Skip to main content

Did I do the right thing?

A few posts down I wrote about my "Question of the Day," which I post every day on Facebook. My wife, Kathy suggested I post this last night as a question on Facebook. I hesitated, but decided to bring it to my blogging audience for 2 reasons; One is the fact that there will be a larger audience since I post links to my blog post on my FB page, and two, this will be more than the 420 character limit on a status update, which is how I normally post my daily question.

Our son has bipolar disorder and some severe learning disabilities. This has made him unemployable and he is on disability. Although he lives on his own, I have to help him manage his finances, which means some of my days off from work are spent helping him do his grocery shopping as well tending to other needs he may have.

Yesterday we got to the end of his shopping and he wanted to go into one more store. Because of my actions, the store will remain nameless. Because of the weather, Kathy and I both had aching legs and decided to sit this one out. I went into the store and after giving my son some guidance, gave him the money he had left. I thought he put the money in his pocket. I went back out into the car. After several minutes, I went back into the store to see what was keeping him. He told me that he had dropped his money and when he went back to pick it up, another customer picked it up and said that they would take it to the front of the store and give it to the cashier, which they didn't.

I went back out to the car to let Kathy know what was happening then returned into the store. I asked the cashier if there had been $32.00 returned to her, she said no. I then cupped my hands around my mouth and proceeded with the following "ATTENTION, MY SON IS MENTALLY CHALLENGED AND HE DROPPED 32 DOLLARS INSIDE THIS STORE. THIS IS HIS SOCIAL SECURITY MONEY. IF YOU HAVE IT, PLEASE RETURN IT TO HIM. THANK YOU!" Yes, I was being a human public address system at that time.

Now the money was returned and the lady gave my son some terse comments. The store management, to say the least was embarrassed. After realizing what I did, I was embarrassed. I don't think I will return to that store anytime soon.

Did I do the right thing?

Comments

kathy said…
I think you did do the right thing. this lady had no intention of returning his money. She was embarrassed that she got caught.So i say Yeah Cliff I love ya
Amel said…
I also agree with Kathy. You did the right thing. It IS your son's money anyway. I'd actually expect that the store management would understand the situation (even if you have to explain it).
dons_mind said…
i don't think in that situation there's a 'right' or 'wrong' - it's did he get his money back, or was he ripped off......and it sounds like he got his money back......good job Dad!
Mike Golch said…
yes you did, if you had not the "lady" would have just kep the ill gotton gains. if you fell embarsed because of you actions don't be,you were just trying to help you son. I'd of done the same thing.
Minerva said…
I think you did the right thing. I don't think that you should be embarrassed. That lady certainly should be. Good for you for standing up for your son.
YEKIMI said…
I would have asked the store manager to make an announcement. If they refused, I would have done what you did but with the added provision that you would be calling the cops and filing a police report and your son could identify who took the money. She probably would have broken some track records to return it.
Sushiboofay said…
I think you did the right thing. You were an advocate for your son when you needed to be. I would probably have also had some terse words for the woman, but I think you did good!
Syd said…
I would have asked the store manager to make an announcement. That's just my style. And also asked him to point out the customer who said that he would give it to the cashier. I don't think that there is a right or wrong. It is a reaction. I am glad that he got his money back.
Michelle said…
I believe you did the right thing. There really is no right or wrong here. You stood up for your son and got his money back. Awesome job Cliff. No need to feel embarrassed.
Brenda said…
You did good!!!
Ann Marie said…
I think you did the right thing too. I think it meant more coming from you and would have been meaningless to the person who had it if the store manager made the announcement. You Rock!!
Ben said…
I think what you did was fine, and it worked. There may not be a single "the" right thing. I know I would not have done what you did, but that's because I would be too scared to. I would have talked to management. But you got the right outcome - someone realized they were wrong and turned in the dough. And maybe your son gained a little more respect for his old man.

Popular posts from this blog

Post 800: Time to chat

Hi Guys, It's hard to believe that this is post number 800 for this blog. I started this blog out of my desire to communicate. Since radio and television is becoming more and more automated and less and less personal, I'm glad I made the decision to go in this direction as it has given me many blessings. When I first decided to write my musings, a friend from the radio and television boards who goes by the name of newsnomore, told me not to be discouraged if I didn't get any readers. The fact that I did in the early going made me surprised and grateful that anyone was enjoying what I wrote. I've had people tell me that maybe it wasn't meant for me to ever be in radio, that maybe my calling was blogging. Nowadays I think blogging makes for better two way conversation than terrestrial radio, especially the way I do it, non confrontational. The closest I come from any confrontation is the innocent digs that Pat and I shoot at each other. On an average day I get betwee

Lawson's Chip Dip

On a couple of occasions I have written posts dedicated to Lawson's, a convenience store chain that was located in Ohio for close to 50 years. In the late 1980's the chain was bought out by Dairy Mart, of Engfield Ct. Dairy Mart was then purchased by Alimentation Couche-Tard, and most stored were rebranded Circle K. Something that has survived the years since Lawson's has left the landscape is Lawson's Chip Dip. I get many hits on this blog from people out of Ohio, I'm thinking former Buckeyes, looking for availability of this chip dip. I had gotten an email from a former resident of Cleveland looking for it. I emailed Circle K about this sometime ago asking if it was possible to send the dip out to those out of state, they said because of quality issues that it was not possible. My only suggestion would be to get in touch with Circle K in your home area and ask them to start stocking this very popular item that seems to make every get-together complete. Now we wil

Sometimes Sports are Just Sports

 This may or may not make the final cut of my book. I was writing about some events this weekend and what had started as a joyous Friday night at my home school district became a weekend of heartbreak in the area after what happened at another school. Sometimes We Need to Realize That Sports are Just Games   Friday nights in late summer and early fall are sometimes a big deal for high school students and their families. As the long-time band announcer for my local high school, it is a time of year I always look forward to. This past Friday night was originally supposed to be the homecoming game for the local high school. The schedule had to be changed a bit because of the uncertainty of the opponents being able to field a team. There was talk around the league that they may have had to forfeit this game, so homecoming for the local school was rescheduled. The opponents, which are rivals of my local school district, were able to field a team and the game was played. The game was