Kate Mouland is an adorable little girl. With her blonde hair, blue eyes, expressive face and wide smile, she quickly makes everyone around her light up with joy.
But, there are times that her mother Shanell Mouland knows that Kate can make people frown as well. Kate has autism and she is often extremely overactive as a result because she is unable to sit still. She often irritates or annoys strangers with her activity. When Shanell took Kate on a flight to Philadelphia, she feared the worst would happen and that other passengers would complain about Kate’s behavior.
Then, something amazing happened that Shanell had never experienced before from strangers. During the flight, Kate continuously reached for another passenger, a businessman in the nearby seat, and kept calling him “Daddy.” Instead of treating Kate or her mother with derision, he stopped working, put his papers aside and spent the entire flight — two and a half hours — playing with Kate. He played with her Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle toys and he told her about his dogs that he had photos of on his phone.
Shanell, who did not know his name, posted a detailed Thank You note online addressed to the “Daddy” in seat 16C.
The man, Eric Kunkel, actually feels a little overwhelmed by the public outpouring of support for his act of kindness. For his action, ABC News pronounced Eric as “America Strong” as part of its America Strong news segments about extraordinary people in America.