Every day, a 97-year-old war veteran goes to his neighborhood Arby’s fast food restaurant and orders the same dish.
There isn’t a day that goes by when the fast-food restaurant employees don’t see the meat eater come in for his “normal” order.
Staff became acquainted with World War II veteran Doug and wanted to learn more about the man who came to work every day.
When they learned more about this military hero and heard his story, they did something so unique that it touched the nation’s hearts.
Doug, a 97-year-old World War II veteran, knows what he enjoys. Every day, he orders his “normal” meal: a roast-beef slider with Swiss and a senior beverage… No ice in my Coke.
Some staff wanted to learn more about the veteran because he has become such a fixture at the Chandler, Arizona restaurant.
Employees took a break from their hectic schedules to sit down and ask Doug a few pointed questions:
According to Fox 7, “Hey, Mr. Doug, we just want to know what gets you coming back to this Arby’s location?”
Although the employees expected a humorous response, such as how Arby’s knows how to serve meat that he enjoys, Doug responded with a statement that reminded them of how short life can be and how important it is to appreciate everything we have while it is still here with us – because it could all be gone tomorrow.
“The only place I can get a sandwich or get food or anything else to eat that doesn’t hurt my stomach,” the struggling combat veteran said of the Chandler Arby’s store.
Doug orders the same meal every day and sits at the same table to eat it because of his stomach condition.
“He has a gastrointestinal condition,” stated Travis Coye, an employee. Unfortunately, this is the only food he can eat.”
Another employee, Christina Garnage, a restaurant manager, told Fox News:
“As soon as we see him approaching the doors with a walker, we try to grab the doors for him.”
Christina went on to say that when she first started working at the restaurant approximately 32 months ago, Doug quickly made it a part of his daily routine.
Doug has been going to the same Arby’s practically every day for over two years, according to Christina.
“As a veteran, he’s been through a lot, coming in, being in a retirement home, but he doesn’t have relatives,” she explained.
Staff decided to do something special for Doug, who put his life on the line for his nation during WWII, and presented him a $200 gift card.
Call at any time of day or night.
“He was stunned, and he didn’t know what to say,” another manager stated.
Doug doesn’t have his own family support network, so the staff provided him their cell phone numbers and told him he may call at any time of day or night.
If he couldn’t make it to the restaurant, they would even send his favorite meal to his door.
But now the manager has offered Doug an offer he can’t refuse: Arby’s has chosen to give Doug free food for the rest of his life, which will begin once he spends his gift card.
Doug was also offered a free eye checkup and glasses by a local eye specialist who stopped by the eatery.
Doug has been virtually forgotten since giving his life for America and the world in the 1940s, but an Arizona Arby’s store has done what the government should have done long ago: adopted him as a member of their family!
What a nice gesture for this deserving guy who has served his nation and deserves a free supper.
It’s nice to see someone looking after this WWII veteran and feeding him for free because, unlike many others, he earned it.
Watch the video here: