JetBlue attendant noticed an Orlando victim’s grandmother on board and the entire plane paid their respects

Last updated on: June 16, 2016 at 4:05 pm by Nancy French

JetBlue attendant noticed an Orlando victim’s grandmother on board and the entire plane paid their respects 2016-06-16T16:05:08-05:00 Nancy French

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Luis Omar Ocasio-Capo, 20, was killed after a gunman opened fire at a nightclub in Orlando, Florida

Luis Omar Ocasio-Capo, 20, was killed after a gunman opened fire at a nightclub in Orlando, Florida

This is so touching. CNN reports that a JetBlue flight attendant realized that a grandmother traveling alone was actually going to the Orlando funeral of her grandson who was killed in that nightclub killing spree:

Jetblue crew member Kelly Davis Karas decided that the woman, though grieving alone, could not leave the plane without knowing the world was with her. Karas passed around a piece of paper for passengers to sign so their words might ease the grandmother’s aching heart.

As Karas pushed the beverage cart down the plane’s aisle, she whispered to passengers about the paper. Halfway down the aisle, another crew member on board said more paper was needed. Instead of signing their names and moving on, passengers were writing paragraphs—long notes of compassion, grief and strength.

Here is Kelly’s account, which she posted on Facebook about how her friend Melinda took care of her… and then Kelly had an idea:

Knowing she was making this hard journey alone, JetBlue employees made sure to be at her side every step of the way. Melinda stood quietly by her wheelchair while we waited until it was time to board. Kellie, the gate agent, boarded with her and helped get her settled. Melinda and I gave her a blanket, a pillow, a box of tissues and water so she could be as comfortable as possible. She was understandably distraught, but met us with kindness and gentleness. And gratitude.

But here’s where our flight got truly inspiring. I had the idea to pass around a piece of paper to everyone on board and invite them to sign it for this grieving grandmother. I talked it over with Melinda and she started the process from the back of the plane. As we took beverage orders, we whispered a heads up about the plan as we went.

Halfway through, Melinda called me, “Kel, I think you should start another paper from the front. Folks are writing PARAGRAPHS.” So I did. Then we started one in the middle. Lastly, running out of time on our hour and fifteen minute flight, we handed out pieces of paper to everyone still waiting.

When we gathered them together to present them to her, we didn’t have just a sheet of paper covered in names, which is what I had envisioned. Instead, we had page after page after page after page of long messages offering condolences, peace, love and support. There were even a couple of cash donations, and more than a few tears.

When we landed, I made an announcement that the company had emailed to us earlier in the morning to use as an optional addition to our normal landing announcement, which states “JetBlue stands with Orlando.” Then with her permission and at the request of a couple of passengers, we offered a moment of silence in Omar’s memory.

As we deplaned, EVERY SINGLE PERSON STOPPED TO OFFER HER THEIR CONDOLENCES. Some just said they were sorry, some touched her hand, some hugged her, some cried with her. But every single person stopped to speak to her, and not a single person was impatient at the slower deplaning process.

Though of course this will not eliminate the pain of this grieving grandmother, I hope she — and the other victims’ families — know that our nation grieves with them.

You can read the original Facebook post of the flight attendant below:

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