Irish American teen “angel's” in-flight help goes viral

When Alaska Airlines staff were having difficulty communicating with a 64-year-old blind and deaf passenger this young woman knew exactly what to do... have a chat, using sign-spelling.

A 15-year-old Irish American girls actions on a flight from Boston to Portland, Oregon, this weekend went viral in a world starved of “good news”.

Fellow passenger, Lynette Scribner, was so moved by what she witnessed, she posted this photo along with a moving message (see below). Tim Cook, a 64-year-old man, who is blind and deaf was traveling on his own and while his fellow passengers and the Alaska Airlines staff were doing everything they could to help him on his journey they worried that they had no way to communicate with the passenger who was becoming distressed.

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The airline staff had a bright idea and asked the other passengers, over the PA, if anyone onboard could sign.

Clara Daly, a 15-year-old, who had learned American Sign Language (ASL), to help her deal with her own dyslexia, came forward and figured out how to communicate with Cook. By sign-spelling onto Cook’s hand they were soon able to chat freely.

They started with “How are you?” and Daly reportedly blushed when Cook asked the young woman if she was pretty.

In Scribner’s Facebook post she said “For the rest of the flight she attended to Tim and made sure his needs were met. It was fascinating to watch as she signed one letter at a time into his hand. He was able to 'read' her signing and they carried on an animated conversation. When he asked her if she was pretty, she blushed and laughed as the seat mate, who had learned a few signs, communicated an enthusiastic yes to Tim. I don't know when I've ever seen so many people rally to take care of another human being.”

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She concluded saying “It was a beautiful reminder, in this time of too much awfulness, that there are still good, good people who are willing to look out for each other…

“I have been so touched by the response to this story. We are all starving for good news and this was just what we needed. Thanks all!”

Here’s Scribner’s full Facebook post: