Unexpected Friends

I had the pleasure of meeting a woman who has befriended a young man that lives next door. He is Autistic/Asperger’s Syndrome and is high functioning so he helps her out around the house, does her landscaping, odd jobs etc.. She helps him with social interactions, someone to talk to and brings him out to lunch. He only comes here!!! Although he struggles with social skills, he is confident ordering a chicken pot pie and dining in at our Derry location. He is a triplet and at 20 years old he is watching his sisters go off to college and it difficult for him since he doesn’t get to do the things we take for granted. This woman is his friend and our store is his place. After he left I sat and joined the woman for a little bit while she told me their story. I presented her with a gift card so they could come out for lunch again and gave her the RAK certificate to pay it forward and together find someone they could give it to. She wanted to let him give it to his parents and proudly say it was because he did such a good job today saying “thank you”. We went one step further and I issued another Gift Card so he could give his parents the opportunity to go out to dinner themselves.  She was thrilled and of course I made her cry. It was a very emotional conversation and was at the beginning of the shift. It definitely changed the course of the day for me as I’ve been having my own personal world a little upside down lately so this was a huge reminder that there are better things to focus on and be grateful for.