A Missed Flight Led to an Unforgettable Act of Kindness

When Shayna Murray from Texas was waiting for her flight at the Dallas airport, she didn't expect too many problems or delays. "I was walking towards my gate with my ticket in hand, ready to board the plane that had already arrived," she recounts in a particularly moving post she wrote on social media. "Suddenly, I saw a strange lump from afar, and I decided to check it out."

The strange lump she saw turned out to be a man lying on the airport floor, who appeared unwell. "I approached him and asked if everything was okay, because it was clear something was not right. I couldn't quite pinpoint it, but I sensed there was something unusual going on," she explained.

The man kept mumbling something about being 'worried' and 'where is my flight.' "I decided to talk to him and ask various questions to help me understand the problem. He told me his name was Will and kept saying he was scared of missing his flight. Then it suddenly dawned on me that he had autism."

Shayna asked to see his flight ticket to help him navigate and show him where he needed to be, but according to her, he had no idea where his ticket was. It wasn't clear how someone with autism could travel alone or be at the airport alone, but all that concerned Shayna at that moment was finding someone who knew Will and could help resolve the awkward situation he found himself in.

In his bag, she found his phone and searched the recent call list to find what she needed. "I called his mother to say he was at the airport and not feeling well, and meanwhile, I summoned paramedics who determined he was likely on the verge of fainting due to not eating or drinking. I work for American Airlines, and the medical staff immediately instructed that I should change my flight, eat lunch with Will, and ensure he caught his flight on time."

Shayna became the hero of the day when her post went viral, earning her compliments for her good deed. "It's not something you take for granted that you'd miss your flight to help a stranger, especially one who had no way of helping himself. Kudos to you," the commenters wrote, but Shayna insists, "I am sure it's something anyone in my position would have done."