( CNN ) -- If Kerry Drake missed his connecting flight , he would n't get to the hospital in time to say goodbye to his mother . Drake got the news on the morning of January 24 that his mother , who had been ill for years from rheumatoid arthritis and had been especially sick the last four months , was dying . To get to his mother in Lubbock , Texas , the San Francisco resident booked a United Airlines flight , with only 40 minutes between connecting flights in Houston . When his first flight was delayed , Drake thought he would miss his connecting flight to Lubbock , the last one of the day . Sometimes , airlines go the extra mile . He started crying , obviously distraught . The flight attendants brought napkins for his tears , said they would do what they could to help , and most importantly , got his connecting flight information to the captain , he told CNN . When he got off the airport train and was running toward the gate , `` I was still like maybe 20 yards away when I heard the gate agent say , 'Mr . Drake , we 've been expecting you , ' '' he said . The captain had radioed ahead . With the information from the flight attendants , the captain had radioed ahead about Drake 's situation , and the Lubbock crew had delayed departure to get him on board . Until that point , Drake had been rushing on adrenaline to make the flight . Finally sitting on that second airplane , he realized how much had gone into helping him get on that plane . `` I was overcome with emotion , '' he said . Even his luggage arrived on time . The Houston ground crew made sure of it . He made it to the hospital in time to see his mother . `` At one point she opened her eyes , and I think she recognized me , '' said Drake , who spent the night at the hospital . `` Around 4 a.m. she had a real moment of coherence , a last rally , although we did n't know it at the time . It was the last time . '' She died that morning . Employees working together . Drake wrote to United Airlines upon his return to ensure that the flight attendants , pilots , gate agents and baggage handlers who helped him that day were thanked for their service . His story made it into an employee newsletter as an example of what employees could do . `` Our employees really worked together that day to help this customer , '' said United spokeswoman Megan McCarthy . `` This almost never happens , '' wrote Christopher Elliott , who first told Drake 's story on his airline consumer advocate website , via e-mail . `` Airline employees are evaluated based on their ability to keep a schedule . Airlines compete with each other on who has the best on-time departure record . '' Pilot holds flight for man going to see dying grandson . `` When the crew on this flight heard about this distraught passenger trying to make his connection , they must have said , 'To hell with it , ' '' wrote Elliott , who 's also the reader advocate for National Geographic Traveler . `` And they made the right call . '' Read the latest news on CNN.com .
A passenger had to catch two flights to make it to his mother 's bedside in time . Flight crews are usually under pressure to make sure their flights take off and land on time . Comment: