The shirt off his back, the shoes off his feet, and other heartwarming images of human kindness, grace, and compassion:
1. The shirt off his back
Back in January of this year, 23-year-old Joey Resto was riding on the NYC subway when he observed a homeless man in his train car. Though other passengers kept their distance because of the smell, Joey had compassion on the man, literally giving him the shirt off his back.
“It was freezing that night. He looked cold and hungry,” Resto told ABC7NY. The good Samaritan’s deed was captured on video and spread through social media like wildfire.
2. The firefighters that pulled over
That same month, California firefighters serving the Riverside Fire Department came to the rescue of an elderly homeless man traversing the freeway without a pair of shoes. Firefighter David Gilstrap and Capt. Rob Gabler were returning from training when they spotted the man.
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3. The officers with tennis shoes
An Alexandria, Va., police officer made a similar provision of tennis shoes for a homeless man in June. Responding to a report of suspicious activity, officers discovered a homeless man sitting on the curb in the area of interest.
The man was barefoot and hungry. And so one of the officers retrieved his spare tennis shoes and his dinner from his car and gave them to the homeless man.
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4. The little girl who shared a meal
There are no age restrictions on kindness and compassion. Take 8-year-old Ella Scott. When she noticed a homeless man outside from her restaurant table, she took her plate of steak and potatoes and brought it to the man, who looked “hungry and helpless.”
Ella’s father Eddie Scott captured the sweet moment on video and posted it to Facebook, where it’s been viewed over 44 million times.
The story in California doesn’t end there, though. As Today reported:
Scott, 38, captured the whole exchange on video and later uploaded it to Facebook, where it's been viewed almost 44 million times, and even ended up reaching the man's sister, Roseanne Salkowski.
An emotional Salkowski called up Scott on Sunday explaining that she hasn't seen her 62-year-old brother, a veteran who has post-traumatic stress disorder, since he took off from Philadelphia six months ago. She cried for the entire half hour on the phone, but was relieved to find out that he's OK.
Eddie and Ella have since been attempting to reunite the siblings.
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5. The marathon runner who gives
As a marathon runner, Mesa Police Officer Kent Green keeps his old running shoes in the back of his car, making it a habit to give to those in need.
"I'd seen people barefoot in the summer, I'd seen people with socks, with, you know, toes sticking out of their shoes," Officer Green told Fox 10. Since a snapshot of his act of kindness was caught, donors have flooded him with their own pairs of shoes to give to the needy. Officer Green was happy for the positive reaction his story garnered on social media.
"Empathy is free, easy, and colorblind. We all have it, it's just not always displayed, it's not always in the spotlight," said Green.
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6. The compassionate deputy
Oklahoma Deputy Brandon Hendrix’s empathy was certainly put in the spotlight after he met a transient woman outside police headquarters in downtown Tulsa. The woman was not wearing a pair of shoes.
And so, as CBS News reported, “Deputy Hendrix grabbed a fellow law enforcement officer — as is protocol whenever a male deputy has a female in his car — and drove the barefoot woman to a local Walmart. There, he let her pick out a pair of shoes that matched her dress and, at checkout, he paid for them.”
The other officer immortalized the deputy’s random act of kindness with a snapshot.
random act of kindness alert: Dep. noticed this woman doesn't own a pair of shoes. So he took her shopping and let her pick out a new pair. pic.twitter.com/7fHPcNg0CF
— Tulsa County Sheriff (@TCSO) October 5, 2016
7. The Walmart employee with a big heart
These acts are the definition of selfless and deserve recognition. That is why when shopper Myrna Kines witnessed an 18-year-old Walmart employee in Douglas County, Ga., taking off his shoes to give them to a homeless man in need, she asked to take his photo.
The employee, teen Phil Powell, had dyed his sneakers pink to honor his grandmother, who battled breast cancer. But when he observed the homeless man without shoes of his own, he didn’t hesitate.
"I have another pair of shoes. He doesn't," Phil told Today.com.
Today, let us give thanks for those that do good. For those who love their neighbors and make this country great.
The most interesting stories aren’t told in the headlines. They’re in the FOOTNOTES!
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