Panhandler Chuck

“I’m late! Of all days to miss my train,” thought Angie. “I’ll arrive late to our monthly meeting. And Phil said this would be one of the most important meetings of the year.”

Angela Stone was the quality control supervisor at Med-Rec Services, a national provider of medical records services.

Her next subway train downtown would not arrive for another ten minutes. The downtown station was only a five-minute bus ride to Med-Rec’s building, but the bus and train schedules didn’t always coincide with each other. She would likely be 20 minutes late arriving at the office, leaving her very little time to gather the documents she would need for the meeting.

Unfortunately, her boss, Philip Dillon, the production manager, was a stickler for prompt attendance.

“Maybe I can explain the situation to Phil after the meeting,” she thought. After all, her third-grade son, Tommy, was just getting over a stomach virus and he was having trouble getting ready in time to catch his school bus.

After catching the next train and riding the next available bus, Angie arrived downtown.

“Finally!” Angie said as soon as her bus stopped. She hopped off and ran the half-block to the revolving door entrance Med-Rec’s building.

But right in front of her a man she didn’t know stepped into the revolving door when someone hollered, “Hey, Chuck!” as they were getting into a car and driving off.

The man turned to look for someone, but the door spun into his stationary body. He was knocked to the ground and his head hit the concrete floor incredibly hard. He was in a daze from the impact.

Angie instinctively hurried to his aid. “Sir? Can you hear me? Sir?”

“Who are you?” he asked.

“I’m Angie. Angie Stone,” she replied.

“Hi, Angie. My name is Chuck…,” he muttered as he was passing out.

A couple of men pulled Chuck away from the revolving door while Angie dialed 911.

Angie told the operator, “A man was just knocked down by the revolving door at the Med-Rec building and he’s unconscious. All I know about him is his name is Chuck, and he appears to be in his late fifties or early sixties.”

She repeated that bit of information to the paramedics as they took him to the hospital.

“Oh, my goodness!” she said aloud as she looked at her watch. “The meeting has already started!” So, she rushed to her fourth-floor office and grabbed her material and walked as fast as she could to the large conference room on that floor.

As she opened the door, Phil halted his presentation and just silently stared at her as she found her seat. When she sat down, Phil said, “It’s nice of you to join us, Ms. Stone.”

“Sorry, Phil,” she began. “But there was an accident as I was entering the building.”

Phil was silent for about five seconds, and then said, “As I was saying…,” and then continued the meeting.

As everyone was leaving after the meeting, Phil said, “Angie. My office. Now.”

After they both were seated behind closed doors, Phil began, “Angie, you know we have our department meetings on the first Monday of every month. And I told everyone that this would be one of the most important meetings of the year. Yet you arrived almost 15 minutes late!”

“But, Phil,” Angie began. “A man was knocked unconscious right in front of me at the building entrance. I had to call 911 and wait for the paramedics to arrive.”

“Oh,” Phil responded with sarcasm in his voice. “And who was this man? Some bum trying to panhandle everyone?”

“I don’t think he was a panhandler. He was well-dressed and all I know about his is his name is Chuck.”

“Well, that’s too bad for this Chuck fellow, but who appointed you to be his guardian angel?”

“Phil, that’s not fair. I was there with no one to help him. How would you feel if it was you?”

“But it wasn’t me, was it? Do you know why? Because I was in the meeting. On time!

Angie realized she could say nothing to calm Phil down.

Phil continued, “Angie, at just about every meeting, there always seems to be someone who shows up late, and I’m tired of it. I think I have to start enforcing punctuality. I’m afraid I’m going to have to make an example of you,” he paused. “Angie, you’re fired, effective immediately.”

“What?!” Angie said. “Surely you can take into consideration this accident that happened right in front of me.”

“I’m sorry, Angie,” Phil said. “If I let you get away with this tale of yours, everybody will come up with some excuse whenever they’re late. My decision is final. Go clear out your desk.”

“But Phil…,” Angie said bursting into tears.

“You heard me,” he said as he stepped over to open the door for her to leave.

So, Angie got her personal belongings and left.

On Wednesday, Charles McCoy, President & CEO of Med-Rec Services made a surprise appearance around 10:15 in the morning. Mr. McCoy usually did most of his work remotely and rarely came into the office, although Wendy, his administrative assistant, worked onsite every day. And he always came to the office after everyone had arrived and were busy at their workstations. The only employees who knew him by sight were his top executives.

“Mr. McCoy!” Wendy exclaimed. “What happened?” she asked, after noticing a bandage on his head.

“Oh, I had a little mishap the other day. But the doc says it will heal completely in a few days,” he said as he opened the door to his private office. “Oh, Wendy. I believe we have an employee here by the name of Angie Stone. Can you locate her and have her come to my office, please?”

A few minutes later, Wendy called her boss to say, “I’m sorry, Mr. McCoy, but Ms. Stone no longer works here.”

“What? I know she was here a couple of days ago. Did she resign?”

“No, Sir. I was told she was let go.”

“She was fired?” Mr. McCoy paused a moment and then said, “Have Samantha Hightower call me with more information.”

Samantha Hightower was the manager of human resources. When she called, Mr. McCoy asked, “Samantha, I understand Angie Stone was dismissed. For what reason and by whom?”

After Samantha explained what had happened, Mr. McCoy made some personal calls and arranged for a meeting with Philip Dillon on Thursday. Another person was also available for that meeting but was kept in a separate room with the door closed and would be called in later.

When Phil arrived, he was surprised to see that Samantha Hightower was already in the office with Mr. McCoy.

“Phil, I believe we have a problem in your department,” Mr. McCoy began. “I understand Angela Stone arrived very late to your department meeting on Monday, and you fired her to make an example for all your other employees. Is that correct?”

“Yes, Sir,” Phil said nervously.

“Why did you think terminating a nine-year veteran of our company was the appropriate action to take?”

“Well, Mr. McCoy, she made up some excuse about helping an injured panhandler at the entrance to the building.”

Mr. McCoy asked, “Did she say he was a panhandler?”

“Well no. She said it was someone she didn’t know, and his name was Chuck.”

Samantha gasped slightly.

“So, because this unknown man was named Chuck, you just assumed he was a panhandler? Do you think that all men named Chuck are panhandlers?”

“Well, not because of that name. It was because she claimed he was a stranger.”

“I see.” Then Mr. McCoy picked up his phone and dialed Wendy and said, “Have the other person come in.”

Soon, the door opened, and to Phil’s surprise, Angie walked in.

“Thank you for coming today, Angie,” Mr. McCoy said.

“No problem,” she said. “You’re looking much better than when I saw you on Monday, Chuck.”

Phil’s eyes opened wide, and his jaw dropped as far as it would go.

After several seconds, Phil was barely able to mutter, “You mean…,” but he couldn’t say any more.

“That’s right, Phil. I, Charles McCoy, am that Panhandler Chuck. I’m the one she helped. And because she stopped to help someone in need, she was late to your meeting.”

After letting that revelation sink in, Mr. McCoy continued, “Phil, I have arranged with Samantha to have Angie’s termination expunged, as if it never happened, meaning she will be paid for all the time of her non-existent termination with all appropriate benefits intact. I have also ordered payroll to pay Angie a $1,000 bonus for taking correct and decisive action for assisting a person who was injured on company property, whether it was me or someone else, including a real panhandler.

“And Phil, I cannot accept your decision to terminate a valuable, veteran employee just for arriving late to a meeting. She has an impeccable record with high performance reviews. Your action was irrational and unwarranted. Therefore, to stress that point to you, I am suspending you without pay for one week.”

“A week without pay?!” Phil exclaimed. “Mr. McCoy, Isn’t that extreme?”

Mr. McCoy just stared intently into Phil’s eyes for a few seconds, and then said, “Extreme?” After a two second pause, he continued, “Phil, that’s not nearly as extreme as the other option, that I very seriously considered.” And then he continued his piercing stare.

Phil’s eyes opened wide again, understanding what Mr. McCoy meant.

Then Mr. McCoy continued, “Of course, if you’d rather take that route, Samantha brought a termination packet with your name on it. Is that what you want?”

Phil shook his head.

“Very well. But Phil, if you ever think it’s necessary to terminate another employee, you must first receive approval from human resources. Our employees are our greatest asset. I will not have them coming to work in fear of losing their jobs for such minor infractions. Is that clear?”

Phil nodded.

Then Mr. McCoy asked the group, “Are there any questions from anyone?”

No questions were raised.

“Then this meeting is over. But, Angie, I’d like for you to stay.”

After everyone left, Chuck said, “Angie, I’d like to invite you, your husband and your two children to my ranch estate outside town for a made-from-scratch barbecue dinner, not this weekend, but the next one or the one after that. Your choice. My grandchildren will also be there. I’m sure all the kids will have fun playing with each other, while you and your husband spend time with me, my wife and my adult children and their spouses.

“And, Angie, I want you to always address me as Chuck, even in the most formal settings at work or at company events.”

“Thank you for that privilege, Chuck. And I especially thank you for all you did to save my career. I don’t know what I would’ve done without your intervention.

“My husband, Ken, and I will talk about your invitation and let you know which weekend we will come.”

The following Monday, Philip Dillon came to the office unexpectedly, before his suspension expired. He went directly to human resources and gave his letter of resignation to Samantha Hightower, stating that he was going to take over managing his father’s construction business.

Meanwhile, Angie and Ken decided to accept Chuck’s invitation for the very next weekend. And just as Chuck anticipated, the families had a great time together. The Stone kids, Tommy and Katie, had fun learning new outdoor games from the McCoy’s five grandchildren, such as horseshoes and cornhole toss.

As for the barbecue, Chuck had a huge smoker. They served two slabs of brisket and several racks of ribs, along with all the usual trimmings: beans, potato salad, corn on the cob, coleslaw and many other sides.

A few weeks later, Angie contacted Chuck and said, “Chuck, there’s no way I can equal the barbecue dinner you provided us, but I would like to invite all of your family to my house. We live on a one-acre lot, with a large, covered patio. All my friends and everyone in my extended family just rave over my roast chicken recipe. So, if you all will come, I will treat you to plenty of roasted chickens with all the trimmings for a backyard picnic.”

Chuck said, “That’s very nice of you Angie. Let me talk to my family and get back to you.”

Once again, two weeks later, the McCoys all came, and the two families enjoyed more time together.

Chuck’s wife, Andrea, said, “Angie, this is the best roasted chicken I’ve ever tasted! If you don’t consider it a guarded secret, I’d like to have your recipe.”

So, Angie shared her recipe with Andrea.

As a result of these two get-togethers, the Stones and the McCoys all bonded as friends and enjoyed many more gatherings with each other for years to come.