Brooklyn Andracke really likes her garbage man, Delvar Dopson, who always honks his truck's horn and waves when he drives by her house every Thursday morning.
Actually, Brooklyn is a huge fan of him. She thinks he’s her hero!
Her mom, Traci Andracke, said, “To Brooklyn, he is our favorite awesome, smiley garbage man.”
Brooklyn first became interested in Dopson when his big garbage truck would drive by their house in Bloomington, Illinois, every Thursday, right when Brooklyn and her mom were leaving for daycare. At first, they would just watch the truck from inside their house. But soon, Brooklyn wanted to go outside to see the truck up close, and that’s when she noticed Delvar Dopson driving it.
“It became all about him after that,” said her mom. “It wasn’t just the ‘garbage truck’ anymore—it was the ‘garbage man’ she wanted to see.”
Then, on April 7, Brooklyn turned 3 years old and decided she wanted to share part of her birthday with him. She waited outside for Dopson to drive by, and when he did, her mom waved at him to stop. Brooklyn gave him one of her birthday cupcakes.
Traci said, “As a mom, I can’t even describe how happy it made me that she finally got to meet him. She was so surprised that she couldn’t even talk. I had to do all the talking for her. And she’s usually never shy!”
Dopson was also surprised. He was so speechless that he couldn’t say anything at first. Traci later told the city of Bloomington, “I explained to him that he makes our day every Thursday, and we really appreciate the honking and waving. It makes our day so special.” After that, Brooklyn went to daycare but was quiet in the car. When her mom asked her if she was okay, Brooklyn said, “Mommy, I’m so happy.”
The next week, Dopson came back to pick up trash again and gave Brooklyn a belated birthday gift: toys from her favorite movie, "Frozen." Brooklyn made him a thank-you note, which he proudly keeps in his truck.
Traci said their family was “blown away” by all the attention Brooklyn and Dopson had gotten.
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