Denise Haight was walking around Home Depot, trying to figure out something she could do for her grandson’s birthday. Then two employees walked up to her and helped her in a special way.
Her grandson Cameron is 7-year-old and has autism. He is obsessed with mailboxes. She wrote in a Facebook post, “He loves to put things in, take them out, open the door, close the door, raise the flag, lower the flag over and over (not necessarily in that order!)”
So Denise had an idea, but didn’t know how to make it a reality. She wanted to build a mailbox that could be moved from room to room, but also strong enough to withstand being played with.
Haight said, “I had an idea of what I was trying to construct — I had gone in to get parts and pieces and try to create something. But I think they looked at me and thought, ‘she looks like she’s confused.’”
She told her idea to the Home Depot employees. Gary Malak, the Store Manager, asked her to trust him. She agreed and was told to come back the following Saturday.
When she returned to the store, she couldn’t believe it! The amazing employees of the Gaylord, Michigan, Home Depot had constructed the “perfect” mailbox for her grandson.
Tears immediately began to fall down her face.
When she asked how much the mailbox would cost, Malak told her that it was free of charge. “Tell that little boy Happy Birthday from Home Depot,” he said.
Haight said, “I must have looked like an idiot pushing the cart through the check out crying like a baby!”
The crew at Home Depot not only went out of their way to build the perfect gift for Cameron, but they also added a few extra little presents inside: a teddy bear, other small toys, and a Home Depot apron.
In a now-viral Facebook post, Haight thanked the amazing employees who contributed to her grandson’s present. She wrote, “Thank you so much to Gary & Lorel as well as Gene, Laura and Don who built the mailbox!”
While Home Depot does not have an official statement, a representative of the company said that they “love to hear these stories.”
Cameron is a huge fan of his birthday present and his grandmother said “the look on his face (when he first saw it) was just amazing.”
It’s an amazing thing when people go out of their way and spend their time to help others. The world could be a better place if we only built more ‘mailboxes’. AMEN?
