An 8-year-old boy with a hearing impairment was the subject of a cruel prank, but the community responded to make up for the trick.
Gabe Lyles and his father were approached by three men claiming to be with a famous internet influencer while they shopped at a Target in Southington, a town in Connecticut.
The men said that Lyles had been chosen for a shopping spree and specifically claimed they were looking for a boy with a disability. They challenged the boy and his father to wear blindfolds and fill a shopping cart in 30 seconds, claiming that they would pay for the items if they succeeded.
Unfortunately, the trio ran off during the prank.
“It devastated me because the very last thing I ever want to do is hurt him,” said TJ Lyles, the boy’s father.
The dad said that at about the 10-second mark, the three ran off, leaving a very upset father and son. He later wrote about the prank on a post on Facebook.
When Southington’s Commission for Persons with Disabilities heard about the horrible trick, they took action.
“I got angry. If I’m being honest, very, very angry to hear that they would target this child,” said Melissa Lapila, the chair of the commission.
The commission bought a $200 gift card for the boy and Target matched the gift.
“It made me happy when they gave me the gift cards,” said the boy. “I was almost crying in my head.”
“It made me cry,” said his father. “They are such fantastic people.”
Gabe was able to use the gift cards for a real shopping spree and he happily posed with his Nerf toy guns and Monopoly board game set.
Here’s the news report from WCSH-TV:
Boy with hearing impairment left in tears after prank at Targetwww.youtube.com
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