Ninety-three-year-old Harry Scott eats alone in his local McDonald’s every single day. In fact, since he made Workington’s McDonald’s his regular haunt in 2013, the staff at the restaurant have become so accustomed to seeing Scott that when they learned that it was his birthday, they decided to throw him a surprise birthday party.
Scott lost his wife Martha six years ago, in 2009. The pair never had any children together, and soon Harry Scott found himself getting increasingly lonely.
Looking for solace and company, Harry Scott soon started visiting the McDonald’s in Workington, England, six days a week. On Sunday, he goes to his goddaughter’s house.
McDonald’s staff in Workington throw surprise birthday party for 93-year-old widower Harry Scott who https://t.co/mCtlsR9Prk ed— PhilD (@Phild500D) November 21, 2015
Over the last few days, the staff at McDonald’s learned that Harry Scott’s 93rd birthday was on the horizon.
Rather than letting this momentous date arrive and roll past without any fanfare, the employees at Scott’s McDonald’s decided that they would do something special for him, which arrived in the shape of a surprise birthday party.
They agreed that they wanted to do something special for Harry Scott, which is when they decided to organize a special surprise birthday soiree for him.
On the day of Harry Scott’s birthday, the team put up banners and balloons around the table where he usually eats his meal at. Then, when Harry walked inside, they greeted Scott with presents that they had banded together to buy him. This included a bottle of whiskey, as well as shortbread.
The McDonald’s employee didn’t stop there though. That’s because they also decided to give Harry Scott his Happy Meal, which he orders every day, for free.
In fact, rather than just allowing Harry Scott to have the Happy Meal for free as a one-off, they decided that, from now on, Scott doesn’t ever have to pay for it ever again.
McDonald’s staff throw birthday bash for lonely 93-year-old widower https://t.co/GY1QSvE4NB pic.twitter.com/IquxFsutRL
— Irish Sun (@IrishSunOnline) November 21, 2015
As you can imagine, Harry Scott was rather taken aback and emotional over the fact that McDonald’s had thrown a surprise birthday party for him. In fact he admitted, “When they threw the surprise party I had to wipe my eyes.”
Jack Holliday, one of the McDonald’s employees who helped to organize and throw the secret soiree for the popular regular, declared, “He’s a one-off. We get regular customers but he’s the one that stands out. He’s bubbly and full of life, especially for a 93-year-old.”
According to the Daily Mail , Harry Scott, who hails from High Harrington, usually goes into McDonald’s early in the afternoon, which is when he orders his Happy Meal. However, if he’s feeling particularly peckish, Harry Scott will sometimes decide to return for a second meal at some point later in the afternoon. Explaining why he only ever orders Happy Meals, Harry Scott insists that it’s because he has a small appetite.
But why does Harry Scott visit the McDonald’s in Workington on such a regular basis? Well, because there he has found a sense of companionship and community that he lost on the day that his wife died.
Harry Scott explained, via the Metro , “The kids who come in here are mine as I don’t have any of my own. It’s company for me.”
[Image via Associated Press]
