BUFFALO, N.Y. - When someone broke into a University at Buffalo student's home, they took everything from wallets to electronics to money. They also took a necklace which has a very special meaning.
It contained some of Haley Lang’s grandmother's ashes.
"It's crazy to think that while I was gone in class there was someone in my room looking through my stuff," says Lang.
Lang lives with five other women near UB South. Last Thursday afternoon, someone broke into their kitchen when no one was home.
"Our front door was locked, all of our bedroom doors were locked, it wasn't like we weren't taking caution and being safe like we should be," says Lang.
The thief took cash, purses and headphones.
"And then it had hit me when we were on our way home that I wasn't wearing my necklace that day," Lang says.
Lang’s necklace was gone. It was a Christmas present from her mom and contains her grandmother's ashes. Later that night, Lang posted photos on Facebook hoping someone would spot it.
"It says always with you on the back," she says.
That post has now been shared 18-thousand times.
"I really just want the necklace back. My mom had been talking to me, she said, yeah, we can always get you a new one, but it's forever going to bother me that a piece of her is somewhere else where it shouldn't be," says Lang.
Lang and her grandmother were close.
"She just had a very special way of making me feel safe. I could go to her for anything," says Lang.
They got closer when Lang’s grandmother developed dementia, and they'd share nightly phone calls. When Lang starts getting upset about the necklace, she thinks about what her grandmother would say.
"I know that she would tell me that I should pray for whoever did this. That I shouldn't be angry. That the necklace, just because I don't have the necklace, doesn't mean she's not with me. I know that she would want me to be strong and I know that she wouldn't want me to let this upset me all the time. If anything, she would want me to look at the positives like thank god no one was home," she says.
If Lang gets her necklace back, she's never letting it go.
"Whether it's in my backpack, or it's in my purse, whatever, like, it will always be with me," she says.
A Buffalo Police spokesperson says they're making progress in the investigation. But, if you know anything, call 716-851-4416.