Caring Elderly Man Gives Out More Than 25,000 Pocket-Sized Wooden Hearts To Make Strangers Feel Loved

Nov 28, 2022 by apost team

There are many ways to make a person feel loved. But for an elderly man from the city of Spokane in Washington state, it’s all about giving his heart away. Well, not quite literally. But regardless of whether one is a stranger or not, his quest in life is to make others – especially those whose hearts are broken and need a little mending – feel loved.

It’s been decades since Lanny Burrill retired from his work. Instead of simply watching TV or reading the newspaper, Burrill found ways to make use of his time – and he’s doing amazing work, but not for himself.

The 82-year-old man spends most of his time inside the woodshop at the Riverview Community Center. But he’s not simply making random woodwork. For the past two decades, he has been making pocket-sized hearts out of scrap wood.

But what are the pocket-sized hearts for? Well, he gives them out to random people he meets.

“I hope people feel that they are special and that they are loved,” Burrill told Avista Utilities.

Imagine a man in his 80s making an effort to create a work of art out of scrap wood and handing them out to random people just to make them feel his love for them!

But how exactly did it all start? Well, it was an accident – but one that paved the way to make not just one person, his wife, feel loved, but a thousand others more.

“I was in my basement and came across a pretty piece of wood, so I made a heart for my wife. She loved it, and so I made more,” he remarked.

In 2021 alone, he was able to create a total of 1,500 hearts. It takes him about 20 minutes to make a single heart alone. 

So, imagine the amount of time he spent to make 25,000 of them. If you’re curious about the process of making his pocket-sized wooden hearts, well, it’s one painstaking process. 

Burrill starts out by drawing each heart before cutting it out. To make it smooth, he sands it using three different kinds of sandpapers. Yes, that’s how rigorous the process is. For Burrill, it’s all about making a difference in the lives of others – no matter who that person is – in his own special way.

“I work hard to make sure everyone has a heart. Anyone I come into contact with, a waitress, a store clerk, and little kids. I make sure their mom is okay with it, and I ask if they want a little heart,” he said.

Burrill has already touched the lives of many – including a woman whose son died.

“I gave it to her, and she had tears in her eyes, and she told me ‘there’s a hole in my heart from when my son died last year,'’’ he said.

Burrill, who never leaves his house without bringing hearts with him, started giving hearts to schools a decade ago.

“Each counselor at the schools has stories to tell. One time a little boy came into a school counselor’s office, unhappy, and they let him pick a heart,” he shared.

While the process of making one is rigorous, it’s worth every second of it.

“It’s worth doing; it makes me feel like I need to keep going. There’s an awful lot of people with broken hearts. It’s not about me; it’s all about the heart,” he shared.

Well, his pocket-sized hearts may be made out of wood, but they will surely make your heart melt away.

apost.com

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