With his father’s Alzheimer’s disease accelerating rapidly, this Florida man went above and beyond the call of duty to do something special for Father’s Day.
Earlier this week, Matt Lea spent 12 hours driving from his home in Florida so he could show up on the doorstep of his parent’s house in Flowood, Mississippi. When he finally arrived, he pulled out his phone, walked into the house, and filmed the reactions of his surprised – and delighted – mother and father.
Lea greets his parents and then gives his father Billy a jersey for Mississippi State, which is his favorite baseball team.
But secretly, his gift is much better than a new shirt – he got tickets for he and his dad to go see the College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska.
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“I figured it’s probably not good enough just for us to watch the game here,” says Lea in the video. “How about we go to Omaha? Do you want to go up to Omaha and watch the College World Series together?”
“Golly,” Billy says, seemingly choked up by the surprise. “You’re gonna break my heart, here.”
Surprised my dad today to tell him I’m taking him to Omaha to watch @HailStateBB play. His Alzheimer’s is setting in fast but I know he’s going to have a blast this weekend. Hail State!!! pic.twitter.com/NTtAxcxxIj
— Matt Lea (@tigr2ndbase) June 14, 2018
Since it was published two days ago, the video has already garnered over 1 million views on Twitter. Social media users have offered to give money to the father-son trip for their room and board, but Matt simply asked them to donate to the Alzheimer’s fund.
Additionally, the video’s fame grabbed the attention of the College World Series of Omaha Inc., the organizing committee for the sports event. The nonprofit commented on the video asking for Matt and Billy’s schedule, which might hint at something special for the Leas during their weekend stay.
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Regardless, Matt says he is just happy to be spending time with his father.
“We can’t wait to get up there,” he wrote. “Hate we’ll only be there for opening weekend but it’s going to be a great final trip for us.”
We’re off. Thanks for all the support. I’ve had many people reach out about paying for our meals, hotel, etc. I’m very grateful for that but if you’re willing to do that, just make a contribution to the Alzheimer’s fund. I’ll try to keep this journey updated as we go. pic.twitter.com/9MdBZU4127
— Matt Lea (@tigr2ndbase) June 14, 2018
Be Sure And Share This Sweet Story Of Father-Son Love – Photo by Matt Lea