Hays man phones wife to ‘Pay with Lovin’ at McDonald’s (VIDEO)

Monte Smith calls his wife Angel to "Pay with Lovin'" at the north Hays McDonald's restaurant as crew member Linda Fisher and swing manager Dusty Barnes look on. — Monte Smith calls his wife Angel to “Pay with Lovin'” at the north Hays McDonald’s as crew member Linda Fisher and swing manager Dusty Barnes look on.

By BECKY KISER
Hays Post

A lot of people saw the Super Bowl commercial in which customers get free menu items from McDonald’s when they “Pay with Lovin’ ” instead of cash. Some have wondered about its authenticity.

It’s for real, and the new campaign continues nationally through Valentine’s Day, Saturday, Feb. 14.

One of the winning customers at the north Hays McDonald’s on Tuesday morning was Hays resident Monte Smith.

After he handed over his $3.33, longtime crew member Linda Fisher told Smith the breakfast he ordered at 8:27 a.m. would be free, if he wanted to “Pay with Lovin.’ ” Smith opted to call his wife Angel and say, “I love you.”

“I had just seen her 15 minutes earlier, so she was surprised I called, and she loved it,” Smith said with a grin. Fisher, who has worked weekday mornings for 33 years at the north Hays McDonald’s, also had a big smile on her face.

“I just came in to get my morning McMuffin, and I was asked to call someone that I love, so I called my wife and I made the rest of the McDonald’s staff really happy,” Smith recalled, although “it was all just a big blur.”

There were also a couple other unusual things for Smith.

“I usually order a breakfast burrito. I don’t know why I went with the McMuffin this time. I got the No. 2 — a sausage McMuffin with a Coke instead,” he said.

It was also unusual that Smith was even in the north McDonald’s restaurant.

“Honestly, I usually go to the south McDonald’s. I just came in here today. Things were different today, obviously. Everything was off, and on, at the same time,” he laughed.

The Hays McDonald’s restaurants are owned and operated by Rick and Gail Kuehl of Hays, who also own the stores in Russell, WaKeeney and Colby.

Customers who enter participating McDonald’s at randomized, predetermined times between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. are selected to participate. The times are different each day, coming from corporate headquarters, and are unknown to the local employees.

Dena Rupp, Marketing Manager of McDonald's in Hays, Colby, Russell and WaKeeney — Dena Rupp, marketing manager of McDonald’s in Hays, Colby, Russell and WaKeeney

Local marketing director Dena Rupp said the campaign has been a been “a lot of fun” and “nearly every selected customer has ‘Paid with Lovin’ ” through phone calls, fist bumps, dances and more.

Even customers who weren’t selected have enjoyed the fun, according to Rupp.

“There were two ladies from Colorado in our WaKeeney McDonald’s who stopped on their way to see their sister in St. Louis. There happened to be quite a few of the Pay with Lovin’s given away right in a row. The ladies were sitting out there in the lobby just whooping and hollering and clapping with the crew. They’d get up and go to talk the customers who won the free meal, giving them high fives. It was just awesome,” Rupp said.

“It’s just so nice to have positive things going on,” she added.

The promotion will continue an extra week, through Saturday, Feb. 21, at the five stores owned by the Kuehls.

“They gave local owners the option to go another week, so we decided to continue Pay with Lovin’ at our stores in Hays, WaKeeney, Russell and Colby,” Rupp said Thursday afternoon. “We’ve been having so much fun with it.”