During a recent trip to Costco, a pair of little girls in Hawaii were delighted a man they were sure was actually one of their favorite Disney characters.
Rella Rivera of Oahu was approaching the cash registers at the store in Kapolei with her daughters Ryley, eight, and Rylyn, five, when the girls suddenly shouted excitedly: ‘That’s Maui!’
Their sudden outburst was prompted by the sight of the worker manning the register, who the girls were positive was the Dwayne Johnson-voiced demigod from Disney Pixar’s Moana.
New friends: Rella Rivera, 42, of Oahu, Hawaii, was shopping at Costco with her daughters Ryley, eight, and Rylyn, five, when they spotted cashier William Va’ana (right)
Cashier William Va’ana does indeed bear a striking resemblance to the character, right down to his long hair and armfuls of tattoos.
And it quickly became clear that this wasn’t the first time William has had the young ones worked up over his appearance, as he seemed happy to play along.
Radio host Rella, 42, managed to whip out her phone in time to catch the girls’ excitement.
Double-take: The girls were convinced that William was Maui (right) from Disney’s Moana
Playing along: Luckily for the girls, the cashier was more than happy to play along
Catching the moment: The girls’ mom Rella, 42, managed to whip out her phone in time to film the girls and their new friend
‘Who’s that?’ she asked the bouncing girls, who emphatically responded with ‘that’s Maui!’
William then invites them around to his side of the register to join him for a big shout of ‘chee-hoo!’ – Maui’s catchphrase.
‘It brought so much joy to my face to see how excited the girls were. Before I could get my phone out to video, he had already let out a loud “chee-hoo.” And the girls lit up even more,’ Rella told People.
Hitting the mark: William invited the girls to stand next to him as he let out a bit ‘chee-hoo!’
All smiles: Rella claims that now the girls are always excited to go to Costco, and William always greets them with the character’s catchphrase
Sharing the love: After posting the video online, she learned from other parents that hers were far from the first kids to point out William’s resemblance to the character
Now, Rella reveals, the kids look forward to their trips to Costco so they can visit their friend, who always is sure to great them with a big ‘chee-hoo!’
When the mom shared the video online, she soon learned that her girls were far from the only ones around town to notice William and his resemblance to Maui.
‘There were pictures posted in the comments of other kids who have pointed him out in Costco and he was nice enough to take pictures with them as well,’ she said.
Rella’s video of the sweet moment has already been seen more than 75,000 times on YouTube – and has led to calls for William to be given a raise for his kindness.