Six cops left the funeral of one of their fallen brothers in blue and were tired from all the stress of the week that they had to deal with. After becoming hungry, the group of officers chose to stop at McDonalds on the way home. While they were enjoying their meals, someone suddenly interrupted them all.
Six State Troopers from Kentucky and Ohio went to the funeral of their fellow fallen Kentucky State Police Trooper Joseph Cameron Ponder on Friday and went to get something to eat after working up an appetite after the funeral, reported WDRB.
“We drove all the way from Ashland, had left at 5:30 a.m. and none of us had eaten anything all day,” KSP Trooper Eric Homan said.
Homan and fellow KSP troopers Chris Lee, Joseph Boyce, and Pat Hamilton, and KSP Detective Jeff Kelley all went inside the McDonalds to relax and grab something fast to eat after a pretty long and stress-filled day. However, while they were there, they were prepared for what would occur while they were there. As the cops were finished with their food, a little girl interrupted them and gave them a heartfelt message.
5-year-old Isabella Gregory may be young but she is old enough to understand and appreciate the hard work of law enforcement. So to show her gratitude, she wanted to do something nice for them. The little girl along with her mother, Sarah Yockey, was getting ice cream and noticed the cops walking into the restaurant. Young Isabella took the initiative to lift their spirits by buying the officers ice cream after their meal.
“We were finishing up eating and Isabella comes out of nowhere and she’s holding a tray of ice cream sundaes,” Homan recalled. “She stepped right in between us all without fear and was so proud to thank us for protecting her and her family.”
Making the extraordinary gesture even more special was the fact that Isabella did it all on her own without the help of her mother.
“She used her allowance she earned this past week to put smiles on their faces,” Yockey said Saturday. “She said, ‘Their friend died, and it’s not fair because he has a family too.‘”
The group of officers took a photo with Isabella, which Homan later posted to social media with a warm thank you as a caption.
“Thanks to this fine young lady who used her allowance to treat us to ice cream today after the funeral services,” Homan wrote in the post. “We needed that! Relief comes in all different shapes and sizes … Thank you for supporting us Isabella, you are living proof of what makes coming to work every day worth it.”
Yockey also posted the picture to social media and encouraged others to do something nice for their local police.
“Today Isabella-Marie and I met some amazing men in uniform. These state troopers protect us on a day-to-day basis and risk their lives for my family and yours. The least we can do are small things such as buying them ice cream or a simple ‘Thank You.’ Their love and support for the kind act my daughter showed today is amazing. Thank you so much for putting a smile on my daughter’s face.”
As a result of Isabella’s incredible gesture, Homan said that he and his fellow officers plan on going back to their town and paying it forward to residents in their community.
“After we left Radcliff, we agreed the ball is now in our court to pay it forward as we will soon return back to work in our communities to serve the public,” he said.
As for Isabella, her mother said she forged a strong bond with the six officers, and she couldn’t be more grateful for the impact they had on her daughter. Isabella also plans on inviting all of them to her next birthday party.
“I truly can not thank them enough for the impact they had on my daughter,” Yockey said.
It had to be awesome to be a part of what happened at McDonald’s that day, especially after what the officers had just gone through. Isabella’s kind spirit and compassionate soul brought a ray of sunshine to these officers when they needed it the most, which should make her mother more than proud.
