Starbucks worker praised for helping young girl after man approached her

The employee became concerned for the girl's safety after she was approached by a stranger.

A Starbucks worker has been praised for the innovative way they rushed to help a young girl in an uncomfortable situation. Brandy Roberson, the mother of the teenage girl, took to Facebook to share the story, revealing that her daughter had been sitting alone in a Texas Starbucks when a man approached her. Once the barista noticed the girl was visibly uncomfortable, they brought another coffee cup to the table, telling her it was “an extra hot chocolate someone forgot to pick up". However, the cup had a hand-written message on the side that read: "Are you okay? Do you want us to intervene? If you do, take the lid off the cup." Brandy later told Today that her daughter been studying in Starbucks when the man began to talk to her. He continued to linger for a while and was talking “fairly loudly.” “It sounded like he was quite animated. I believe this is what alerted the employees. He had also not come in with my daughter, so they knew she probably did not know him." While the girl did not remove the lid, she said knowing the whole team was watching over her during her time there made her feel safe. Eventually, the man became aware that she was communicating with the staff and left. The teenager told her mother what had happened as soon as she got home and said the gesture had really warmed her heart. "It made me feel so grateful that the Starbucks employees were watching out for her," Brandy said. "As a mom, that is my worst fear that something would happen to my child and nobody would be there to help." The Facebook post has since gone viral and received almost 100,000 likes. "Faith in humanity restored," one person commented. "The best of humanity right there!" another added.