Senior Citizen Drops Groceries, Mother Cries After She Learns She Was Tricked Into Helping

Dec 17, 2021 by apost team

The holiday season is a great time for giving to friends and family, but also to strangers who may need some extra help. In December 2015, the police department in North Port, Florida, surprised helpful citizens with gifts after they took the time to stop and pick up the items an elderly volunteer had dropped. Two of the people who helped out were Melissa Whittington and her son Phillip. The pair stopped immediately after they saw the man drop his bag of fruit and picked up every piece for him. 

After Melissa and Phillip did their good deed, they discovered they were secretly on camera. A video shows how the North Port police department, along with program sponsor Mike Morales with Quality TV, set up a surveillance mission to catch helpful strangers performing an act of kindness. They then offered the helpful citizens a gift from inside the store. The operation took place outside of the Walmart in North Port. 

Melissa told the volunteer, Bill Greenham, that it was Phillip’s ninth birthday but they couldn’t afford any presents because he needed to get his glasses fixed. When Greenham asked the boy what he wanted for his birthday, Phillip replied that he would love a skateboard. Morales took the boy inside to pick up his gift and Melissa began to cry. She was overwhelmed by the generous surprise, and Greenham comforted her by saying that everything would work out just fine. 

The volunteer gave Melissa a hug and Phillip came out with his new present. They promised to pay the kindness forward. Altogether, the police department gave gifts to 15 people that day, who all stopped to help someone they did not know. Read on to learn more about this wonderful story.

The North Port police wanted to give gifts to kind strangers, so they set up this secret sting operation. Officer Joseph Fussell said of Melissa, “It’s the definition of integrity doing things that are right without people watching. She didn’t know we were watching.” Both Philip and his mom stopped without hesitation to pick up the items that Greenham had dropped. 

After they finished picking everything up off the ground, Greenham said to Melissa, “I want to do something for you.” She responded by saying no, and that she was just glad that he was OK. Then Morales came forward and Melissa realized that she was on camera. After hearing what was really going on, she agreed to the gift and became overcome with emotion over the generosity.

One of the officers told Phillip, “Since Santa did something good for you, do it for somebody else.” The young boy agreed wholeheartedly. It was clear from the video that he was grateful for the present. 

At 9-years-old Phillip understands that the true spirit of the holidays is to give to others. At the end of the video, you can hear him say, “It wouldn’t be a merry Christmas if you weren’t kind to people.” 

Melissa added: “I can tell you we will pay this forward 110%. I’m totally overwhelmed completely thankful from the bottom of my heart.”

All 15 people who received gifts that day stopped to help a stranger without realizing they were being watched. The North Port police department also gave gifts in 2015 to 11 people that they pulled over for traffic violations. Instead of tickets, everyone received a present. 

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The holiday season brings immense generosity and kindness from all sorts of people. One story that continues to impact people positively is the story of Dakota Nelson. After tragically losing his wife in 2018, Dakota who is from Ashton, Idaho, suddenly became a single father raising seven children. He had to work three part-time jobs to make ends meet. East Idaho News reported that Dakota, a part-time Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints seminary teacher, and he worked three jobs to make sure his kids have their basic needs met, such as food and clothing according to Positive Outlook Blog.

It had been a difficult year for the family, but right around the holidays, Dakota received an incredible Christmas gift, and his children would have a holiday to celebrate. There is always some light in the darkness when people put their generosity and spirit into action and Dakota was at the receiving end of this generosity. After being handed a gift from a Secret Santa, the family discovered $2,000 in gift cards and an $8,000 check. Dakota became so overwhelmed with gratitude that he couldn’t speak.

Dakota told East Idaho News that he put the money to good use. His family did not have a vehicle big enough to transport everyone so whenever they go anywhere together, Nelson had to drive one car while his 16-year-old son drove another at the time. 

The spirit of Christmas is of joy, and stories like this show us that even in the darkest of times, kindness and generosity can pave the way towards the light. 

Would you have stopped to help if you saw someone drop their belongings? What do you think of this undercover operation? Let us know and be sure to pass this on to anyone who needs some cheer in their lives.