Mom had two kids with her and one car seat. That’s when deputies read instruction manual
An Orlando mom had no money for gas, no place to stay, and her two daughters were with her in a car early Wednesday morning at a gas station in New Smyrna Beach.
The children were too young to be traveling without car seats, but mom only had one for the toddler. Her 4-month-old infant was on her lap.
That’s when two Volusia sheriff’s deputies “opened their hearts and their wallets” to help her out, deputies posted on their Facebook page.
An off-duty Seminole sheriff’s deputy had tipped off the other officers when he saw her driving with the infant on her lap as she pulled into a BP station on State Road 44 and County Road 415.
According to Volusia deputies, the woman said she had hoped to rent an Airbnb in New Smyrna Beach and was going to use her debit card to pay for the room. But she said that debit card had been stolen when she was in Orlando. She had no money. She was asking if anyone could help her get some gas.
Volusia Deputy Brady Bergeron learned that she also had no way to pay for a second car seat for the infant.
But he did.
So Bergeron went to a nearby Walmart and bought her a car seat. With help from a fellow deputy, and flashlights to cut through the morning gloom so they could read the installation instruction sheet, the pair installed the new seat and adjusted the existing seat the 2-year-old girl had been using.
“I love the good deed they’ve done. But I think I’m finding more enjoyment watching two men attempt to assemble a car seat,” said a reader, posting a laughing emoji, on the Volusia Sheriff’s Facebook post. Another teasingly suggested they consult a firefighter who might have more experience installing car seats.
The good deeds didn’t stop there.
BP offered the family food and water. Volusia Sgt. Austin Hairston made arrangements for the mom and her two daughters to stay at a hotel in nearby Edgewater, and the deputies followed the family to the hotel to make sure they checked in OK.
Sheriff Mike Chitwood praised the deputies, who will all get letters of commendation.
This story was originally published November 7, 2019 at 10:27 AM.
