Every parent knows that plane rides with children can be unnerving.
But for Shannell and her three-year-old daughter, Kate, they can be terrifying and distressing.
Kate has autism. So when Shannell boarded a plane with her daughter to go from Florida to Philadelphia in 2014, she was a bit on edge.
Shannell was anxious to see who would sit down next to her and her daughter. People aren’t always as nice as you hope they’d be, Shannell says.
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Passengers continued to walk by their row, until finally, a businessman named Eric stopped.
What happened next would make it the most memorable flight of this mother’s life.
Little Kate instantly burst out “Daddy!” to the stranger. She was enchanted by the man, and kept reaching her hands out to him.
Shannell had no idea how the man would react. Would he brush her off and ignore her? Would he at least give her a smile?
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The man tucked away his documents and his briefcase, and began talking to Kate. Eric, Kate’s new best friend, proceeded to chat with her and entertain her throughout the entire flight to Philadelphia.
Shannell was so touched that when she got home she wrote a blog post about this kind man who was no longer a stranger to their family.
The story quickly went viral. Eric was shocked to see that such a simple display of friendliness touched so many hearts.
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