Man barged into third-grade classroom — the teacher broke down in tears after learning his identity

Teachers often don't get the appreciation they deserve and fail to realize the impact they've had on so many lives. A man named Garrett shared a video on @thebucketlistfamily revealing a surprise for a third-grade teacher, Mr. Bottita. The man barged into the classroom while the teacher was teaching and left him and his students in confusion. Just moments later, the teacher recalled the identity of the man and broke down in tears. The duo’s interaction became an inspiring hope for the tiny tots present there. The impact of a teacher is more than one can imagine and this story captured it perfectly. 

Garrett and his family are known as the Bucket List family on Instagram and share vivid adventures and surprises, each of which touches a heart or leaves a remarkable message. It takes a special heart to do something that makes a difference in the lives of others. For him to have come this far, there were many people involved and one of them was Bottita. The teacher was busy teaching his students in the classroom when the man barged in without prior request. 

At first, he was confused but within seconds, he was able to recall who Garrett was. “Oh my goodness!” he exclaimed, before rushing to greet Garrett and giving him a tight hug. “After 30 years, Garrett returned to his exact same classroom where his teacher, Mr. Bottita, still teaches to this day!” the caption read. The man was eager to show his teacher gratitude and after 30 years, he planned a mesmerizing way to do it. He decided that while expressing his gratitude to Bottita, every other teacher should understand the depth of the love they have shared with their profession. He decided to launch his new kids' book by surprising teachers in class and tapping into their bucket lists and Bottita was one of them.

“You guys have a great teacher,” Garrett told the tiny tots, staring at him in excitement and wonder. Before he could dive into the surprise, the man brought his wife and children to meet the teacher who made him the gentleman he is. As soon as Bottita spotted them, he was moved to tears. Seeing the once little boy now a responsible husband, dad and so much more, felt like an ethereal accomplishment. The family got down to reading their book in class. In another video, the teacher was finally given his surprise. It was revealed that Bottita filled out the bucket list and the family was able to get a glimpse of it. 

They knew just the perfect way to thank him. “You’ve got a substitute coming in on Thursday because you and I are going in a fighter jet,” Garrett revealed. The latter part of the video encapsulated their surprise. Bottita’s smile as he was up in the air in the jet gave away that it was a dream come true. “Dear teachers, you never know the impact you have. You can count the number of seeds in an apple, but you can’t count the number of apples in a seed,” the caption read. Garrett left a heartwarming message saying, “Every child deserves a teacher, a mentor, a friend like Mr. Bottita and every teacher deserves to be thanked,” Garrett remarked.

You can follow (@thebucketlistfamily) on Instagram for more content on lifestyle and humanity.