COEUR d'ALENE - Sandra Bechthold sifted through the contents of her worn laptop case on Tuesday like she had opened a treasure chest.

CD-ROMs, receipts, birthday cards, her hefty daily planner; pieces of her life tucked away into the black case that has tagged along with her everywhere.

And of course, the silver box itself, containing notes and e-mails and documents spanning her personal life and her work.

"It's kind of like getting back in touch with an old friend," said Bechthold, standing in the Women's Center Thrift Store where she is manager. "The laptop and I are so used to each other."

And just the day before she had almost convinced herself it was gone forever.

Tuesday was an emotional day at the thrift store on Fourth Street, thanks to a stranger who tracked Bechthold down.

After paying for a poster and newspaper ad when her personal laptop was accidentally sold for $5 at the store last week, Bechthold was stunned when a man strolled in on Tuesday with the beloved case in hand.

"I cried," Bechthold said with a laugh. "I had gotten to the point where I told myself, 'It's just a laptop, get over it.' But apparently it was something to him."

The man, calling himself Fred, explained that his wife had heard about the mistake through the news, and he decided to bring it right back. He assured that he had looked through the case but had done nothing with the computer yet.

"I tried to pay him more than what he had paid for it, but he didn't want it. He wouldn't even give us his last name," the petite lady said.

She added that nothing was missing, the Dell Inspiron and power cord still inside the carrying case.

The staff and volunteers at the thrift store were amazed, said Dawnell Scroggin, outreach and education director for the Women's Center, recently renamed the North Idaho Violence Prevention Center.

"I cried, too," Scroggin said. "All of us had goosebumps and there were tears and we gave him a big hug and told him, 'Thank you.'"

Bechthold said this is just the latest happy story she has been a part of since joining the thrift store 17 months ago.

Owner of the Shabby to Chic store also on Fourth Street, she put the shop on sabbatical to help with the thrift store, she said, which supports the prevention center's many service programs with its sales.

She has met women who the nonprofit has helped through tough situations, she said.

She never expected it would help her, too, if in a roundabout way.

"After the first three days (of losing my laptop), I had come to terms with the fact it was just a laptop," Bechthold said. "Today I'm thinking the whole thing is bigger than I am. The community cared in a huge way. It's broadened my horizons."