baby magpie while walking into a carpark – a little bird that would change their lives forever.

It was three months after the Sydney mother-of-three had returned home from hospital after falling from a rooftop while holidaying in Thailand. 

Her children Rueben, 16, Noah, 14, and Oli, 12, and husband Cameron watched her lie motionless twenty feet below them, and it was four hours before they could get Mrs Bloom to a hospital.

  

Sam Bloom still remembers the day she and her son Noah stumbled on a weak baby magpie while walking into a carpark

They found Penguin three months after the Sydney mother-of-three had returned home from hospital after falling from a rooftop while holidaying in Thailand

They found Penguin three months after the Sydney mother-of-three had returned home from hospital after falling from a rooftop while holidaying in Thailand

Her children Rueben, Noah, and Oli and husband Cameron witnessed Sam's accident and were equally as invested in her recovery

Her children Rueben, Noah, and Oli and husband Cameron witnessed Sam’s accident and were equally as invested in her recovery

Six months of surgery and rehabilitation later and Sam went home, ‘gutted’ that she would never walk again. That was 2013.

‘We couldn’t have left her there. She would have died – she could hardly walk. She couldn’t fly,’ Sam told Jules Sebastian in a new interview.

In a way Sam and Penguin healed their physical wounds together, each one helping the other recognise that life is fragile.

'We couldn't have left her there. She would have died - she could hardly walk. She couldn't fly,' Sam told Jules Sebastian in a new interview (pictured)

‘We couldn’t have left her there. She would have died – she could hardly walk. She couldn’t fly,’ Sam told Jules Sebastian in a new interview (pictured)

In a way Sam and Penguin healed their physical wounds together, each one helping the other recognise that life is fragile

In a way Sam and Penguin healed their physical wounds together, each one helping the other recognise that life is fragile

But two years after the Newport-based family built an unshakable bond with a wild bird, Penguin disappeared for weeks

But two years after the Newport-based family built an unshakable bond with a wild bird, Penguin disappeared for weeks

But two years after the Newport-based family built an unshakable bond with the wild bird, Penguin disappeared for weeks. Cameron wasn’t sure if she would ever come back.

‘As a joke I said it would be great if she came back on Rueben’s 13th birthday – and she did,’ Sam explained with a smile.

‘I got a call from a neighbour over the hill who said she thought she had Penguin and so I raced over in my car and sure enough Penguin was sitting in their lounge room. I took a video of the moment Rueben spotted Penguin – he was beside himself. He said it was the best birthday ever,’ Cameron said.  

'As a joke I said it would be great if she came back on Rueben's birthday - and she did,' Sam explained with a smile

‘As a joke I said it would be great if she came back on Rueben’s birthday – and she did,’ Sam explained with a smile

'I got a call from a neighbour over the hill who said she thought she had Penguin and so I raced over in my car and sure enough Penguin was sitting in their lounge room. I took a video of the moment Rueben spotted Penguin - he was beside himself. He said it was the best birthday ever,' Cameron said

‘I got a call from a neighbour over the hill who said she thought she had Penguin and so I raced over in my car and sure enough Penguin was sitting in their lounge room. I took a video of the moment Rueben spotted Penguin – he was beside himself. He said it was the best birthday ever,’ Cameron said

Sam was in Italy competing with the Australian Paracanoe team when Penguin left the nest for good, with the happy couple describing it as her 'coming at the perfect time and leaving at the perfect time'

Sam was in Italy competing with the Australian Paracanoe team when Penguin left the nest for good, with the happy couple describing it as her ‘coming at the perfect time and leaving at the perfect time’

Sam was in Italy competing with the Australian Paracanoe team when Penguin left the nest for good, with the happy couple describing it as her ‘coming at the perfect time and leaving at the perfect time’.

But the home didn’t remain pet-free for long, with the family adopting two baby magpies in October 2016.

The tiny twins were blown out of their nest during windy weather, close to where Penguin was found in 2013.

But the home didn't remain magpie-less for long, and in October 2016, two baby magpies were adopted into the fold

But the home didn’t remain magpie-less for long, and in October 2016, two baby magpies were adopted into the fold

The tiny twins were blown out of their nest during windy weather, close to where Penguin was found in 2013

The tiny twins were blown out of their nest during windy weather, close to where Penguin was found in 2013

Keeping with the black and white themed names, Puffin and Panda were a few weeks older than Penguin was when she was first rescued and are potentially her relations given the proximity of where they fell

Keeping with the black and white themed names, Puffin and Panda were a few weeks older than Penguin was when she was first rescued and are potentially her relations given the proximity of where they fell

Keeping with the black and white themed names, Puffin and Panda were a few weeks older than Penguin was when she was first rescued and are potentially her relations given the proximity of where they fell.

‘Our hope is that, like Penguin, they will return to the wild as soon as they are strong enough to survive on their own,’ Cameron told Daily Mail Australia at the time. 

Their wish came true, with the two birds finding their feet and eventually flying away.

'Our hope is that, like Penguin, they will return to the wild as soon as they are strong enough to survive on their own,' Cameron told Daily Mail Australia at the time

‘Our hope is that, like Penguin, they will return to the wild as soon as they are strong enough to survive on their own,’ Cameron told Daily Mail Australia at the time

Penguin's incredible relationship with the family has been documented in a book titled Penguin Bloom featuring Cameron Bloom's photographs and a narrative by New York Times bestselling author Bradley Trevor Greive

Penguin’s incredible relationship with the family has been documented in a book titled Penguin Bloom featuring Cameron Bloom’s photographs and a narrative by New York Times bestselling author Bradley Trevor Greive

They are also working on a new film about the book, which will star Naomi Watts as Sam Bloom. They are currently looking for a director

They are also working on a new film about the book, which will star Naomi Watts as Sam Bloom. They are currently looking for a director

Penguin’s incredible relationship with the family has been documented in a book titled Penguin Bloom featuring Cameron Bloom’s photographs and a narrative by New York Times bestselling author Bradley Trevor Greive, with a percentage of the proceeds made going to Spinal Cure Australia.

They are also working on a new film about the book, which will star Naomi Watts as Sam Bloom. They are currently looking for a director. 

You can follow Penguin on Instagram here and Sam here. 



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