kindness of strangers

Bank Employee Gives Broke Customer $20, Gets Fired

Bank Worker's Christmas Eve Kindness Gets Her Canned

Emily James fired from US Bank after giving broke customer $20

(Newser) - One of US Bank's core tenets is "We put people first," but when one of its own senior bankers tried to do just that, she was fired. Emily James tells the Oregonian that on Dec. 23, she was working at the bank's call center in Gresham,... More »

She Walked 14 Miles to Work. Then She Got a Surprise Tip

Couple buys Denny's waitress in Texas a car after hearing about her long commute

(Newser) - She gave them extra ice cream; they gifted her a new car. Adrianna Edwards definitely got the sweeter deal this week after two customers at a Texas Denny's, where she works as a waitress, gave her a much-needed tip: a 2011 Nissan Sentra, per CNN . While dining at the... More »

Former NFLer Donates 173rd Home: This Is 'Therapy'

Warrick Dunn's mom was killed when he was 18; his mission has been to help single parents

(Newser) - After struggling through some recent hard times that led her to move back in with her mother, LaToya Reed and her 18-year-old son, AnTrez, received a most welcome gift on Tuesday: a fully furnished two-bedroom home in St. Petersburg, Fla. The house offering was thanks to a partnership between Habitat... More »

A Customer's Card Got Declined. Then, 'One of the Kindest Acts'

Cashier Didn't Think Anyone Noticed His Good Deed. They Did

David Vance quietly paid for elderly man's groceries out of his own pocket after the customer's credit card kept getting declined

(Newser) - David Vance tried to pull off a subtle act of kindness for someone in financial straits last month, but someone noticed, posted about it online, and now the grocery store cashier in Northern Ireland is being hailed around the world. Vance, who works at a Lidl in Belfast, was working... More »

Boy, 11, Has a Challenge for El Paso

'We can make the world a better place,' says 11-year-old Ruben Martinez

(Newser) - An 11-year-old is helping El Paso heal by inspiring random acts of kindness. Ruben Martinez told his mother he no longer wanted to visit stores following Saturday's mass shooting inside a Walmart. "I explained to him that we could not live in fear and that people in our... More »

Man's Kindness Toward Scared Young Seatmate Goes Viral

Ben Pedraza made sure 7-year-old autistic boy had fun and felt safe during his flight

(Newser) - Alexa Bjornson was anxious about sending her 7-year-old son, Landon, on a plane by himself to see his dad in Oregon—not just because of Landon's age, but because he has high-functioning autism and was nervous about flying alone, per KATU . And so Bjornson penned a note to whoever... More »

Muslims Helped Out Pittsburgh's Jews. Now, a Favor Returned

2 Separate Massacres, 2 Acts of Kindness Out of Pittsburgh

Jewish group fundraises for NZ mosque victims after Muslims did the same for Tree of Life victims

(Newser) - When the Tree of Life synagogue shooting took place last October, killing 11, Muslims in the Pittsburgh area rallied to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for the victims and their families. Now, in the wake of the massacre at two Muslim mosques in New Zealand that has taken the... More »

Mom on Stranger's Kind Act: 'I Cried My Way Up the Aisle'

Good Samaritan offered her his first-class seat when he saw her with baby, oxygen tank on flight

(Newser) - To the passenger who was in seat 2D on American Airlines Flight 588 on Thursday, America applauds you. As does Kelsey Zwick, a young mom on that same flight with her 11-month-old daughter, Lucy, headed from Orlando to Philly to receive treatment for the baby's chronic lung disease. USA ... More »

This Funny Photo Led to a Happy Reunion

Stuffed lion 'Kitty' went missing on a remote trail in Oregon, is now back home

(Newser) - A little girl who lost her beloved stuffed lion in the Oregon backcountry was reunited with her favorite toy over the weekend after a community effort. Hiker Holly Spaman ran into 7-year-old Audrianna Flores and her family as they descended Broken Top Trail on July 16 on their way back... More »

In Simple Act, New Syrian Refugee Saves Bride's Big Day

Master tailor Ibrahim Haltl Dudu got to work right away on stubborn zipper

(Newser) - Toronto's Jo Du was stepping into her dress on her wedding day when a small disaster struck—the zipper broke. Bridesmaids fussed over it without any success and so ventured next door to look for tools that might help. It turns out that the neighbors were hosting a refugee... More »

Being Near Fancy Stores Makes Us Selfish Jerks

People on streets with high-end stores are considerably less likely to help a stranger in need

(Newser) - If you ever find yourself relying on the kindness of strangers, you'd best hope you're not on a street lined with upscale shops. So conclude French researchers in a study titled, "'Wrong place to get help': A field experiment on luxury stores and helping behavior,"... More »

After Mom Rushes Kid to ER, Strangers Swarm, Save Car

Women respond to Facebook plea, feed meter, offer coffee and moral support

(Newser) - When ultrasounds and X-rays revealed the cause of her 6-week-old son's two-hour screaming fits, Kaylee Goemans was told to get baby Dominic to the ER immediately to treat a loop in his bowels filled with air and fluid. But the mom of three, who'd lost her job when... More »

Couple Giving Away Hawaii Trip to 'Most Loving Person'

Cody, Eva Borek won trip when they bought new car, say they want to pay it forward

(Newser) - When Cody and Eva Borek of Alberta, Canada, bought a new SUV, they won a five-day trip to Hawaii, complete with free airfare and five-star hotel accommodations—and decided to pay it forward instead of taking the trip themselves. And so they created a Facebook page to help in their... More »

Driver Stops Bus—to Give Away His Shoes

Winnipeg transit driver pulls over to help barefoot man

(Newser) - It was no big deal, insists Winnipeg bus driver Kris Doubledee, but his act of kindness is resonating in the city and beyond. When Doubledee saw a man walking barefoot downtown, he stopped his bus, got out—and gave the man his shoes. Then he got back on the bus... More »

Shaq Foots Bill for Shaniya's Funeral

NBA great was touched by news coverage of terrible crime

(Newser) - Touched by the girl's story, Shaquille O’Neal paid for the funeral of Shaniya Davis. More than 2,000 people gathered Sunday to mourn the slain North Carolina 5-year-old, allegedly prostituted by her mother and raped and asphyxiated by another man. Shaq got in touch with the girl’s father... More »