A 93-year-old father's shy chicken request turns into a neighborhood feast

A 93-year-old man living alone nervously called his youngest daughter to ask for a single order of seasoned fried chicken — and the story has since grown into a full neighborhood celebration, thanks to a surprise gift from a chicken franchise.

According to posts on the social media platform Threads on Tuesday, the youngest of six siblings, identified only as A, visited her father's rural home on Saturday, took him to the hospital, and then ordered nine whole seasoned chickens for the elderly neighbors in the area. The nine chickens came to a total of 207,000 won ($150).

A had intended to pay using a gift voucher she had received from the company. As the local franchise owner contacted headquarters to verify how to process the voucher, he learned the story behind A and her father.

"The owner said, 'Forget the 7,000 won — I won't take that,' and just knocked it off without a second thought," A wrote. "I had the seasoned chicken delivered one by one to the homes of the elderly neighbors near my father's place, and they were all so, so happy."

She added that when she hugged each of the older women, they patted her on the back and said, "Thank you for being so good to your father, dear." "It made me think of my late mother, and I couldn't hold back the tears," she wrote, thanking the chicken company. "Thanks to you, our village is having a seasoned chicken party."

A said her father burst out laughing when he heard that his story had led to his daughter receiving gift vouchers and sharing chicken with the neighbors. "It's such a rural area that you can't even get a single chicken delivered — someone has to go and get it for you," she wrote. "It was a wonderful day, all thanks to Pelicana."

A had first drawn public attention earlier this month when she shared the contents of a phone call with her father on Threads.

Her father, who has been living alone in the countryside since his wife passed away, had hesitantly brought up the subject during the call. "Is that you, youngest? You know that seasoned chicken you bought me last time — I keep thinking about it and wanting some. I tried to hold back, but I just keep thinking about it," he told her.

When A replied, "I'll order it right away. Just wait 30 minutes," her father said, "I'm sorry."

"He's such a proud, unbending man — he almost never asks for anything," A wrote. "Hearing him apologize just for saying he wanted something to eat, I couldn't hold back my tears."

The post spread across social media, racking up more than 1.2 million views and drawing wide sympathy from users.

Pelicana, the chicken franchise that caught wind of the story, left a comment directly on A's post. "We were deeply moved thinking about your father — a man who must have given so much for his family his whole life — hesitating for so long before finally picking up the phone just to say he wanted a piece of chicken," the company wrote. "We would like to send a small token so that next time the craving strikes, he can enjoy it without a second thought."

A gift voucher worth 200,000 won was subsequently sent to A, who used it to treat her father and the elderly neighbors in the village.

Online commenters rallied around A, with reactions including: "Sharing it with others on top of everything — she's an absolute angel," "The warmth in this person's heart is so precious," and "What a heartwarming ending — a whole neighborhood celebration."