SHERIDAN — A secret Santa gift has gone viral.
Chris Fisher, a manager at Sheridan’s Sonic Drive-In, surprised co-worker Cole Williams, 17, with a pair of Enchroma glasses for Christmas, and the reaction video has reached more than a million views.
“It was crazy,” Fisher said. “We only recorded it because a couple of girls who are close to him had chipped in $10 to $15, and a couple of them weren’t there, so we promised to record it.
“I wanted to make sure they saw it.”
Fisher said he wasn’t even sure if Williams would have an instant reaction to the glasses.
“The website said it may take a few weeks for the eyes to adapt,” Fisher said, “but we wanted to record it just in case.
“He was just so happy before he even put [the glasses] on. I posted [the video] on Facebook, and it just kind of blew up from there. I don’t think I’ve ever gotten more than 50 likes on a single post, and that’s received like 1.3 million views.”
Fisher said he didn’t think much about it at first, but after about three hours, the video had 50,000 views.
“I have never been a part of something like this before,” he said. “The thing I have liked most about it is the positive comments on Facebook.
“As negative as Facebook can get sometimes, it is very cool to read all the positive comments. Most people say how much they respect the gift and thought it was such an awesome thing.
“It was a good four or five days. It made a man feel good for a while, for sure.”
Williams, who is a senior at Poyen High School, said it “blew his mind” when the video received 1,000 views.
“The fact that KATV and Good Morning America picked up the story was incredible,” Williams said.
Fisher said he got the idea of getting Williams the glasses after watching several reaction videos on YouTube.
“I mentioned it one day when it was slow at work, and he told me he was color blind,” Fisher said. “At this point, he was the only color-blind person I knew.
“About a week after [watching the videos], another manager mentioned doing a Secret Santa. I took [Williams’] name out and started asking some of the other crew members to chip in.”
The glasses cost about $300, and Fisher was able to raise about half the money for the glasses, thanks to donations from the other day-shift members, and he covered the rest out of his own pocket.
“I thought it was cool that my co-workers went out of their way to get them for me,” Williams said.
According to the website www.enchroma.com, the eyewear “alleviates red-green color blindness, enhancing colors without the compromise of color accuracy.”
“The stalls and menu boards were one of the first things he noticed,” Fisher said, “because it was a totally different color than what he normally sees on a daily basis.”
Fisher, who lives in Sheridan, has worked at Sonic for about five years but did take a break for nearly a year. He said he has only been back for about five months. Williams has worked there seven months.
“He’s a really good kid,” Fisher said. “He gets off school at 1, since he has a job, and he is at work by 2. He is always willing to work and has a smile on his face.
“I get compliments [on Williams] from customers all the time. He always has a good attitude. He is one of the hardest workers we’ve got. He deserves it.”
Williams said Fisher is like an uncle to his co-workers.
“He is one of our funniest managers. We all like him,” Williams said. “He is one of the first managers to pat you on the back and tell you, ‘Good job.’
“Your work definitely doesn’t go unnoticed.”
Fisher said he has received multiple comments on his post from other color-blind people and relatives of color-blind people. He said he wrote those people’s names down, and he said if any money comes from the video, he plans on buying a pair or two [of Enchroma glasses] and sending them out.
“I would love to just surprise them with these gifts in the mail,” Fisher said.
Williams, who lives in Prattsville, said the best thing about the glasses is how much easier it is to get dressed in the morning now.
“That’s my favorite part,” he said. “It is easier to match your outfits. Before, I just wore pretty basic colors, like jeans and a T-shirt.”
Staff writer Sam Pierce can be reached at (501) 244-4314 or spierce@arkansasonline.com.