11 Summer Stories That Prove a Small Act of Kindness Can Stay With Someone for a Lifetime (USA Edition)

“We stopped at an ice cream stand in Alabama when I was 7. A strange man kept staring at me near the claw machine. I climbed into the car and locked the door.

He knocked on the window. My dad reached for the door. My heart jumped. The man was holding a teddy bear from the claw machine I was staring at earlier. He wasn’t dressed well. Turned out he was struggling financially, but he used his coins to take out the bear from the claw machine to give it to me.

You couldn’t imagine my happiness when I hugged the bear. My father tried giving him money, but he wouldn’t take it. He said, ’I just wanted to make a kid happy.’ Probably the best American man I ever met in my life.”

“We are getting married in June, and we looked at Hobby Lobby to get some ideas; needless to say, it was very expensive. A new coffee shop opened up in the next town over, so we decided to go to a thrift store in that area.

We were talking about ideas for the wedding, and a man overheard us and joined our conversation. We start talking about a random assortment of things, and the guy comes to shake my hand. In his hand is a $100 bill! Definitely made my day and wanted to share this story with you kind folk. Have a great weekend, everyone!”

“A neighbor put out a water and treat station for the dogs. To help keep cool during the heat wave we are having.”

“My run today was particularly hot. A farmer driving past pulled up beside me and handed me an ice-cold bottle of water. I downed it and thought to post here. No idea who he was.”

"It was July 3rd, and I was picking up an order from my local warehouse club. I put the order in late morning for a 5 pm pickup. I totally forgot it was July 3rd and would be slammed with people picking up orders for 4th of July celebrations. I

was also in the process of moving and was absolutely exhausted. I was just getting my usual stock coffee, muffins*, and whatever else we needed. There were a ton of cars waiting for their orders and after 10 minutes, I could tell they were behind because no one had gotten their order delivered yet.

One of the regular employees who brings out orders, let’s call her Jane, came over to my car, and I said, ’Oh, you have my order already?!’ Because so many people before me were still there waiting. She had a look of utter exhaustion and said, ’No, actually it’s the car next to you, sorry. I’ll be back.’

*For my side muffin story: one time, I had ordered muffins but they were out of the flavor I ordered but didn’t offer me a substitution. It’s $3.99 to place another order under $50, and just for muffins, and at the time, I had a back injury, so walking hurt.

I called the store to ask why they didn’t offer me a substitution, and I ended up talking to Jane. She said, ’Don’t worry, Miss kay182, I’ll make sure if I pull your order, you’ll get your muffins!’ Every time I’ve seen her since, she has literally made sure I had muffins. And of course we banter about my muffins lol.

I can’t even remember how much time has passed, maybe another 20-30 minutes. But she had my order! I said something like, ’Oh, it’s my turn!’ And I don’t know why I brought it up, but I mentioned how exhausted I was from moving.

She broke down in tears, saying how exhausted she was because they were short-staffed; she was the only one bringing out orders, and there was still an insane amount of orders that still had to be filled. And she hasn’t had a break yet today. I said, ’You need a hug, don’t you?! Can I hug you?!’ She nodded yes. I got out of my car and we had a nice, long, tight hug. We both needed it but she absolutely needed it more."

“I work at a front desk. I mentioned offhandedly that I was having a tough day to one of my favorite guests, a young lady who’s been staying here long-term with her daughters. Later today, she handed me a note that made me cry.

It reads: ’You never know who watches you and thinks you are great. When life gives you lemons, make lemonade... I hope this makes you smile... Have a better day.’

There was a $20 bill attached to the bottom. I know this woman doesn’t have a ton of extra cash to spend on something like this. Apparently someone showed her kindness this week and she’s just passing it along. Sometimes the people I meet at this job really and truly amaze me.

She has no idea what I’m working through. My family has endured loss and illness. On top of it all, it’s Fourth of July weekend, so work is insane. She has no idea what a kindness like this means to me, especially right now.

Sometimes people are stubborn, angry, and entitled. But then one nice person comes by to visit for a moment and it washes the slate clean again. Sometimes I really do love this job.”

“I haven’t been using my AC because I think the bills are going to be really high this summer. Last summer, the heat index hit 138F (59C) one day — so hot the AC just quit until nighttime. Our electric bills were enormous just to keep the house in the high 70s (about 25C)!

So we’ve been putting up with temperatures in the 80s and high humidity, just to offset future bills, but now we’re getting into the 90s and it’s not getting cool enough at night to cool the house (and everything is damp, bleh!), so I decided it’s time. But when I went to turn it on, nothing happened. I figured the strain from last summer had finally broken it. (It’s nearly twenty years old.)

When the repairman came, it turned on, but he spent at least an hour and a half getting it all cleaned and tuned up. I was figuring up the bill in my head and it wasn’t pretty. But when it came time to pay, he said that since I was already signed up for their semi-annual maintenance plan, he’d just count this trip as my spring visit. He could have billed me several hundred dollars, just for the trip fee and time spent, but instead I paid less than $100.

Was it a good business decision for him? Yes. When I do have to replace my HVAC, this company will get the job. But he has no guarantee of that. Today’s bill would’ve been money in hand, not potential, but he helped me out anyway. I don’t have to spend the next few weeks living on a shoestring budget or the next few months rebuilding my emergency fund. I am so grateful!”

“Like most states, Massachusetts is having a heatwave. The eyeglass store leaves water out for animals.”

“I was coming home from graduation and asked my mom to stop at Taco Bell (because I was hungry and tired). When I walked up to the car, my mom saw that the driver’s wheel was flat... We then drove to a close McDonald’s parking lot (since it was well lit, and there were a ton of people).

My mom was in tears, as we had to drive to the new apartment early the next morning to meet with the air conditioner repairmen. The drive to our new apartment is 2 hours, and no way we could make that drive, as we have to fix the car first thing tomorrow morning.

We called AAA (car insurance); they instructed a road assistant to be at our location within 2 hours. In the meantime, I’m texting my uncle (my auntie and uncle were down for the graduation). While we were waiting, this random stranger asked if he could help. And this guy changed our tire to the spare.

I feel very grateful to a stranger for helping my mother and me, since we do not have the skill or strength to remove a car wheel. From his dress, I assume he works with cars or machinery. I learned that if one person has a skill, he/she should always look to apply that skill and to benefit the world around them.

I just realized that my education and experience were not in order to receive a diploma, high test scores, or acceptance to a great college, but to really benefit society through both small and large acts of kindness. I always had a goal of impacting the world and would always look at things at a macro scale, but now I feel grateful and appreciate the micro and individual acts of helping.

TLDR: I finally understand the reason for education after graduation when someone helped me with a flat tire.”

“I moved out of my household a few days ago. I am a senior in high school and I moved in with my friend. My math teacher today gave me this envelope containing this. A ShopRite gift card ’for any food, anything you need.’”

“Got a notice last night that one of the arts centers in our town is doing this till August. They have a wall with hooks and cups where you can leave your plant cuttings and take someone else’s.

I took a couple down and found that they didn’t have a lot of variety yet, but there were two that I brought home and potted up. It’s going to be so much fun to see how the display changes! Also a neat way to bring people in!”