Clara

Eugene finds Jack at the airport with a one-way ticket to Chicago, and the truth finally spills out: the last time Jack and Whit were together, Whit said he never wanted to see him again. Years ago, after Whit's wife Jenny died, Jack brought his grieving friend to his Nebraska orphanage, where Whit met Clara, a six-year-old girl who had lost her parents and trusted almost no one. Up in the bell tower they trade their dearest treasures - her coin collection, Jenny's toy ring - and Whit promises to adopt her and keep her forever. But Jack has hidden something: another family has been waiting six months to take Clara home. When the Portlands arrive, Whit must give up the little girl he loves...and his fury at Jack shatters their friendship. Now Whit follows Jack to the airport, asks forgiveness for his old anger, and shares a letter from a grown-up Clara, happy at last, that lifts Jack's guilt for good. The friends seal it with a hug - though Eugene's luggage, sadly, is on its way to Hong Kong.

Found on Welcome Home! Album 28 · 12 episodes

The run See every episode

0359 The Merchant of Odyssey Fresh out of community service, Bart Rathbone schemes to reclaim the Electric Palace from Edwin Blackgaard - and finds an unexpected weapon in the tax man.

1 of 2 0360 Three Funerals and a Wedding When famine drives an Israelite family into a foreign land, a widow and her devoted daughter-in-law must decide what loyalty, faith, and home truly mean.

2 of 2 0361 Three Funerals and a Wedding Two destitute widows return to Bethlehem with nothing but each other, until a chance encounter in a barley field opens an unexpected path to redemption.

1 of 2 0362 The Right Choice Returning home from Israel with a surprise for Katrina, Eugene misreads a phone call and races to a lakeside lodge to stop a wedding - setting off a chain of impulsive decisions that puts their entire relationship in question.

2 of 2 0363 The Right Choice While Whit weighs a life-changing request from the Universal Encyclopedia board, a frantic Eugene must learn what love really means before Katrina makes the choice that will decide their future.

0364 Home, Sweet Home With Odyssey pulling out all the stops to welcome Whit home, one friend quietly makes plans to slip away unnoticed.

0365 Clara When Eugene finds Jack about to board a one-way flight out of Odyssey, Jack finally reveals the painful secret behind his broken friendship with Whit - a story of grief, an orphaned girl, and a promise that couldn't be kept.

0366 Solitary Refinement Reeling from a painful breakup, Eugene retreats to a monastery to test a life of silence and solitude - while back in Odyssey, Whit is too busy to hear the answer he's praying for.

0367 The Decision When a mission board's offer threatens to pull Whit away from Odyssey, everyone around him campaigns for a different outcome - and Whit must sort genuine calling from every other motive.

0368 The Other Woman A tabloid photo of the mayor holding hands with a mysterious blonde woman threatens to unravel a secret he has guarded for years.

0369 It's a Wrap! A Kids Radio crew shadows Whit through an "ordinary" day at Whit's End - but between a found wallet full of cash, an overeager reporter, and Harlow Doyle on the case, nothing stays ordinary for long.

1 of 2 0370 Christmas Around the World When two kids need help with a report on Christmas carols, Whit's Imagination Station whisks them on a musical journey through the countries and centuries where the world's most beloved songs of the season were born

2 of 2 0371 Christmas Around the World A group of time-traveling friends tours Christmas celebrations across the globe, discovering how one song of hope takes on the voice of every culture that sings it.

Featured characters

Minor characters & crew 6 more roles

6 supporting roles

Airport P.A. Announcer Julie Heron First Airport Attendant Corey Burton Clara Portland Aria Curzon Annabella Lee Rachel Hoffman Peggy Portland Julie Herron Peter Portland Dave Arnold

Made by

Chris Anthony Host Phil Lollar Writer · Director Dave Arnold Sound Designer · Producer Kurt Bruner Executive Producer

The story

Read the full synopsis 3 min

At the airport, Eugene discovers Jack waiting for a one-way flight to Chicago. Jack refuses to explain at first, but Eugene urges him not to leave his friends wondering whether they have driven him away. At last, Jack reveals that the last time he and Whit were together, Whit said that he never wanted to see Jack again.

The conflict had begun after the death of Whit’s wife, Jenny. Hoping that a change of surroundings would ease his friend’s grief, Jack had brought Whit to the Nebraska orphanage he operated. There Whit met Clara, a six-year-old girl whose parents had died in a car accident. Clara generally kept to herself and her toy rabbit, Mr. Chuckleford, but she quickly trusted Whit.

Whit defended Clara when another child teased her, listened seriously to the memories she treasured, and spent more and more time with her. In the orphanage bell tower, Clara showed him her precious coin collection. The ordinary coins were priceless to her because they had come from her parents. Whit showed her a toy ring that Jenny had always worn, and together they spoke honestly about how painful it was to remember the people they had lost.

Jack was pleased to see Whit and Clara comforting each other, but he withheld an important fact. A couple named Peter and Peggy Portland had begun the process of adopting Clara six months earlier. Legal complications had delayed them, and Jack never imagined that Whit and Clara would grow so close before the adoption was completed.

One evening, Clara explained that her mother had taught her to chase away nightmares by shouting, “Go away, bad dream! Boo!” Whit and Clara admitted that neither felt as sad when they were together. Moved by their bond, Whit offered to adopt her, and Clara joyfully accepted his promise that they would be together forever.

The next morning, Whit announced his decision to Jack just as the Portlands arrived to take Clara home. Whit was furious to learn that Jack had concealed the planned adoption. He accused Jack of using both him and Clara and threatened to fight the Portlands in court. Jack admitted his mistake but challenged Whit to consider whether he was seeking Clara’s welfare or merely trying to end his own loneliness. Clara needed the loving two-parent home the Portlands could provide.

Another child overheard the adults and cruelly told Clara that strangers were coming to take her away. Clara fled to her hiding place in the bell tower. Whit found her desperately repeating her words against bad dreams, but he gently explained that this sorrow could not be wished away. Though Clara wanted only him, Whit chose what he now understood was best for her. He gave her Jenny’s ring, and she gave him her treasured coins so each would remember the other and remain brave.

After Clara left with the Portlands, Whit’s grief turned against Jack. He declared that he no longer knew his old friend and never wanted to see him again. Jack has carried the guilt ever since. He originally came to Odyssey intending to seek Whit’s forgiveness, but because Whit was away, he stayed to help at Whit’s End as a kind of penance. Now that Whit has returned, Jack has lost the courage to face him.

Before Jack can board his flight, Whit arrives. He has learned of Jack’s strange behavior and followed him to the airport. Rather than condemning Jack, Whit apologizes for the anger and selfishness that had controlled him. He also produces a letter from Clara that he has kept in his Bible, hoping for the day when he could share it with Jack.

Now grown, Clara has written that the Portlands became the loving mother and father Whit had promised they would be. She thanks both men for giving her a wonderful beginning and says she could not be happier. Her message releases Jack from the guilt he has carried, while Whit assures him that the nightmare is over and asks him to stay.

Jack agrees, and the old friends seal their reconciliation with a hug and a playful argument about a prank from fifth grade. As they celebrate, Eugene finally asks whether his delayed luggage has arrived. The airline attendant reports that it has been sent to Hong Kong.