I fly a lot. Normally, two work trips a month. This means I will encounter approximately 2 ticket agents, 2 TSA agents, 4 gate attendants and 8 flight attendants per trip. That’s a total of 32 people a month trained in the guidelines and customer service of the air travel world. We are all human and have bla, bad, and booming days so I’ve seen it all. And on occasion, there is that one gem that shines above the rest. Her name was Felicia and she was our Delta flight attendant on my leg from Roanoke, VA to Atlanta, GA on Saturday June 24, 2017.
I had to travel back home on a Saturday because I couldn’t find a flight home Friday evening after two days of training a team in Stanton, VA. And leave it to Felicia to make it a pleasurable one. She greeted each of us with a genuinely warm smile and ‘welcome aboard”. Next up was the funny commentary she provided during the ‘take off speech’ which reminded me of the Southwest Airlines videos I’d seen on occasion. She then commented on a passengers ‘pretty eyes’ which made their day no doubt. She wore a warm smile when talking to each person she served. I watched her and I felt her loving and positive energy. It radiated from every ounce of her being. I wondered “what if we all acted like Felicia? Wouldn’t the world be a better place?”
When it came my turn to be served, she gave me an abundance of snacks. As in TWO beloved biscoff cookies, although I told her my waist line only needed one, along with a bag of almonds. She literally walked back to me from two seats away to give me the extra cookie! Did she know I was experiencing the PMS sweet tooth? Regardless, my needs were met plentifully. And if you haven’t tried these brown sugar cinnamon cookies, you should. I’ve been known to buy a jar of the biscoff butter (when you can find it) and spread it over almost anything!
Felica continued her duties with joy, the kind of joy you know isn’t fake. She loved her job and it showed. We felt it. She was the perfect example of creating an excellent flying experience reminiscent of the early days. You know, when people dressed up for their flight and the service was impeccable. I experienced it a few times with my grandmother in the 80’s when traveling throughout the country. Felica brought back those ‘feels’. She took me back to childhood of experiencing the friendly skies with ‘MeeMaa’. Thank you Felica. My grandmother would have loved you as well.
Felicia’s parting words to all of us sealed my opinion I was having of her energy that day. She thanked us for traveling Delta and said ” Be kind to yourself and be kind to others”. And deep down, I know she lives those words daily. I wrote her a thank you note for my experience on the back of a ‘good strangers’ card and gave it to her as I departed the plane. May all who have the privilege to fly with Felicia appreciate what she gives us- its rare these days. And may we all ‘be kind to ourselves and to others.’