“Why is a 92-year-old woman working?”: Stranger’s kindness changes the life of an elderly Burlington employee

What began as a routine shopping trip turned into a life-changing moment for a 92-year-old retail worker in Pompano Beach, after a stranger was moved to action by what she saw.

April Steele says she was browsing in a Burlington store a few weeks ago when she noticed an elderly woman working in the dressing room. The sight stopped her in her tracks. “I noticed this lady working in the dressing room. This woman’s got to be in her 80s, and she is still working! My heart sank,” Steele recalled.

As she watched the employee continue her shift, Steele felt compelled to learn more. “I thought, ‘Why is a 92-year-old woman working? It just seemed unbelievable to me,” she said.

That employee was Muriel Connick, a 92-year-old who, as Steele would soon learn, continued to work because she simply could not afford to retire. After meeting Connick, Steele shared her story in a local Pompano Beach Facebook group. Encouraged by others, she then launched a GoFundMe campaign to help ease Connick’s financial burden.

Connick later told 7News that her monthly Social Security check falls far short of covering her essential bills. “Well, I have to,” she said when asked why she keeps working. “It’s the rent, and it’s the car payment and the car insurance and the telephone, electricity, and cable.”

The community response was swift and heartfelt. “And it has taken off. People have been so generous,” Steele said. Within just a few weeks, more than $5,000 had been raised for Connick.

For her part, Connick said she was stunned by the attention and generosity. “I was really surprised. Yeah, and I didn’t know she was going to do all this. I thought she was going to give me a card and say, you know, ‘This is to help you,’” she shared.

When 7News visited Connick at her mobile home, the need for help was clear. As she walked across the floor, aging wooden boards visibly popped up beneath her feet. Steele said that part of the money raised will be used to repair the flooring and make Connick’s home safer. “How could you not want to help?” she said.

Despite the hardships she faces, Connick continues to show resilience and gratitude, now bolstered by the kindness of people she has never met. “I don’t know who they are,” she said of the donors. “[But] I thank them very much, and I don’t know what I’d do without them,” she said.

Steele hopes the growing support will continue and eventually allow Connick to step away from work and experience some peace after decades of responsibility. What started as a brief moment between two strangers has become a powerful reminder that compassion, when shared, can ripple through an entire community and change a life.

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