Flight attendant’s moment of kindness cheers up Louisiana flood survivor
Dean Hanson goes above, beyond to help distraught passenger
A moment of kindness from a flight attendant -- involving a simple care package and a short message -- gave a survivor of the recent Louisiana flooding a reason to smile.
Dean Hanson, a long-time Sacramento resident who recently moved to Denver, was working on a Southwest Airlines flight from New Orleans to Baltimore when the woman boarded the plane.
He posted on Facebook that the woman was “trying to hold it together” during the flight, “but it was obvious she was having a tough day.”
Hanson found out that her house in Louisiana was gone and everything in it was destroyed.
“She was alone and looked devastated. I felt so helpless,” he said.
Hanson talked to the woman for some time and, while he didn’t have much with on board, he was creative and created a “little SWA gift bag o' LUV snacks” for her.
He then gave her a big hug.
“One piece of wisdom I will never forget -- ‘You never know what a person went through on their way to the airport’ -- rang so true today,” he said.
Hanson said there were some tears and another big hug and when the woman left, she was smiling, feeling a tiny bit refreshed and talking about how much she loves Southwest.
“This was a reminder to me that taking the time to try to help make someone's day brighter -- especially someone who is hurting -- is so important.”
KCRA’s Edie Lambert shared his story on her Facebook page, calling his actions a “true ‘care’ package.”
The Facebook post got an overwhelmingly positive response. When Edie asked Dean about it, he shared the credit with his entire Southwest team.
"It's extremely flattering but almost all of my SWA peeps would have done the same thing. I am so touched by all of the love for Southwest. Makes me feel proud of my SWA family.”