McDonald’s worker dismantles display kiosk to give toy to boy with autism

An Indianapolis McDonald’s worker went above and beyond to put a smile on a child’s face.

Bonnie Kandel’s 7-year-old son, Leif, who has autism, was collecting “Teen Titans” toys from Happy Meals. On Monday, he was heartbroken to discover his meal didn’t come with the latest toy because the Indiana restaurant ran out.

“I explained more about Leif and why it was so important to him… that he had been talking about these toys nonstop for weeks,” Kandel explained in the post published to Love What Matters Facebook page.

Ta’Qualliyia Patterson, 16, overheard the conversation stepped in. The teen got permission from a manager and disassembled the toy kiosk to retrieve the highly-sought trinket for the 7-year-old.

“TQ [Ta’Qualliyia Patterson] spent the next 15-20 minutes getting those toys for my son. He was overjoyed and has been playing with them for HOURS!,” the mom wrote.

Bonnie took to the Facebook page on Monday to express her gratitude to the 16-year-old’s act of kindness.

“McDonald’s, I hope you know how lucky you are to have such a sweet woman on your staff. Someone who takes special care of their customers, someone who goes well above and beyond.”

The high school senior’s mother, Jennifer, said she isn’t surprised by her daughter’s behavior.

“I didn’t really feel like she went out of her way and did something special because that’s just how she is on a normal basis,” Jennifer told RTV6.

Ta’Qualliyia echoed her mom’s comments, saying she will go out of her way to spread cheer.

“It made me feel happy,” Patterson told WISH. “Seeing him excited and knowing that I made him smile, it made my day.”

[Feature Photo: Facebook]