Woman asked internet sleuths to find a 6-year-old boy she was 'enamored' with 40 years ago. 'Thriends' reunited them in 24 hours

Some may dare say the internet does a better job at finding someone than any other mode of investigation. On September 14, 2026, Jennifer Edwards (@jenn0716) came on Threads with a mission. She shared a photo of 6-year-old Nicholas Long and explained that they went to the same school from around either "1987/88or 88/89." They were in first grade together at Palo Alto School in Sierra Vista, Arizona. Edwards recalled that during recess, they would sit in tractor tires and stare at each other, completely "enamored." 40 years later, she asked her 'Thriends' (Thread friends) to help her find Long. 24 hours later, the internet did its magic. The post reached 1.2 million viewers and received 5,800 likes, 634 comments, and 180 reshares.

'Facebook Nick'

The moment Jennifer Edwards shared her 'mission' on Threads, several 'Thriends' came to the comment section to help. They suggested several potential Nicks, but the closest match was a Nick Long on Facebook with 'Sierra Vista' in his profile. It also mentioned that he was in a relationship. Edwards decided to reach out anyway. She wrote, "It does say he's in a relationship (mine also says that and I'm hella single), but if he's taken, I'm only saying hello and continuing my journey." To make sure he responded, Edwards also sent him a video message to assure him she was real and not a scammer.

Just friends

Less than 24 hours later, Edwards found Nick Long. She wrote, "Nicholas Long was found. He resides in San Antonio, TX now and is a fur dad of 2! He shared a baby pic, and y'all, the same lil' cheeks." The pair connected on video call, and the first thing Edwards said was, "You do look like your picture!" The funny part was Long was no longer wearing the glasses he had as a child, while Edwards now wore a pair. When she announced they found him, Long jokingly added, "She hunted me down." But the internet wanted to know more, whether he was single or straight, and Edwards responded in the comments, "We hit for the same team. Unfortunate on that side, but we friends again, so it's a win!" In another update, she thanked everyone for helping her find Nick, and jokingly asked if they could help her find someone else from her past.

Reconnecting with lost friends

Reconnecting with someone from the past can feel surprisingly daunting. A 2024 study published in Communications Psychology found that 90% of participants had lost touch with someone they still cared about, yet many were hesitant to reach out. Even when people wanted to reconnect, had the person's contact information, and believed they would appreciate hearing from them, only about a third actually sent the message in two of the researchers' experiments. Edwards took a very different approach — turning to thousands of strangers online to help bridge a gap that had lasted nearly four decades.

Same as 6-year-old Nick

Thriends were joyous for Edwards when she finally found Nick Long. @sirenspectacle commented, "Aw, this is so cute! I’ve always been super anti when it comes to keeping up with people and friends, so I honestly probably wouldn’t remember the names of people. I knew that young, but this is cool." 2014haps added, "Ah, he looks the same. I love this!"

You can follow Jennifer Edwards (@jen0716) on Threads for more updates and lifestyle content.

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