Sometimes, being in the right place at the right time isn’t enough to make things right. Often, it also takes courage to show you are ready to stand for those in need and for the vulnerable.
What seemed to be a night out like any other turned into an experience these four young boys will never forget. Arnaud Nimenya, Carsyn Wright, James Hielema and Starlyn Rives-Perez were skateboarding in an underground parking lot when they saw a quite unusual sight. A young girl, around 15 years old and intoxicated, had been forcefully dragged through the place by a well-dressed older man. This alarmed the boys who could feel something wasn’t right. The girl’s condition was pretty bad. She was so drunk that one of the boys recalls how “she was screaming and yelling. She just wanted to be out of there. She was all scuffed up and dirty.”
But, after the boys approached closer in hopes of helping the girl get rid of that man, he claimed he was her father. She didn’t really say anything regarding that so they decided to step back.
“You don’t want to really think of the worst in somebody like that. You don’t want that situation to be real, so you just brush it off and hope for the best,” Wright said.
However, the boys’ somehow knew he wasn’t telling the truth so they decided to turn around and check on the girl once again.
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It turned out it was a decision that would help save this lady’s life.
Having returned back, they were completely shocked by the gruesome sight. The man was sexually assaulting the young woman who was helpless and couldn’t defend herself.
“You walk in, and you see something like that, and you freeze. You don’t know what to do,” Nimenya, one of the young men, said.
They knew they had to act as quickly as they could so they ran towards the attacker. He started running and attempted to escape the parking lot.
“He was trying to walk out and walk away from us,” said Nimenya. “He pushed me aggressively out of the way, kinda like just gives me the smile, like, ‘I can do this. You can’t do anything about it.’”
These young heroes wouldn’t just let the attacker off the hook so they were determined to catch him. This ended with a physical confrontation after the man started hitting the boys with one of their skateboards. Luckily, the police arrived just in time.
The boys were glad the woman was now safe and sound. The police officers, however, wouldn’t allow the boys’ heroic deed go unnoticed so they decided to thank them for their bravery and courage by inviting them to the Chief’s Awards Gala where they would be presented with awards and the public recognition they deserved.
We are so proud of the way these young men handled the situation. They even risked their life for the well-being of a vulnerable and defenseless lady. You guys are our real life heroes and a true inspiration.
The Armed Forces are, sure enough, a challenge, and having a son or daughter who are in the Armed Forces is both amazing and equally if not more so challenging in every way, especially about their safety and longevity. Which is why you take every chance to see your child as much as you can at every opportunity!Heather Almond has this realization every single day because her son Gavin recently enlisted in the US Army and is currently going through the basic training there!
Heather jumped at the chance to spend a weekend with her son, of course, and quickly made her way to Fort Benning in Georgia to see him.
Facebook/Gavin PlowmanJust like any proud mother, she took her son out to lunch closeby at a sushi restaurant, but when she asked for the cheque something completely unexpected happened!What happened nextshe just had to share on Facebook:
“This weekend I went to visit my son at Fort Benning with my daughter and mother. He is at basic training and it was a family weekend.
He loves sushi, so we found a Japanese restaurant.
We probably ordered $100 worth of food and when we went to pay, the waitress said that the people at the other table had picked up or bill and they said to thank your son for his service.
They were gone before I found this out, but I happened to snap a picture of my son that had one of the people in the background.
I don’t know who she is, but I can tell you that it meant the world to us. We will find a way to pay it forward.”
These kind people have seen that Gavin was spending time with his family, in between basic training, and without even going over to them, wanted to help out.
Gavin’s family really will remember this moment for all time!
Have you been on the receiving end of a selfless act, or are you a soldier? Have you paid forward a selfless act to someone else, like a man or woman in uniform? Let us know in the comments what you do to contribute!
Every dog needs a friend with whom they can have fun and goofy around. Unfortunately for Cash, a 12-year-old Golden Retriever, his best furry friend passed away.
The two were inseparable and would spend their days running around together, but now, Cash was all by himself. Although his human parents love him to the moon and back, it was obvious he missed Rosie very much.
Marie Ahonen, Cash’s mom, decided it was just about time to bring another dog in the house. With Cash always being the good boy he is, that would be his ultimate Christmas present. Plus, they will provide a puppy with a forever home, which means they’ll grant the wishes of two dogs this year.
Source: YouTube/ Caters Clips
The family made sure to capture Cash’s reaction on tape. As they brought the box with the puppy in the room, the big brother could feel something was going on and felt curious to check it out. Just as he approached to sniff it, the lid opened and a tiny head popped up.
Needless to say, the bond was instant. These two are bound to become best friends.
Check Cash’s reaction in the video below and make sure you share it with a dog lover.
Bravery knows no age and quick-thinking can surely save lives. Carlos, a 7-year-old boy from Los Angeles possesses incredible heroism and exceptional intellect, two things which helped a dire situation end up with a positive outcome.
One day, as he and his family were inside their home, armed men entered the place. They held Carlos’ mom and dad at gunpoint while he and his little sister managed to hide in the bathroom.
Without hesitation, Carlos dialed 911, just as his mother taught him, and asked for help. On the other side of the line was 911 operator Monique Patino.
Source: YouTube/ CNN
She could hear Carlos explaining how some bad guys had guns and wanted to kill his mom and dad. “There’s some guys! They’re going to kill my mom and dad, can you come please. … Can you come really fast? PLEASE, PLEASE,” Carlos kept saying.
Patino, who is doing her job for many years said that out of all the calls she has ever received, this one was by all means the most “horrific” one. She was very scared for the boy’s safety and kept assuring him that police were on their way.
“Bring cops … lots of them!” Carlos begged.
Source: YouTube/ CNN
As Patino was doing all in her power to calm Carlos down, she suddenly heard loud screaming. “Once I heard the screams, I’m holding the phone and shaking, in tears. All I can hear is them screaming,” she told CNN.
The armed people heard noises coming from the bathroom and broke the door down. When they saw Carlos was on the phone, they demanded to tell them who he was talking to and he wasn’t afraid to tell them straight away that he called the police and that they were on their way to his house.
In the next moment, the gunned men fled the house without hurting anyone.
Source: YouTube/ CNN
The Los Angeles County sheriff’s department praised young Carlos’ bravery. If it wasn’t for him, God knows what would have happened. His parents must be proud and very thankful for saving their lives, especially his mother who knows that the emergency lessons she taught her son weren’t time wasted but came in handy when they needed them the most.
Life can be unpredictable. The truth is that we can never know what tomorrow brings and that is why we should never lose hope that things could turn for the better even if we believe that there is no way out.
The story of an 8-year-old boy named Aaron Moreno who had high hopes and dreams teaches us exactly that.
It turned out that this bright boy loved having Cheetos and ice-cream, two of his favorite snacks, but his mother had a hard time providing for the family. Being on her own, with children and jobless, she could hardly afford to buy her children ice-cream, so whenever the ice-cream truck would stop by the shed in which they lived, her heart broke into million pieces.
Source: Pexels/ Tanner Vote
“When I lost both my jobs in March because of the corona-virus pandemic and we had no option but to live in a shed, this kid was always asking for Hot Cheetos,” Aaron’s mom, Berenice Pacheco, told CNN. “It’s just $3, but when you have kids and you don’t have a job, it can make all the difference.”
Seeing his mom struggle, Aaron decided to do all in his power to help her. He also wanted his family to move out of the shed which didn’t have any bedrooms, bathrooms, or air-conditioning.
Using his mom’s last $12, Aaron decided to buy succulents and resell them.
“Our shed was hot and crowded and I wasn’t happy,” Aaron shared with CNN. “I started my garden so my mom won’t be stressed because I don’t like seeing her struggle.”
On the first day, Aaron managed to sell everything. He made little profit and decided to invest it in more succulents thus try to start a business. Both he and his mom would take a bus to the flower district to buy the supplies they needed for the day. Most times, they were selling from their shed, but occasionally, they would create pop-up shops.
Being proud of her son’s hard work, Berenice shared photos of him and his garden on Facebook. The photos gathered the attention of many and a friend decided to start a GoFundMe page in order to help the family.
The initial goal was to raise $1,000. Believe it or not, they ended up raising around $56,000, enough for a new place.
With the money, they were also able to bring Aaron’s sister home from Mexico.
“The best part of what Aaron has done for us is bringing back his sister,” Berenice said. “It was so hard being without her and we are a whole family again. And I was so happy to see they still had their amazing bond even if they spent so much time apart. It’s such a blessing.”
The succulents business is growing bigger and bigger all thanks to Aaron’s hard work and determination to improve his family’s life. He is now selling more types of flowers. What a thoughtful young man he is.
The number of people who are forced into homelessness is huge. Their life on the street is beyond difficult, but most times, there’s nothing they could do to change their fate. Luckily, there are always those who do, just like two women named Jennifer Husband-Elsier and her friend Melissa Akacha who stepped up for a women in need and changed her life.
70-year-old Lynn Schutzman had a great life. She worked as a pharmacists her entire life and was involved in a happy marriage. Sadly, all that changed when her husband of many years passed away and her health deteriorated. As a result, medical bills started piling up and she couldn’t make ends meet. Unfortunately, this loving woman ended up on the street and was forced to live in her SUV for over two years. The only companions she had were her two dogs.
Source: YouTube/ WBUR
One day, Jennifer Husband-Elsier took a notice of Lynn. In the days that followed, Jennifer saw Lynn parked at the Target parking lot multiple times and realized she was living in her car. The sight broke her heart and she knew she needed to do something.
The first thing that came to mind was to reach to the rest of the members of the community.
“Does anyone know anything about the elderly woman with 2 dogs that has recently been living in her car under the covered part of the Target parking lot? I spoke to the police and they said she’s been living like this for over 2 years in different areas of [King of Prussia]. … It’s an awful scenario. Really, really upsetting,” she wrote on the social media.
Source: YouTube/ WBUR
In no time, she got plenty of messages from people who shared her concerns. Many offered food and clothes, and although that was all very kind, it didn’t help solve Lynn’s problem.
Jennifer and her friend Melissa went a step further and started a GoFundMe page.
To their surprise, many people donated money and they were soon able to raise enough for a two year rent.
Before they told Lynn the happy news, the community gathered and decorated the place.
Source: YouTube/ WBUR
Needless to say, when Lynn checked it out she was over the moon and couldn’t hide her gratitude and the tears of joy which kept rolling down her face.
However, the kindness of the members of the community didn’t stop there. They bring Lynn cooked food and a bunch of things needed in order for her to function properly. Some even offer to walk her dogs, and Jennifer invited her over to celebrate Thanksgiving with her family.
“It wouldn’t have happened without these angels,” Lynn told ABC News. “I just want people to realize that this can happen to anybody. … I had a good job. I had good retirement but I got sick and health insurance only covers so much. … I have no children. I have no family. .. I had nowhere to turn. Sometimes, you know, just the kindness of strangers just makes all the difference in someone’s life.”
Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year. It is the time when true magic happens and miracles take place.
An employee at Costco named Eric Barragan was cleaning the aisles when a crumbled piece of paper caught his attention. He thought it was garbage, but he then noticed the handwriting belonged to someone young so he decided to take a closer look. It turned out it was a Christmas list.
Source: YouTube/ CBS Los Angeles
He expected the list to contain everything young children love, like toys, chocolates, or even fun games. And yes, the person who wrote it wanted some shirts, Minecraft figures, Hot Wheels (but only two), a horror video game called “Five Nights at Freddy’s”, a wallet, and a Gamestop gift card. However, it wasn’t all. There were two things written down that not many children would ask for; “Bringing peace and joy to the world” and “Just love.”
Barragan was astonished. “Most kids don’t ask for those things, and I thought that was pretty special,” he told CBS 2.
Source: YouTube/ CBS Los Angeles
As the list warmed his heart, he decided to track down the young person who wrote it and give him some of the things he wanted for Christmas. Well, at least those he could buy.
The only problem was that he had no idea who that list belonged to, he only knew the name of the kid because it was written down. Barragan could go through the camera footage, but that would take quite some time, so he decided to share the list on his Facebook page.
Soon after, he got a message from someone who knew the boy’s family. The list belonged to Julian Huey, who had no idea Christmas would come early for him.
Source: YouTube/ CBS Los Angeles
Barragan bought a bunch of presents, including everything from the list, and paid Julian a visit.
The boy was over the moon. He was so happy that he had a hard time hiding his excitement. His parents were as thrilled by the kind gesture. Julian’s mom explained how the family had a hard time make ends meet because they were relying on just a military pension.
“I think I spent the first half of the last 24 hours just in shock,” the mother told CBS 2.
Sweet Julian said, “All I want, mostly, my biggest thing is a big heart to love everyone and bring joy to the world.”
Source: YouTube/ CBS Los Angeles
For more on this beautiful story, which reminds us of the beauty of Christmas, go to the video below.
Have you ever filled the conveyor with your groceries then realized you forgot your wallet, that tremendously embarrassing “oh sugar” moment! Maybe even one stage further, getting told in front of a crowded queue of people that your card has been declined!One guy recently had to go through exactly this scenario, but he really did not expect what happened to him after that…
Flickr/Steve SnodgrassStanding in the Dollar General queue was Tim McKellar, he saw a real sight, a hardly believable moment that he would remember forever!
Tim was waiting to pay for his groceries and the cashier scanned items from the elderly Gentleman in front of him, he was ever so proud and wearing a veteran cap.When the guy gave his card for payment, he couldn’t remember his pin, his card was declined, poor chap.
Tim posted to Facebook:
“He tried a couple different times when another lady offered to help him again with no luck.”
At that moment the cashier stepped in and changed the tone of the day completely for this veteran…
Flickr/Steve SnodgrassWorking at the Dollar store, Jacob Wittman, at the cash register that day decided that he could not watch the guy swipe and it not work again, so he pulled out his wallet …his wallet!
Tim said:
“That’s when the cashier Jacob Wittman pulled his wallet out and told the lady (who had been helping) to scan his card.”
The veteran, was a little bit confused what was going on, he asked the cashier, have you just bought my groceries?Jacob said:
“Yes, sir I did. And, you don’t owe me a dime.”
Tim felt so touched by what just happened, that human connection he just witnessed, he felt the need to record it and share it online, the world needed to see it too!
He said finally:
“Now this kid obviously makes minimum wage or real close to it and probably didn’t have the extra money to spare. I thanked him for what he had done, asked for his name and took his picture.”
“Let’s give this Good Samaritan the acknowledgment that he deserves.”
Flickr/Steve SnodgrassThe post got about 3,000 positive reactions and has been shared over 1,400 times, that is certainly the acceptance and congratulations that were deserved!Some comments Facebook said:
“Such an awesome act of kindness. Sending you a big hug and many blessings from miles and miles away.”
“Jacob, you are a good-hearted young man. Thank you for helping the elderly and veterans. God bless you!”
“God bless you, young man. So many people could learn from you, what it is to show kindness. You are an inspiration to us all. Thank you.”
It is really lovely acts of kindness like this, one human reaching out to another, someone in need that inspires us to make a real difference in others lives and to perhaps do the same for someone else too.
Please SHARE this lovely and warm story with your friends and family!
