- 773shares
- Share
- Tweet
- Facebook Messenger
Savannah Phillips, of Oklahoma, shared the story of how a stranger on a plane became an unlikely hero to her when she was being body-shamed by a passenger.
In a Facebook post, Savannah wrote about her flight from Oklahoma to Chicago, where she was seated next to a nightmare of a person.
I am only sharing this story of what happened to me today in hopes that the person who stuck up for me will somehow be recognized…
I’ve been on airplanes for the past three weeks. My flight to Chicago was changed to an earlier flight because of storms, so I didn’t get to pick my seat like a normally do. I always try to sit in a row where I don’t have to sit next to anyone. I’m not the biggest person on the airplane, but I’m not the smallest. My worst nightmare is someone being uncomfortable because they have to sit next to me.
As being someone who has similar issues about her body, I can understand what Savannah was talking about. Flights are always an issue for the heavy-bodied, because the seating can get uncomfortable. And try as you might, you can’t help but being apologetic of your co-passengers for causing the smallest of inconveniences.
Tough luck for Savannah, that the seat beside her was occupied by an rude comedian, who didn’t express his discomfort on his face, but chose to make a cruel joke about it on text. And Savannah found out.
I don’t even know what the rest of his text said. I turned my head away as fast as I could. I was shocked and it was like confirmation of the negative things I think about myself on a daily basis. Before I knew it, I could feel hot, salty tears coming down my face. I sat and cried silently, hoping this guy didn’t try to make small talk, because I didn’t trust how I would react and I didn’t want to get kicked off the plane. I was so hurt. The pilot came overhead and said there would be a 30 minute delay before he could take off- great. Just more time I would have to sit next to this creep.
We sat on the runway waiting for the OK to take off for about 10 minutes- I sat there unable to stop silently crying. I was scrunching myself up against the wall as far as I could.
Can you imagine being made to feel so ashamed for who you are in such a cruel fashion? And then, imagine having to sit next to such a despicable person for the rest of the flight, because what other option did she have?
Well, there was one option. And he was witnessing this entire thing from the seat right behind Savannah’s. He saw the text too, and decided to do something about it.
All of a sudden, someone from behind us taps on the guy’s shoulder and says, “Hey- I need to talk to you.” The guy next to me takes out his headphones. Someone behind us says, “We are switching seats. Now.” The guy next to me said, “OK- why?” And I hear someone say (removing curse words), “You are texting about her, and I’m not putting up with that.” A guy comes and sits next to me and is shocked when he sees me crying. He asked if I saw the texts and I nodded yes. He encouraged me not to let that guy get to me and that everything was going to be fine. We talked about Ross and the kids, his two year old son, our jobs, amongst other things.
He said he just happened to see that guy’s text messages he started shaking he was so mad and knew he had to do something. He stopped the flight attendant and told her what he was about to do. I told him thank you for what he did and that it meant the world to me- and that he would be my husband’s new favorite person.
For Savannah, this kind stranger was a hero, a blessing that she believed God had sent her so she wouldn’t have to endure the harsh judgement from mean person. And now, she was trying to let her hero, Chase, know how much she appreciated what he did!
The flight attendant kept trying to give him free drinks and told him that he was her hero. He wasn’t her hero- he was mine. I told him that yesterday at church, one of my favorite people on the planet, Jeff McMillon, talked about how God sees you. Good time, bad times, in a mess- your own fault or not- God sees you. And God saw me today. I told him that he was a blessing sent to me and how thankful I was that he was there.
So- this guy’s name is Chase- he works for Whiskey Row in Nashville. Share this post, look him up- whatever- he did prove to me today that (1) not only does God see me, but (2) there are more good people in the world than bad.
The post received tremendous amount of love on Facebook, as people tried to find Chase and cheer up Savannah!
Social media can be such a morale booster sometime!
Real men like Chase are so rare, but they’re still there!
Many of them wanted to know if Chase had been found yet!
Well, the internet has found people with a lot less info! So of course, they managed to find him! Chase Irwin wasn’t just found, but he was also bombarded with messages of love and appreciation!
Someone shared the link of an FB page for the restaurant in Nashville, Tennessee, where Chase is a manager and that’s it!
Look at all the love he’s been receiving since!
Isn’t it amazing? Savannah and Chase have even appeared on news and talk shows now, all because a random act of kindness by a stranger!
Isn’t it amazing? We sure do need more people like Chase here!
- 773shares
- Share
- Tweet
- Facebook Messenger