A homeless dad said he’s thankful his luck turned around after he was taunted online in a viral Facebook post.
Simon Childs was sleeping on a McDonald’s bench between his shifts when an angry customer took his photo and posted the picture to a private Facebook group with the caption:
Just another reason for me to leave Fayetteville. I was in the McDonald’s in the middle of town and I saw this guy sleeping in the booth, I got and tell an employee that someone is asleep in their booth and her response was ‘oh yeah, we know hee, it’s ok’ and I said, ‘not really but whatever.’
The post was meant to shame the Fayetteville location for not taking action against the employee’s behavior. However, the customer was unaware of Childs’ hardships when she posted the picture online.
The 21-year-old single dad had been going through a hard time after recently losing his mom, and he was simply resting between shifts at the fast-food restaurant. He told CBS:
“I’ve been going through a hard time with my mom passing.”
When Georgia McDonald’s employee saw his picture up he said he was “kind of hurt.” But fortunately for Childs’ the online ridicule turned out to be a blessing in disguise after the community got wind of his situation.
Local residents responded to the incident by donating piles of diapers, supplies, and clothes for his son. People in the community also loaned Childs a car for job interviews and donated hotel rooms.
He told WSBTV:
“They changed my life in a couple of days.”
He’s also happy to report:
“I’m not homeless, not now, thanks to her.”
As for the woman who posted a rant about him online, she told the outlet off-camera that she didn’t intend to shame anyone and she posted it in a private group.
Watch the video below: