Boy with Autism Captivated by American Flag if Gifted Special Bench

Everyone has their favorite spot in their home – their porch, their bed, or their backyard. For Finn Daly, a 6 year old boy who has Down Syndrome and Autism Spectrum Disorder, his favorite spot is relaxing by his front door, admiring the American flag that waves in the wind.

Brooke, Daly’s mother tells CBS, “If it’s moving, if the wind is blowing, he would sit there for an hour and just watch the flag go back and forth, which is kind of the beauty of Finn, too.”

Luckily, the Daly family lives in a small town in West Hartford, Connecticut where many houses have flagpoles with American flags waving in their front yards. The Daly family goes on many walks, admiring all the flags in the neighborhood. However, there is one flag, hung from a tree overarching the sidewalk, that Daly has taken particular interest to.

Todd Disque, the neighbor to whom the flag belongs, noticed how enamoured Daly was by his flag. Disque saw that Daly was mesmerized by his flag, and wanted to make his time admiring it a little more comfortable. Without telling the Daly family, Disque constructed a tiny bench with the carving “Finn’s bench” on the seat for the Daly and left it out for him for the next time the Daly family went on a walk past his house.

Daly’s mother was brought to tears when she saw this gift awaiting her son. She tells CBS, “”It’s such a small gesture, but things like this really restore your faith in humanity. Like, there’s still good people out there that want to do kind things for no other reason than just to be kind.” This small act of kindness has gone a long way and has allowed Daly to sit and admire his favorite flag for just a little bit longer.