Airline crew and passengers come together for a heartfelt graduation ceremony at 30,000 feet
The special event was thrown in honour of five-year-old Xavier Joel, who, due to travel commitments, missed his graduation ceremony back home.
In an uplifting display of community spirit, passengers and crew aboard a Frontier Airlines flight made the skies a child-friendly zone with an impromptu graduation ceremony at 30,000 feet.
The memorable occasion took place on a flight from Orlando to San Juan, with the joyous celebration captured in a video shared by Xavier's mother, Janeiry Rivas, on Instagram.
In the heartwarming footage, Xavier is seen donning a bright red cap and gown as he proudly walks down the aisle of the aircraft to the strains of 'Pomp and Circumstance' while fellow passengers applaud, cheer and offer him high fives.
According to Rivas, her son was 'thrilled and beyond excited' about the surprise ceremony.
After all, it's not every day a five-year-old gets to graduate mid-flight.
"All that know me know the importance of my sons activities but due to a family event he missed his graduation. This was very difficult for me and I decided since we were going to be with family to bring his cap and gown. The day we traveled before boarding the plane I put it on him only expecting a photo with the pilots but the staff at frontier airlines went above and beyond.This was unforgettable and I am immensely grateful to all those aboard the plane and the staff.Thank you @flyfrontier," she said.
In a time when stories of conflict can often dominate headlines, this event served as a heartwarming reminder of kindness and community in unexpected places.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Indianapolis Star
15 minutes ago
- Indianapolis Star
'No timeline' for DeWanna Bonner return. Can Indiana Fever sign a hardship player?
LAS VEGAS – As Indiana Fever forward DeWanna Bonner continues to be away from the team, coach Stephanie White says there's "no timeline" for her return. "She's doing well, she's doing well," White said Saturday. "Again, no timeline. I think it's day-to-day, and for us to make sure that we're continuing to be supportive of DB in her time away." Bonner, who signed with the Fever this offseason, has not been with the team since June 12 because of personal reasons. She has missed three games so far, including the June 14 win over New York, June 17 win over Connecticut and June 19 loss to Golden State. She is not with the Fever on their current West Coast road trip and is expected to miss her fourth game in a row when the Fever play the Aces in Las Vegas on Sunday. Bonner's absence puts the Fever down to 10 available players. Depending on how long Bonner is out, Indiana may drop down to nine available players when backup center Damiris Dantas leaves to play in the FIBA AmeriCup with the Brazilian National Team. Dantas will depart after the road trip finishes up in Seattle and will miss five games, including the Commissioner's Cup final, between June 26-July 8 as she plays in the tournament in Chile. The Fever may be able to sign an emergency hardship player if Bonner also remains out that long. The WNBA collective bargaining agreement allows the signing of an emergency hardship player "If a Team during the Regular Season, as a result of injuries, illnesses, other conditions or other extenuating circumstances that have affected its players, has fewer than ten (10) players on its roster who are able to play." (Article VII, section 4(b(i))) The Fever have already taken advantage of an emergency hardship exception this season, signing guard Aari McDonald when Caitlin Clark and Sophie Cunningham were out for two weeks with injuries. McDonald is still available if the Fever need another hardship player, but Indiana would likely need a frontcourt player if both Bonner, who backs up the 4, and Dantas, who backs up the 5, are out at the same time.
Al Arabiya
16 minutes ago
- Al Arabiya
Seager Has Tiebreaking RBI Single, Rocker Gets 2nd Straight Win as Rangers Beat Pirates 3-2
Corey Seager singled in the tiebreaking run in the sixth inning, and rookie Kumar Rocker won his second straight start as the Texas Rangers beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 3–2 on Saturday. Seager's sharp single to center field scored Josh Smith and put the Rangers ahead 2–1. Marcus Semien followed with a sacrifice fly. Rocker (3–4) gave up two runs and five hits in 5 1/3 innings after pitching five scoreless innings against the Chicago White Sox in his previous start last Sunday. The Rangers have won the first two games of the series and will try to finish the sweep on Sunday. Mitch Keller (1–10) took his tenth consecutive loss, allowing three runs and three hits in 5 2/3 innings. He was lifted after Semien's sacrifice fly. Keller hasn't won since beating Miami on March 28 in his first start of the season. The Pirates lost for the sixth time in seven games. Pittsburgh closed to 3–2 in the sixth on Henry Davis' run-scoring grounder, but Texas held on. Shawn Armstrong, Hoby Milner, and Chris Martin combined for 3 2/3 scoreless innings of relief, with Martin getting the last three outs for his second save. Rangers first baseman Jake Burger (strained left oblique) was placed on the 10-day injured list before the game, and center fielder Wyatt Langford (back spasms) sat out a second straight day. Pirates right fielder Bryan Reynolds was activated from the paternity list after missing three games following the birth of a son. He went 0 for 4. Key stat: Keller's losing streak is the longest by a Pirates pitcher since Jose DeLeon dropped eleven decisions in a row in 1985. Key moment: The Pirates had runners on first and second while trailing 3–2 in the sixth, but Armstrong got Ke'Bryan Hayes to hit an inning-ending pop out.
Arab News
18 minutes ago
- Arab News
Democrats are at odds over the Israel-Iran war as Trump considers intervening
After nearly two years of stark divisions over the war in Gaza and support for Israel, Democrats are now finding themselves at odds over US policy toward Iran as progressives demand unified opposition to President Donald Trump's consideration of a strike against Tehran's nuclear program while party leaders tread more cautiously. US leaders of all stripes have found common ground for two decades on the position that Iran cannot be allowed to obtain a nuclear weapon. The longtime US foe has supported groups that have killed Americans across the Mideast and threatens to destroy Israel. But Trump's public flirtation with joining Israel's offensive against Iran may become the Democratic Party's latest schism, just as it is sharply dividing Trump's isolationist 'Make America Great Again' base from more hawkish conservatives. While progressives have staked out clear opposition to Trump's potential actions, the party leadership is playing the safer ground of demanding a role for Congress before Trump could use force against Iran. Many prominent Democrats with 2028 presidential aspirations are staying silent, so far, on the Israel-Iran war. 'They are sort of hedging their bets,' said Joel Rubin, a former deputy assistant secretary of state who served under Democratic President Barack Obama and is now a strategist on foreign policy. 'The beasts of the Democratic Party's constituencies right now are so hostile to Israel's war in Gaza that it's really difficult to come out looking like one would corroborate an unauthorized war that supports Israel without blowback.' Progressive Democrats use Trump's ideas and words Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., has called Trump's consideration of an attack 'a defining moment for our party' and has introduced legislation with Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Kentucky, that calls on the Republican president to 'terminate' the use of US armed forces against Iran unless 'explicitly authorized' by a declaration of war from Congress. Khanna used Trump's own campaign arguments of putting American interests first when the congressman spoke to Theo Von, a comedian who has been supportive of the president and is popular in the 'manosphere.' 'That's going to cost this country a lot of money that should be being spent here at home,' said Khanna, who is said to be among the many Democrats eyeing the party's 2028 primary. Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, an independent who twice sought the Democratic presidential nomination, pointed to Trump's stated goal during his inaugural speech of being known as 'a peacemaker and a unifier.' 'Very fine words. Trump should remember them today. Supporting Netanyahu's war against Iran would be a catastrophic mistake,' Sanders said about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Sanders has reintroduced legislation prohibiting the use of federal money for force against Iran, insisted that US military intervention would be unwise and illegal and accused Israel of striking unprovoked. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer of New York signed on to a similar bill from Sanders in 2020, but he is so far holding off this time. Some believe the party should stake out a clear anti-war stance as Trump weighs whether to launch a military offensive that is seemingly counter to the anti-interventionism he promised during his 2024 campaign. 'The leaders of the Democratic Party need to step up and loudly oppose war with Iran and demand a vote in Congress,' said Tommy Vietor, a former Obama aide, on X. Mainstream Democrats are cautious, while critical The staunch support from the Democratic administration of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris for Israel's war against Hamas loomed over the party's White House ticket in 2024, even with the criticism of Israel's handling of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. Trump exploited the divisions to make inroads with Arab American voters and Orthodox Jews on his way back to the White House. Today, the Israel-Iran war is the latest test for a party struggling to repair its coalition before next year's midterm elections and the quick-to-follow kickoff to the 2028 presidential race. Bridging the divide between an activist base that is skeptical of foreign interventions and already critical of US support for Israel and more traditional Democrats and independents who make up a sizable, if not always vocal, voting bloc. In a statement after Israel's first strikes, Schumer said Israel has a right to defend itself and 'the United States' commitment to Israel's security and defense must be ironclad as they prepare for Iran's response.' Sen. Jacky Rosen, D-Nevada, was also cautious in responding to the Israeli action and said 'the US must continue to stand with Israel, as it has for decades, at this dangerous moment.' 'It really seems like the Trump and Iran war track is kind of going along like a Formula 1 racetrack, and then the Democrats are in some sort of tricycle or something trying to keep up,' said Ryan Costello, a policy director for the Washington-based National Iranian American Council, which advocates for diplomatic engagement between US and Iran. Other Democrats have condemned Israel's strikes and accused Netanyahu of sabotaging nuclear talks with Iran. They are reminding the public that Trump withdrew in 2018 from a nuclear agreement that limited Tehran's enrichment of uranium in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions negotiated during the Obama administration. 'Trump created the problem,' said Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Connecticut, on X. 'The single reason Iran was so close to obtaining a nuclear weapon is that Trump destroyed the diplomatic agreement that put major, verifiable constraints on their nuclear program.' The progressives' pushback A Pearson Institute/Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll from September 2024 found that about half of Democrats said the US was being 'too supportive' of Israel and about 4 in 10 said their level support was 'about right.' Democrats were more likely than independents and Republicans to say the Israeli government had 'a lot' of responsibility for the continuation of the war between Israel and Hamas. About 6 in 10 Democrats and half of Republicans felt Iran was an adversary with whom the US was in conflict. Democratic Rep. Yassamin Ansari, an Iranian American from Arizona, said Iranians are unwitting victims in the conflict because there aren't shelters or infrastructure to protect civilians from targeted missiles as there are in Israel. 'The Iranian people are not the regime, and they should not be punished for its actions,' Ansari posted on X, while criticizing Trump for fomenting fear among the Iranian population. 'The Iranian people deserve freedom from the barbaric regime, and Israelis deserve security.'
