The Simple Way a UPS Driver Made the Day of a Boy With Autism

The first time Patrick met Mike the UPS delivery man, the then 6-year-old greeted him with an almost deafening, “What’s your name?”

Patrick, who has autism spectrum disorder, had just learned that individuals each have their own names; it was therefore important he ask everyone that question.

“Often it would catch people off guard, scare them away or sometimes illicit a negative response,” Patrick’s mom, Amy Boyne, told The Mighty in an email. “People just didn’t want him to know [their name] sometimes.”

Mike did.

He told Patrick his name and then patiently waited while he dumped a bag of alphabet letters to find an “M” for Mike. That was a year ago. The two have been friends ever since.

“Mike treats Patrick with the same respect and dignity we should treat all people with,” Boyne told The Mighty. “He sees Patrick, not autism.”

Patrick now holds Mike in the same light as Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny.

“These simple gestures are the types of things I don’t experience often enough when we’re out in the community,” Boyne said. “We need more Mikes in the world for sure.”

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