Darlene Newey is a popular pizza delivery man in his neighbourhood who treats all his customers with kindness and respect. It was for this reason that Carlos Valdés felt obliged to help change the life of an eighty-year-old man.
Valdés and his family have become so close to Newey that they ask for his name when they decide to order a takeaway pizza. He made such an impression on the family that they decided to do something nice for him.
Valdés and his family, like many of us, love pizza, and they have a particular café where they order pizza every time. They have a special relationship with Newey.
It was a phrase Newey used whenever he came to their house to deliver a pizza, which evoked sympathy for Newey from Valdes and his family. He greeted them cheerfully every time:
“Hello, are you looking for a pizza? ”
Because of this ongoing phrase and the fact that Valdes and his family have loved pizza deliveries since Newey’s time, they started recording his pizza deliveries and publishing them on TikTok. These clips racked up thousands of views and made Newey a sensation.
However, although many viewers liked the clips and thought Newey was adorable, many viewers were also concerned. One viewer asked why an 89-year-old man was still working at his age.
Although Valdes and his family enjoy seeing Newey when they order their pizza, they have come to terms with this feeling and have decided that they must help Newey in every way possible. They planned to surprise him with money so that he would not have to work so hard.
Valdes and his family published the idea on their TT account, asking viewers to donate money to their cause. They were trying to collect money to give to Newey as a tip for all the times he delivered pizzas to their home.
Papa John’s was then contacted about the cheapest item on the menu and Valdés asked Newey to deliver chicken wings for €10. When Newey arrived, Valdes tipped him €20 and asked for his contact details after he said the whole internet had fallen in love with the grown man.
Newey gave his contact details and Valdés knew that when he had money, he would call him to surprise him. The family said that although they believed that people would donate, they could never have expected the amount of money to be so large. Valdes revealed :
” Together as a TT community we all came together and were able to raise 12,000 euros for this unique man ”
The amount of money raised was something special for Valdés and his family, but it would be even more special for Newey when Valdés turned up at his front door on Tuesday morning to hand over the money. Newey opened the door to a smiling Valdes, who greeted him with a cheerful ” Hey, man. How’s it going?” Newey thought that perhaps Valdes would give him a shirt with his signature phrase ” Hi, are you looking for a pizza? ” printed on it.
Although Valdes handed Newey a shirt, he could never foresee the money about to fall into his hands. Valdes said that although Newey had no idea what the TT was, he told him that he and the TT community had collectively given him a gift.
Newey was delighted to receive the gift, but wanted to know what TT was and had some questions about the platform, asking:
“Is it an online group that you communicate with by phone?”
It was then that Valdez handed Newey a cheque for €12,069. Newey couldn’t believe his eyes and asked Valdez how he could thank him for all he had done. Newey expressed his gratitude to Valdez with tears in his eyes.
What Valdes discovered later was something he was not prepared to hear, but it was clear that the money would significantly help Newey live a slightly less stressful and slightly more enjoyable life for him.
Newey revealed that he lived alone in a mobile home and that he accepted a job as a pizza delivery boy because he couldn’t afford to pay his bills without working. He said he worked an average of 30 hours a week.
Since the initial €12,000 was raised, additional donations have been made for Newey and the total is now over €20,000. At this stage Valdes has closed the crowdfunding account and instead set up a new Venmo account where donations can go directly to Newey without Valdes having to intermediate.
When people asked him why he did it and what his thoughts on the situation were, Valdes shared that it came from the heart. He said::
“He needed it. I’m just glad we were able to help him. We just have to treat people with kindness and respect the way he does it. He won our hearts.”
In a world where nothing is certain, one man has given to another the greatest of all gifts, the gift of peace of mind and the opportunity to enjoy his golden years.
