JetBlue Crew Swaddles Grieving Grandmother in Love on Flight to Orlando

Alone in her grief, the grandmother of an Orlando shooting victim, former Cleveland resident Luis Omar Ocasio-Capo, boarded a plane Tuesday to make the difficult journey to his funeral.

Omar, as the 20-year-old was known to his friends, was one of the youngest victims in the Orlando mass shooting. He had lived in Cleveland for several years until he moved to Florida with his mother in 2012.

JetBlue crew member Kelly Davis Karas was aware of the tragedy that put the grieving grandmother on the flight, and she and other members of the crew went out of their way to make sure she was as comfortable as possible.

Karas described the flight in a Facebook post that has been shared more than 81,000 times.

"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."

Karas started a signature collection on a piece of paper that she and her coworker distributed to other passengers while taking beverage orders.

About halfway through, Karas realized that they would need more paper. Passengers were not just writing their signatures, they were writing paragraphs of condolences.

"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 the plane landed, a slight change in standard protocol was made by adding "JetBlue stands with Orlando," to the end of the landing announcement. Also, with permission granted from Ocasio-Capo's grandmother and at the request of a couple of passengers, a moment of silence was observed in Omar's memory.

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During deplaning, each of the passengers took time to offer condolences to the mourning grandmother. Not a single passenger was upset with the slower than usual deplaning process, each taking time to speak with the grandmother. They all offered sympathetic condolences, others hugged her and everyone rallied around in a way that left Karas choking back tears.

"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.

I am moved to tears yet again as I struggle to put our experience into words. In spite of a few hateful, broken human beings in this world who can all too easily legally get their hands on mass assault weapons - people ARE kind. People DO care. And through our customers' humanity today, and through the generosity of this wonderful company I am so grateful to work for, I am hopeful that someday soon we can rally together to make the world a safer place for all.

I will never forget today. ‪#‎Orlandoproud‬"

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[Image Source: YouTube]