Everyone in the neighborhood knew the local garbage man, Delvar Dobson. What they didn’t know was he had a number one fan: three-year-old Brooklyn Andrai. When Dobson hopped out of his truck one morning to meet the little girl, a neighbor knew she had to get it on camera. Little did she know what was actually happening.
Delvar Dobson had been the garbage man in Bloomington, Illinois, for years. His Thursday route brought him to the same neighborhood. He was easily recognized by the residents of the community. While people didn’t know Dobson personally, there was one little girl who looked forward to seeing the sanitation worker each week. Brooklyn Andrai would ride down the road each Thursday, knowing little three-year-old Brooklyn would be waiting in her home’s front window when he drove past the house. Dobson would then honk the truck’s loud horn and wave.
The thing is, no one knew why the garbage man was so infatuated with that particular family. It turned out that the little girl loved watching Dobson ride his big garbage truck down the street. It was actually her favorite part of Thursday morning. Brooklyn was Dobson’s number one fan. In fact, she enjoyed watching him so much that Brooklyn wanted to do something special for the garbage man.
Waiting and waving to Dobson was Brooklyn’s favorite part of the week. According to Brooklyn’s mom, Tracey, “To Brooklyn, he is our favorite, awesome, smiley garbage man.” Their little back-and-forth on Thursday mornings went on for weeks, but there was one thing Brooklyn wanted more than anything: to meet the garbage man face to face. Instead of waiting for Dobson from inside her home, Tracey would take Brooklyn outside so she could see her favorite person a little better.
According to Tracey, “It became all about him after that. It wasn’t the garbage truck anymore, but it was the garbage man that she wanted to see.” Brooklyn wasn’t the only one in the family who loved Thursdays. Her brother, Ty, did as well. Tracey posted a photo of the friendship they shared, writing, “Our favorite day of the week with Delvar.” One week, their favorite day even turned into a dance party. Ty loves to dance, and he taught Delvar his signature move: a drop low, lean to one side, and shake fists in the air type of move.
Fast forward to Brooklyn’s birthday. It was a perfect day, except for one crucial detail: it was a Wednesday, and the garbage man wouldn’t be driving down the road. The little girl and her mom had a plan, though, wanting Dobson to celebrate the big day with them since he meant so much to Brooklyn. The next day was Thursday, meaning Dobson would be driving through the neighborhood. Brooklyn could hardly wait. Even though it wasn’t her birthday anymore, she stood outside with her mom, ready to give Dobson a little piece of the celebration.
When he drove up to their house, he couldn’t contain his smile when Tracey motioned for him to walk over. Brooklyn was waiting for him with a cupcake from her party the previous day. She wanted her favorite person to feel included in the celebration. With a very shy smile, Brooklyn handed over the cupcake. Meeting her hero, she was at a loss for words, a very out-of-character occurrence according to Tracey.
During an interview, Tracey said, “As a mom, I can’t even describe how happy it made me that she got to finally meet him. She was literally starstruck and could not even say a word. I had to do all of the talking for her, and she is never usually short on words.” Even though she couldn’t form a word to say to Dobson, Brooklyn was beyond thrilled to have met her favorite person.
According to Tracey, “I explained to him that he makes our day every Thursday, and we really appreciate the honking and waving and how special of a day it is for us.” Even so, Tracey couldn’t help but wonder what was on Brooklyn’s mind. She was being so quiet. After he left, they continued on to daycare. Tracey said during an interview, “Brooklyn was unusually quiet in the back seat. I asked her if she was okay, and she said, ‘Mommy, I’m so happy.'”
While meeting Dobson in person made Brooklyn’s day, the friendship was just beginning. One week later, on Thursday, the little girl’s favorite garbage man came through the neighborhood like he always did, only this time he had a very special surprise for the little girl, something that was going to make her smile. Seeing Brooklyn and Tracey waving from their yard like every week, Dobson pulled over. Tracey wasn’t sure what was happening. It was then that she saw the very large box he was toting behind him. With a big smile, Dobson handed the box to Brooklyn. It was a belated birthday present for the little girl.
Opening the box, Brooklyn’s eyes lit up. The box was filled with toys from her favorite Disney movie, Frozen. Everything had pictures of Elsa and Anna on it. Brooklyn couldn’t have been more excited. The unexpected gesture was so heartfelt that Tracey and Brooklyn knew they had to do something to thank Dobson. Brooklyn thought long and hard about what she wanted to do to thank Dobson for the amazing Frozen gift. Finally, she came up with the perfect plan.
That Thursday, she ran outside with her mother to Dobson. There, she handed him a homemade poster with a large “Thank You, Delvar” written in various colors. Not expecting anything in return for the birthday gift, Dobson was speechless. He even got some tears in his eyes as he held the homemade poster up. He knew exactly where he was going to put it. Dobson decided to hang the poster up in his truck so that the entire neighborhood could see it.
Naturally, the holidays weren’t complete without a very special guest. No, we’re not talking about Santa Claus, though we’re sure he made an appearance as well. Dobson joined the Andrai family for a visit during the holiday season, where his presence was the greatest gift he could give the kids. What better way to celebrate the holidays than with the dessert that started it all: cupcakes! Here, Dobson and Ty were “cupcake cheers-ing,” as Tracey calls it. The pair truly couldn’t look any happier.
People in the neighborhood didn’t understand the relationship between their local garbage man and the little girl, not until they stopped and watched their beautiful exchange week after week. As it turned out, Dobson was a bit of a celebrity with some of the other kids around the neighborhood too. An avid family man, Dobson does what he can to make kids like Brooklyn smile, and he did just that, having it caught on camera for the world to see.
“Please help me wish the coolest kiddo in the land, Brooklyn, a happy birthday! Wishing you a day filled with happiness and a year filled with joy. Happy birthday, kiddo!”
Even though the video of Dobson and Brooklyn’s friendship went viral, social media fame was not the reason why Dobson cared so deeply. Little did they know, but Dobson had always wanted to help others achieve their potential. Keep reading to see what motivated him. In fact, his beautiful relationship with Brooklyn and being a garbage man were just stepping stones for what Dobson truly wanted to do with his life.
During evenings, Dobson studied endlessly to pass his realtor examination. He did, becoming a licensed real estate agent in Nevada. But that isn’t where his story ends. As seen with Brooklyn and the other children in the neighborhood, Dobson had a true zest for life and making other people happy. See how he carries that passion forward through life.
To celebrate Dobson getting his real estate license and moving on from driving a garbage truck, Tracey, Brooklyn, Ty, and the family threw Dobson a very special last-day party. The festivities were posted all over social media, and it looked like the perfect sendoff for the person who made Thursday so special for them.
It was that feeling of helping people that led Dobson to become a motivational speaker. Dobson is a huge part of the Aragon 2006 movement, spreading his words of encouragement and inspiring people of many different backgrounds. Never shy about spreading his wisdom and love for helping others, Dobson posted on Facebook a few words that he lives by: “Discovery of your purpose and potential sets you free from other people’s prescriptions of what they think you should be.”
Brooklyn and Dobson’s friendship is truly inspiring and shows how a little bit of kindness can change someone’s life.
