Blind and deaf passenger on the flight desperately wanted to ask for water but couldn't — until a little girl stepped up
A person can do many things to make people around them feel included. Learning the sign language is one such thing. However, a 15-year-old didn't know that her sign language knowledge would come in handy mid-flight. The teen had started learning sign language just a year earlier when she heard an announcement for help for a blind and deaf passenger, Tim Cook, in 2018. The flight attendant hoped that someone among the passengers knew sign language and could help them communicate with the man. That's when the teen girl, Clara Daly, came to their rescue, per CBS Evening News.
The plane was on its way to Portland when the incident happened. The flight attendant had an urgent request for the passengers on the plane. "She pressed the call button and she was like, so we have a passenger on the plane who is blind and deaf. So do you know how to finger spell?" Clara recounted. The teen revealed that she knew how to finger spell and was ready to help the 64-year-old. "They thought that he might need something and they weren't sure how to communicate," the teen went on. She helped the man and revealed that he needed water and information about the arrival time. "He was just lonely and wanted to talk." So Clara sat beside him and talked to him for an hour.
"I just thought that wow, this was really cool and I hoped that I didn't spell anything wrong." A passenger, Lynette Scribner, also shared a Facebook post to appreciate what Clara did for the man. Scribner shared a picture of Clara holding Cook's hands to help him talk. "It was a beautiful reminder, in this time of too much awfulness, that there are still good, good people who are willing to look out for each other," the post read, per the outlet. However, Clara didn't feel that she had done something big. "Doing something like that is what anyone would have done. I don't know why I am getting so much attention for doing something that I wouldn't have thought twice about doing."
People praised the teen for helping the old man in the comments section of the video. @MrWmburr7 wrote, "No, Clara, that's not something 'anyone' would have done. On that flight, you were apparently the 'only' one who had both the skills and the desire to help that stranger! Good for you." @doctorfeelgood2670 commented, "'He was lonely, and just wanted to talk.' That genuinely crushed my soul. The dude has never had a conversation with anyone. He has never had that opportunity. This man and this girl are national treasures."
@flyingrobins68 remarked, "Kudos to the flight attendant who made the announcement and asked for help instead of just ignoring his needs, which they could have easily done." @trexpeditiongotravel shared, "People with communication disabilities often mean no harm. They just want to have a conversation with someone to let everyone know they are also humans! Nice story and a girl with a big heart!" @signer25 expressed, "That is amazing. Blind and Deaf is a very lonely life. Yet this girl helped him far more than she realizes. Human interaction is challenging. Bless this girl for knowing sign language and being willing to stay with him throughout the flight."