When newlywed Lawryn Fellwock left her passport at home while heading to her honeymoon, Delta flight attendant Dusty Dills turned the nerve-wracking situation into one of her happiest memories.

Fellwock and her husband, Joe, were traveling from Detroit to San Juan in February, where they were set to board a honeymoon cruise the following day. Just after take-off, Lauren realized she’d left her passport at home. She was inconsolable on the flight: Without the passport, she couldn’t board the cruise. And the couple couldn’t find a way to get the passport to San Juan in time.

That’s when Dills stepped up with an incredible offer: He would retrieve the passport in Detroit, bring it to Atlanta and relay it to a crew member heading to San Juan — rallying colleagues hundreds of miles apart to save the couple’s once-in-a-lifetime trip.

“It’s so easy to go throughout the day and do what’s expected of you at work, but (I always try to ask myself) ‘what can I do to make that difference in someone’s life?’” Dills said.

With the help of In-Flight Service employee Katy Yates and Airport Customer Service employee Karla Maisonet, Dusty crafted a plan to get the passport to the Fellwocks. Joe Fellwock’s sister-in-law Jackie would bring the passport to Dusty at Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport (DTW). From there, Dusty handed off the passport to Atlanta-based flight attendant Jeff Mendez, who delivered the passport to customer service agent Juan Arroyo at Luis Munoz Marin International Airport (SJU) in Puerto Rico.

The team in SJU called Joe and Lawryn to let them know the passport had arrived. The final stop on this incredible journey was the ticket counter, where customer service agent Abner Ortiz handed it to Lawryn.

“The whole experience was surreal. Joe and I were desperate to find a way to save our honeymoon and right when we thought we were out of options, Dusty offers his personal time to help us out,” Lawryn said. “We were so touched and grateful — a renewed faith in humanity was the best wedding gift. We owe our post-wedding bliss to Dusty and the Delta family!” 

Dusty has been in contact with the Fellwocks since, and they even sent him an invitation to their wedding reception in August. (Yates will join him since she was so instrumental to the plan.)

“Experiences like this remind me how much fun it is to be a part of a team of people who are all dedicated and passionate about one goal: taking care of our customers,” Yates said. “Even though I never had an opportunity to speak directly with Lawryn or Joe, it was just as exciting to know I was helping in a small way to make their trip possible.”