Kind stranger helps mom of 2 during flight to Wilmington

WILMINGTON, NC (CNN) — Flying solo as a parent can be daunting.

But the kindness of a stranger helped make a flight much easier for a mother of two flying from Kansas City to Wilmington, North Carolina.

Jessica Rudeen plans ahead when she travels — but sometimes she hits a snag.

“The baby was hungry. He’d been up since 4:30 am. My daughter lost her nerve and started screaming `I want to get off the plane! I want to go!'” mom Jessica Rudeen told WDAF-TV.

Her seatmate was Todd Walker from Lenexa, Kansas — who makes this trip a lot, for work.

“I saw was a mom looking around the corner at me with big eyes, and two kids in tow that were both having a bad day. They were both screaming,” Walker said.

Instead of changing his seat he decided to help.

“When he reached for Alexander it was just a huge feeling of relief,” Rudeen said.

Walker then pitched in to help more.

“I reached over, and she handed me her baby, and she was able to get Caroline strapped in, and I handed the baby back and she was able to give him a bottle and start feeding him a little bit,” Walker said.

That’s when Walker made a new best friend.

“Within a couple minutes, they were fine. Before we even had taken off, and before we landed I’d been coloring with Caroline, and looking out the window, and seeing different things,” Walker said.

Before they landed Walker and Rudeen realized they were headed to the same connecting flight.

“It was a huge blessing to be able to accept that help, and to even be offered that help.”
Walker said. “We had a blast! When we colored, she let me color! She was like, okay! It’s your turn.”

“I wasn’t expecting him to hang around after the first flight, but he helped us off the plane, he helped us open up the stroller, get the car seat in the stroller, and then he kinda just took the lead and led us to the next gate,” Rudeen said.

“We got there, and I changed my seats and sat with them, and made a new friend,” Walker said.

The traveling mother was thankful for Walker’s help.

“I could have been placed next to anybody, but the fact that I was placed next to someone with someone who was so selfless, and giving, and generous with his time,” Rudeen said.

They are hoping to meet up again.

“I do kind of want to ask Todd if he’ll fly back to Wilmington, so he can fly back with us. I’m a little nervous about who I’m going to end up on the plane with next,” Rudeen said.