Bullying against children with disabilities, especially from adults, cannot be tolerated. Kim Castillo and her family had been eating out at the Laurenzo’s restaurant in Houston for years, and to their son with Down syndrome, it was certainly an outing to treasure. But one group of diners showed poor form by insulting the boy and his family.
Castillo’s son, Milo, is different; he has an extra chromosome, which means he has Down syndrome. It is not known why this happens, but no one is to blame. There is no cure; he has it for life. It’s a genetic condition, not a disease or an illness, and it causes intellectual disability.
When they sat down at Laurenzo’s restaurant one day in 2013, staff made them feel welcome; they were regulars there. Michael Garcia, a waiter on duty, became aware that a family sitting near Castillo and Milo, then 5, got up and moved to another table.
Then, Garcia heard the man say in a loud voice: “Special-needs children need to be special somewhere else.”
Despite worrying that he might lose his job, Garcia said to the customer: “I’m sorry, I can’t serve you.” The family quickly left the restaurant.
Castillo was proud of the waiter and his refusal to serve such an ignorant person. “What went through my mind was that I was just so impressed and felt so good that somebody would stand up for another human being,” she said.
Although Castillo was concerned that Garcia might lose his job for refusing to serve a customer, the restaurant was fully supportive of his actions.
The waiter has won a lot of praise after his righteous deed was broadcast on local TV and blog. To applaud Garcia for standing up for Milo and his family, they took to the restaurant’s Facebook page to leave messages of support.
The story serves to remind us that standing up for a bullied kid to help right a wrong can be a brave act, but one that will forever leave a good impression. As one customer said: “We all need to watch out for our children.”
