PHILADELPHIA — Lucy Bannon was planning to celebrate her third birthday on Friday with some cake but ended up receiving something much better.
The Bannon family was standing in between Tasker and Morris on Broad Street for the Eagles Super Bowl parade when they saw Saquon Barkley walking their way. Lucy was with her grandmother, Tracy, when Barkley saw her sign, which read: “Today is my third birthday! Go Birds!”
Barkley walked over and asked Tracy if he could pick Lucy up.
“She was like, ‘Oh my god, of course,’ ” said Charlie Bannon, Lucy’s father.
Barkley held her for about 20 seconds as the family took photos of the young fan and the Eagles running back. Charlie said Lucy might not understand the significance of the moment now, but, when she’s older, she will.
“I don’t think she realized what was going on,” Charlie said. “She was just excited that everyone was cheering. She’s been smiling ever since.”
The Bannons, who live in East Falls, planned to celebrate Lucy’s birthday more after the parade. But she has already gotten a memory to last a lifetime.
“If he had just come over and said hello, and happy birthday, that would have been enough,” Charlie said. “But he picked her up and took photos without us even asking him. He couldn’t have been nicer.”
