Jordan Taylor was just working at his job at a Rouseโs Market in Baton Rouge, Louisiana when he received a kind gesture from a local family.
Jordan Taylor, 20, is an employee at Rouseโs Market and was stocking the orange juice bottles on the shelf when he noticed someone watching him.
Jack Ryan Edwards, 17, was there with his father, Sid, shopping for groceries when he stopped to watch Jordan do his job.
Jack is diagnosed with autism thatโs why it wasnโt unusual for Jack Ryan to become fixated on different things. Sid thought he just wanted to buy some juice.
Jordan thought the same thing thatโs why he gave Jack a bottle of the orange juice but Jack didnโt take it. In fact, he didnโt get any reaction from Jack. He restocked the orange juice and thought that was done.
But Jack remained in his spot and continued to watch Jordan.
Thatโs when something clicked in Jordanโs head. He asked Jack if he wanted to help him restock the shelves.
โSomething in the back of my mind was just like, โAsk if he wants to help you,'โ Jordan said.
So Jordan asked Jack if he wanted to help. Jack, with his limited verbal communication, repeated what Jordan said.
Jordan handed him an orange juice bottle and they spent the next 30 minutes restocking shelves.
โIt was a big deal,โ Sid said of Jackโs experience. โTo me, when you go to a grocery store with an autistic kid, especially when theyโre young, people donโt understand, theyโre not very accepting. Somehow this young man reached my son โฆ he went into Jack Ryanโs world.โ
โI was just being me, thatโs it. I just wanted to help somebody out, enjoy something,โ Jordan said.
He knew his question meant more than it was when he saw Sidโs reaction.
โIf you would have flipped the camera, you would have seen his dadโs face. It said it all. He was just happy and he [Jack Ryan] was [happily] putting the juices up and I was just happy that I could make someone else happy and make their day,โ Jordan said.
Delaney was so moved by Jordanโs patience.
โHe could have made an excuse and said he couldnโt allow him to help. Instead, he let him have his moment and in turn gave my family a moment we will never forget,โ Delaney said. โIt might seem like nothing to others, but as you can hear my dad say in the video, โIโm watching a miracle right now.'โ
And thatโs exactly what Delaney did.
โItโs so much that you canโt even like put it into words,โ Jordan said. โLike all you can say is thank you but thank you donโt mean enough to the people cause itโs so much that went into it.โ
And itโs all because he simply asked a teenager if he wanted to help him.
โThereโs a lot thatโs wrong in the world, but to know that that humanity exists is truly rare,โ Delaney said. โ[Jordan] was just being him, and boy if we had more of hims in the world, how would great that be?โ
And now, every time Jack returns to Rouseโs Market with his family, he always has a big smile on his face.
โBecause of Jordan, a conversation about inclusivity in the workforce for people with disabilities has been started not only across the nation but all over the world,โ Delaney wrote. โI hope Jordan and [Jack Ryanโs] story inspires others to include those that are different, across all settings and in all parts of life.โ
Watch the video below to see how a young man changed a family and a nation with just one question.
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