"Former Boy Scout here."

Former Boy Scout here.

I worked a summer camp in Missouri one summer. One week we had a troop of mentally disabled guys stay at the camp. They were all older than standard Boy Scouts.

One I took a liking to. Big dude who you would be frightened to death to cross on a dark street. But he was mentally a 5-year old. He had zero confidence.

I wanted to work on that.

So I guide him all week but make sure he does as much on his own as humanly possible.

We get to woodworking day and I help him construct as much as he feels he can. He just doesn't want to use the hammer to sink the nails. I do a few but notice every single thing he does, he does better than he feels and I decide I'm going to have him do it, whatever the cost.

I give him the hammer. He declines. I tell him I believe in him. He declines. I say, "Tell you what... I'll hold the nail for you, I trust you that much. I know you won't hurt me."

He took the hammer. I hold the nail. I bit down hard expecting a broken finger.

WHACK

That nail went down like it was made of butter. He didn't even pinch my finger as the head of the nail went down. He hit it PERFECTLY.

He saw it and dropped the hammer and started wringing his hands and tried to be excited without "making a scene".

My heart was so full for him. I felt amazing for taking that risk. That was over 20 years ago, and I've never forgotten it.

I now have two young daughters who I put my physical self on the line for regularly. Sometimes it works out. Sometimes I gain new scars. But I know being the someone who trusts you no matter what makes any physical pain not even a consideration.

germanywx

"A friend I went to high school with..."

A friend I went to high school with is an elementary school teacher at a school without a lot of money. She did one of those "GoFundMe but for teachers" things, I can't remember the site exactly or what the project was - something tech-related. She posted it on Facebook and there was a decent amount of sharing and stuff, but outside of a few $25-50 donations there wasn't a lot of actual activity.

A month or two goes by and I check up on it again, it's only like halfway to the goal with a few weeks to spare. I finished it out and paid for the rest of it, I wanna say it was $300 or something like that. Never told anyone I know about it, left it anonymous on the donation too. This is actually the first time I've mentioned it to anyone at all. Just felt good.

41-6C-65-78

I (riding on my bike) saw a man lying on his back in the middle of an adjacent sidewalk. While it's fairly common around here to find homeless people passed out in doorways and whatnot, and therefore relatively easy to ignore, this guy was different. Nicely dressed, clean, not obviously homeless, and really, really still. Nobody was stopping. It was in broad daylight.

I got off my bike and checked on him - his eyes were rolled back in his head, then would randomly roll around, his pulse was weak and slow, he was breathing, but very slowly and shallowly. Once I stopped people started getting interested, but when I asked someone to call 911, everyone took off. I called them myself, and they wanted me to do CPR. I only had one functioning arm, so I again asked for help. All the rubberneckers again disappeared.

Fortunately an ambulance arrived quickly. I still don't know what happened to him, but I hope he was okay.

I also called 911 for a guy that was obviously homeless, and drunk, at night in a mostly deserted area, because he was passed out face down on a sidewalk with a nearly empty bottle of bourbon in his hand, and a growing puddle of blood stemming from where he slammed his head when he fell down. I would rather risk some personal safety than wonder if another human bled out because I didn't want to be bothered.

Yes, I understand not stopping to help a guy in a van on the side of a deserted road in the middle of the night, or another dozen other scenarios. Get somewhere safe and call the police! But I'm baffled as to how people can just flow around a person in need in broad daylight in a well-populated area.

moose_tassels

"Knew someone at school..."

Knew someone at school who was raised by a single parent, said parent develops cancer and my friend, who had been obviously depending on her, became utterly depressed. Couldn't cook meals, finish schoolwork, do sport, most of his time was dedicated to his parent.

I cooked/bought meals for him, helped him catch up all his missed classes, organised stuff to get him outside, etc. he's doing better now, so is his mum, although we don't talk anymore. Still, felt worthwhile.

Yvanne

"Someone dropped..."

Someone dropped their lotto ticket and I returned it to them. They won 400$ and gave me half.

khaosking1

"I switched..."

I switched from one type of insulin to another. After switching, I had about 30 vials of Novolog left over that I didn't need.

We had a guy come out and do electrical work on our house and saw that he wore an insulin pump. I asked him what kind of insulin he used. He said Novolog. I asked him if he wanted my leftover, non-expired, still sealed vials. He said sure. I imagine he was thinking that it was going to be only a few.

I loaded them all up into a Walmart bag and gave them to him. I don't know if he had to pay out of pocket or anything for his, but even if he did, the total cost to him for it could have well exceeded $1,500 in just co-pays alone.

He was nearly in tears when I told him to keep it all.

bolivar_shagnesty

"I helped a waitress..."

I helped a waitress at a restaurant I frequent. After a few months of patronage I knew most of the staff and was on a first name basis with them. I learned that she was working 6 days per week, 8 to 10 hours per day, and going to school full time (5 days per week, 6 hours per day), plus she traveled by bus between 2 and 3 hours per day. A quick bit of mental math... on a bad day she could spend 19 hours with her obligations, not counting bathing, eating, or homework! And after she paid for her tuition, she only had 10% of her paycheck left over.

As i have no family nor children of my own, I decided to pay for her university. She has since quit her job and is focusing on her studies. She regularly sends me updates about her classes and I'm happy to report she's getting straight 'A's as a psychology major.

Indy_Pendant

"I came home late..."

I came home late on a delayed flight and there was an old woman sobbing at the bus depot because no one was there to take her home. This was in the middle of a bad snowstorm at 1 am so no one wanted to drive. I picked her up and drove out of my way to drop her off. Had to drive an extra half hour in the worst conditions ever but it all worked out.

Zilreth

"An acquaintance..."

An acquaintance talked about suicidal thoughts over several weeks online. One day he said "goodbye forever" and left all groups. I found his address and sent an ambulance there.

He's feeling better now, and thanked me a few days afterwards.

HannahAching

"I had an early childhood education class..."

This happened about 10 years ago.

I had an early childhood education class in college that involved observing/interacting with preschoolers. The college has a daycare for locals and teachers.

One day we all decided to take the kids to a nearby park. This park was pretty secure but there was a very busy road right next to it, and there were gaps in the fences.

One of the kids mom's decided to come early to pick up her son. She parked on the other side of the street and was waiting to cross.

The kid saw her and basically immediately started running and climbed through the fence and was going into the street.

I noticed and ran as fast as I have ever in my life, leapt over the fence (it was only about 3 feet) and grabbed the boy literally a split second before a huge flatbed truck zoomed passed going at least 65+ mph.

I looked up and saw the mom and tears were pouring from her eyes and she was screaming, because from her perspective all she could see would definitely give the impression her son was hit.

So she runs over and I just hand her the boy and she's in total panic and terror. The instructor gets over and tells me thank you and says "we are never coming to this park ever again." and she holds the mom as she's crying.

I just stand there in shock. She took the kid home. We all walked the kids back to class.

greentreesbreezy

"Me and my roommates..."

Me and my roommates once took in a girl that at 18 had been kicked out of her house and subsequently got stuck in a bad living situation. She had no job and no car and was nowhere near work.

We lived near the center of town, so we gave her a place to stay, helped her get around to look for jobs, and gave her some bus money. Within 6 months she had a job, a car, and was getting a promotion. By 1 year she had turned her life around and joined the army.

She is happily married now with 3 kids and a good job.

ITFucked

"I gave away..."

I gave away a wheelchair I was selling to a lady who really needed it. I let another person have my appointment at the veterinarian because they thought theirs was at my time and would have missed it because they had to pick their kids up from school. Whenever I play arcade games at the beach or whatever, I'll hunt for a parent and give them my tickets for their kids. It's little things that make me happy knowing that I have made someone else briefly happy.

march_rogue

"I met a kid..."

I met a kid at my old job and he was stuck in the wrong state due to missing his greyhound so I paid for his hotel room for a night and gave him money for a bus ticket the next morning, as well as my number in case he needed a ride to the bus station. I don't know where he is at or what he is doing but i'll never forget him. He was crying and worried to death he will never make it home and we were both 18/19 at the time and I just know how I would feel if it had been me.

ZestyCloseLettuce

"Some days I'm equally as broke as he is..."

Pay 70% of our household bills. My boyfriend was in a rough spot financially and I just told him to contribute what he can while I shouldered the majority of the bills. Some days I'm equally as broke as he is but I never complain because I know if I was in the same situation he would do the exact same thing for me.

adventuresquirle

"I took care of my mother..."

I took care of my mother for years after her car accident, which triggered her Fibromyalgia, without pay or anything. Now I am her PCA (Personal Care Assistant) and get paid for it.