A Sacramento couple who saw the story of four children pleading to thieves to return their dying mother's letters is offering a $1,000 reward.

Jean Riker said she was watching News10 at 6 p.m. last Friday and "was in tears" when she heard the children reading their pleas to the thieves who had broken into their home and stolen letters from their mother who is dying of cancer.

When Riker was 20 she lost her mother to cancer. "I was so touched by the thought of those children growing up with those letters and now it seems someone stole them," she said.

Riker empathizes with Lori "Smith" (not her real last name) and her children. When Smith had her first child 17 years ago, she began writing letters. "I would write about their birth, about other important moments in their lives and how we both experienced the day," she said.

Anyone with any information is asked to contact the Sacramento Police Department.