vendredi 2 juin 2017
How a Kind Stranger Riding BART Made a Blind Little Boy's Day
Gio Garrett absolutely loves Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART), so much so that his mom says he can't live without it. The little boy, who was born with Williams syndrome - a rare genetic condition resulting in mild to moderate intellectual disabilities, unique personality characteristics, distinctive facial features, and cardiovascular issues - has been obsessed with BART since complications during a brain surgery left him blind. After the operation, he fell into a six-day coma and the first thing he heard when he woke up was BART - he's been a huge fan ever since.
Now, Gio takes a weekly trip on BART with his mom, Dianne Linares, to explore all of the stops (which he has completely memorized) and learn more about this mode of transportation. On a recent weekly trip, Gio was hitting something with his cane, so he asked his mom what it was. It turned out to be the bike of a kind stranger who would go on to make Gio's entire day.
In a post to Facebook, Linares detailed the chance encounter:
Well, we were arriving at the 19th street station and Gio's cane kept slipping and hitting a bike. He asked what his cane was hitting and I told him it was a bike. He then loudly asked, "Where did you ride today?" and the gentleman replied telling us he went on a hike. He then asked how Gio's morning was and Gio replied, "Awesome! We were on Bart all morning!" The guy gave a crazy look and said "You've been on Bart ALL morning??" I explained Gio's fascination with Bart . . . After I finished the story, the gentleman looked impressed and it was apparent he didn't want to stop his conversation with Gio. It was even more apparent that Gio made a new friend.
We finally arrived at the Lafayette Bart station and started to get off; Gio shouted "Bye, have a good day!!" in his usual friendly voice. Before we could exit, the gentleman quickly asked me if he could give Gio a gift. I said yes. As the Bart doors started to shut he quickly handed us a card and the Bart train went off. I looked down and I was in shock - he gave Gio a Bart train ticket. But not just a regular old Bart train ticket, one that had enough money to ride Bart for the REST OF THE YEAR. It was a very generous amount!! We ran down stairs to the Bart ticket center and I asked the lady if there was a way to figure out who purchased the card. She said no. Please help us find this big hearted guy!!
Since posting her story about Gio's new friend, the mom has been urging others to share it in the hopes that she'll be able to reconnect with the man who was so generous to her boy. "Gio wants to say THANK YOU!! It was such a joy to be reassured that there are still good, kind, compassionate, and friendly people in the Bay," Linares wrote. "And with all of the horrible events that have been happening on Bart recently, it's comforting to know that there are Good Samaritans riding among us on the train! Please repost to help us get a chance to tell him say thank you."
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