Growing old usually means providing oneself with a lot of new tools they aren’t used to using or needing – let alone budgeting for. And nothing can make taking care of business harder than needing to both learn and use technology in order to get it right. For many elderly people, the telephone was as advanced an invention as they ever planned to use. And for this one senior woman, even that was too much this time.
But after she dialed the wrong number, the unsuspecting people at the end of the line were in for a little surprise.
Bernice is a senior from Albuquerque, New Mexico, where she’s been in the market for a new walker for her weary bones for quite some time now. But when she recently tried to get in touch with the medical supply store that could fix her up, she ended up leaving her order on the voicemail for the local Bernalillo County District Attorney’s office instead.
Employee Kyle Hartstock got the message – and was so moved and concerned by the senior’s simple message that he knew something had to be done. He played it for the rest of his team so that they could brainstorm together. “I put it on speaker and played it for everybody because it was a different kind of missed call, and it was kind of cute and humorous at the same time,” he explained.
First, he called her back to let her know that her message hadn’t gone where it was meant to go. Poor Bernice seemed unsure of what had gone wrong, or how to continue to get what she needed. And Kyle wasn’t ready to give up on the sweet senior.
Instead of leaving her to fend for herself, Kyle and all of his office staff friends decided to get Bernice what she needs so they wouldn’t keep worrying about her. Everybody pitched in a bit of cash – and then decided to show up at the home of the senior with the surprise.
It’s a good thing they work at a legal office with access to that kind of information!
Although Bernice tried to pay the staff back for the walker, they wouldn’t hear any of it – but after a long and heartwarming round of hugs from each person who was part of the surprise, she realized that the real gift they gave her was priceless.