Tom GantertGrand Rapids, MI – A nine-year-old boy who missed the bus on his birthday got a ride to school and much more from a Grand Rapids police officer who took interest in the boy who said he was bullied and feared no one would show up at his birthday party.
Grand Rapids Police Officer Austin Lynema noticed nine-year-old Thomas Daniel crying as he chased a bus he had missed.
Officer Lynema asked Daniel if he needed help.
Daniel told the officer that he never missed a day of school and that his mother didn’t have a car and that it was the boy’s birthday.
“I saw him running down the sidewalk trying to chase his bus, he was in tears. I tried to stop his school bus for him,” Officer Lynema said, according to the Grand Rapids Press. “He informed me he never missed a day of school. I wanted to make sure I could help him as much as I could.”
As Officer Lynema took Daniel back home to get his mother’s permission to take him to school, Daniel told the officer it was his birthday and he was having a party. But the boy feared that since he was bullied at school, none of his classmates would show up so he invited all the Grand Rapids police officers.
Officer Lynema took the boy to school after getting his mother’s permission and pulled into the school’s parking lot with his lights and sirens on.
When Officer Lynema attended the birthday party, he noticed the only other people were family members of Daniel. And there was no cake.
So on the next day, Officer Lynema brought some fellow officers and surprised Daniel with a follow-up party when he got off the bus. The officers brought a Krispy Kreme donut cake, presents, and a singing quartet, according to the Grand Rapids police.
“People at school are happy for me because Austin … he never lets kids down, he’s a hero,” said Daniel, according to the Grand Rapids Press. “I’ll never forget this until the day I die.”