Sitting on a Delta airlines jet waiting for pushback from the gate, the senior flight attendant politely asked, “What can we do for you?” I was silent for a moment as I thought about my reply as she continued to speak, “Mr. Bauer, we checked your Delta file and you have about a zillion miles, so it wouldn’t do any good to offer you those. However, the flight crew would really like to do something nice for you . . . maybe we could all take you to dinner tonight — on us?”
Imagine this for a moment . . . this very attractive senior flight attendant inviting ME to dinner with she and her whole crew? This is a single guy’s dream come true! She was accurate that I have many flight miles; however I have never, ever, had a flight attendant ask me to dinner, let alone the whole crew! I could honestly say I felt blessed at that moment in time…
My reply was simple . . . “no thanks, just pass it along to someone else.” Looking puzzled for a moment, she processed my request and stated, “I’ll pass that along to the others in our crew . . . we really appreciate what you did.”
You see, about thirty minutes earlier I was at the gate waiting to board my flight. It was a typical day for me, a day that I have repeated hundreds of times; the hustle and bustle of Dallas/Fort Worth airport in full swing.
Near the ticket counter I noticed a young soldier waiting to catch the same flight. There he was in his freshly pressed Army uniform, standing tall with a coach ticket in hand. He looked to be about 21 years old and I wondered . . . was he coming back from Iraq? Or was he just going? Had he participated in battle? Would he be on TV . . . or had he already been? Does that young man know how I and countless others appreciate the sacrifices that our young soldiers make – day in and day out?
Peering down at my boarding pass with a First Class seating assignment, as a sign of appreciation, I thought how nice it would be to switch seats with this young man. This could be my way of telling him thanks for a job well done and to let him know that as an American, I appreciate the sacrifices made by our young servicemen and servicewomen.
The plan was set in motion. I boarded the aircraft and upon passing the galley I interrupted the flight attendants and told them I had a special request. I shared with them my observations of the young serviceman at the gate and my desire to switch seats with him. They nearly lost their breath! The senior attendant, along with the others on duty, was delighted with the request! After receiving permission to change seats, I quietly passed the first couple of rows and settled into my soon to be ex first-class seat. The waiting began . . .
The plane was almost full and the young serviceman finally appeared. As he approached my seat, I stood up and excused myself to him. I stated that I wanted to offer him my first class seat in exchange for his coach seat as a show of appreciation for our young men and women in the military. Needless to say – I didn’t have to twist his arm! I’m pretty sure I just witnessed the quickest seat exchange in the history of Delta airlines.
"The first time I heard Chuck speak, I saw the effect he had on the crowd. I knew he was the world-class speaker I needed on my team... 'The Troy Aikman of Verbal Motivators.' We, at Bass Pro Shops, are excited about Chuck and his ability to connect with our customers, answer questions, and create excitement."
Larry Ladnier
Bass Pro Shops, Dallas, Texas
