The popular chicken joint has become one of America’s favorite drive-thrus. Chick-fil-A is known for its exceptional service, delicious nuggets, and friendly faces but there’s one thing customers don’t love about the joint.
Chick-fil-A is closed on every Sunday, only rarely opening for special occasions. The Sunday tradition dates back to 1946 when the founder, Truett Cathy, wanted employees to honor the day to rest and worship.
https://www.facebook.com/cfaindependence/photos/a.10151691943088318/10156027018263318/?type=3&theater
Fast forward to 2019 and the tradition still stands strong! But one teen got the amazing opportunity to open the Chick-fil-A’s doors for a special reason.
His Wish Come True
Elijah Sprague of Mobile, Alabama had a big wish for his birthday this year and Chick-fil-A made that come true. Elijah is a 14-year-old boy with autism who has been bringing joy to his fellow citizens for his past couple birthdays. Elijah loves getting to work at stores around town especially drive-thrus.
For his 14th birthday, his uncle got together with the manager and owner of the restaurant to plan a special day for Elijah.
Chick-fil-A opened on Sunday so a 14-year-old with special needs could celebrate his birthday https://t.co/aJpIyut5wx pic.twitter.com/68bR3vfzNG
— CBS News (@CBSNews) January 15, 2019
On January 13th, 2019, the Alabama Chick-fil-A let Elijah run the drive-thru window where he passed out cookies to all the cars that came through. After he had his drive-thru fun, they all went inside and celebrated Elijah’s birthday with a cookie cake! His mother, Rene Sprague, responded to his big day.
“The way people love this kid amazes me. It has truly changed the way I live my life. Loving people with your whole heart, judgements aside and with no anticipation of rewards. Thank you to every single person that loves our Elijah.”
Drive-Thru King
This wasn’t the first time Elijah had his birthday wish come true though! Back in 2017, Elijah celebrated his birthday yet again by running the drive-thru window! This time, he was working the window at his local pharmacy. And of course, there was a cookie cake celebration after with the icing reading “Drive Through King!”
https://www.facebook.com/rene.sprague.7/posts/10210029073283223
What a special day Elijah had thanks to his local Chick-fil-A! It’s truly a beautiful thing to see a community come together for such a sweet occasion. We can’t wait to see what drive-thrus Elijah gets into next!
It’s no doubt that we’re thankful for Chick-fil-A, but this year the chicken joint thanked its customers in a unique way too. Check out the video below!