A Yemeni father of three and the owner of Zack’...
TIKTOK

A Yemeni father of three and the owner of Zack’s Finest Deli in Staten Island has gone viral for rewarding his youngest customers for their good grades.

1:38 Oct 01, 2025 7,200,000 1,300,000
@dwachtendonk
285 words
These are my documents and my grades. At Zach's Finest Deli on New York's Staten Island. I got my student of the month certificate. The manager, Wale, is the guy you want to see if something good happens at school. When I see these kids happy, I see my home. Wale is a father of three whose children are in his home country of Yemen. And last June, he went viral for a bet he made with then 12-year-old Zamir. For the record, it was Zamir's idea, and here is what he wagered with a handshake. If he can make it to the honor roll, he gets to grab whatever he wants. It took him a few months, but by June, Zamir made the honor roll and was getting as many bags of Doritos as he wanted. Within a few days, the video started picking up millions of views on TikTok, and you can guess what happened next. When the video went viral, other kids started coming. Fast forward a year, and now Wale says kids are coming in every day to exchange their good marks for good eats. Although he says it's not always for snacks. To help pay for this program, Wale's brother set up a GoFundMe, which has raised more than $70,000. He also sells t-shirts to help fundraise on his website, which is IslandOck.com. What does Ock mean? Ock is a slang for the bodega man, the Arabic guy, the brother. But why does an Ock working 13-hour shifts, six days a week, put in so much effort for this mission? It proved to me that everybody, all the kids is very smart. They just need someone to believe in them.

No AI insights yet

Save videos. Search everything.

Build your personal library of inspiration. Find any quote, hook, or idea in seconds.

Create Free Account No credit card required
Original