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89-Year-Old Grandmother Denied Access To Gas Station Bathroom And Forced To Urinate In The Grass

Evelyn Redic's family believes the employees should have made an exception and allowed the elderly woman to use the staff restroom.

An 89-year-old grandmother in North Carolina says she was humiliated when she was forced to use the bathroom outside after gas station attendants denied her access to the restroom.

On Sunday, Evelyn Redic was coming home from church services when the church van she was riding in got a flat tire. Luckily, the van got a flat tire very close to a Charlotte gas station, so Redic decided to go in and use the restroom, reported WBTV.

However, when Redic went inside, the employees told her the restroom was only for staff.

"She says she was outraged," Redic's granddaughter, Katossa Glover, told WBTV.

Redic had no choice but to relieve herself on the grass near the gas station.

"She said, 'I have never been so embarrassed,'" Glover added.

Glover posted about her grandmother’s experience on social media and said Redic has already lived through a time when she was frequently denied access to facilities.

"People are tired of being mistreated," Glover said, "and a woman who has been here since 1929, who has gone through that, will not experience that in 2018 without the community fighting."

County Commissioner Vilma Leake, who represents the area where the incident happened, went to the gas station to speak with the manager. Unfortunately, Leake was unable to get a response.

"She's a human being and they are human," Leake said. "That is out of the ordinary to say no to somebody that age."

Although the grandmother's family understands the policy, the firmly believe an exception should have been made.

"I think if you are making money here in this community, you need to be taking care of your community," Glover said.

Although Redic was denied bathroom use in this instance, starting on January 1, 2019, all new gas stations in North Carolina must have a restroom for customers to use, county officials told WBTV.

The family is pleased action will be taken, but they feel not enough has been done to address their situation.

"I feel like we need some type of public apology," Glover said.

The family says it will protest the gas station until they get that public apology.

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