Here are 17 stories of people who went viral with their random acts of kindness to warm your heart this winter.
17 photos of good deeds that will warm your heart during the cold winter months
Theworld isn't always a friendly, happy place, but there are some nice people out there who spread kindness just because and end up becoming internet-famous as a result.
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A boy sent a letter to his dad in heaven, and the postman sent back a heartwarming response.
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Teri Copland/Facebook
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A 7-year-old boy named Jase from the United Kingdom sent a birthday letter to his late father , addressed to heaven. Not knowing the exact location, Jase wrote on the envelope: "Mr. Postman, Can you take this to Heaven for my dad's birthday?"
Much to Jase's surprise, he got a response from the Royal Mail a few weeks later. The Royal Mail's Assistant Delivery Office Manager, Sean Milligan, assured Jase that his letter had been delivered successfully, writing: "Please be assured that his particular important item of mail has been delivered. I will continue to do all I can to ensure delivery to Heaven safely."
Jase's mother posted about her son's excitement in a Facebook post that has since gone viral , saying: "I actually cannot state how emotional he is knowing his dad got his card ... Royal Mail, you've just restored my faith in humanity."
This 17-year-old surprised his classmates with special needs by buying them sneakers after they said they liked his shoes.
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@lureddd_/Twitter
Roderick Mathis, a 17-year-old senior at Lancaster High School, has pretty cool shoes. When his classmates with special needs told him that they liked his Vans sneakers, he decided to get them pairs of their own.
He shared a video of the sweet surprise on Twitter , where it has been viewed more than 3.68 million times.
"They told me they liked my shoes, and I promise[d] them I'll get them some so I did," he captioned the video.
A college student in Birmingham walked 20 miles to get to his first day of work, so his boss decided to give him his car.
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Walter Carr, a college student from Birmingham, Alabama, was excited for his first day of work... until his car broke down the night before. With no other mode of transportation, Carr decided to walk from Homewood to Pelham overnight , in the dark. The trip was about 20 miles long.
Carr made it to Pelham at about 4 a.m., when four Pelham police officers found him, and provided him with food and shelter until morning. When they posted about him online, Carr quickly gained support and admiration from the internet Luke Marklin, CEO of Carr's new workplace, saw the buzz, and asked Carr to meet "for coffee." Instead of coffee, he announced that he was donating his own, barely-driven 2014 Ford Escape to Carr .
A man who volunteers at his local animal shelter daily went viral for taking naps with the special-needs cats.
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Safe Haven Pet Sanctuary Inc./Facebook
A man named Terry regularly volunteers at Safe Haven Pet Sanctuary , a no-kill cat sanctuary located in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Every day, Terry comes in to brush the special-needs cats, and he often falls asleep with them.
Safe Haven decided to write an appreciation post for Terry on Facebook , and it quickly went viral. People even started donating to the shelter in his honor , quickly surpassing $10,000.
"We are so lucky to have a human like Terry," Safe Haven's post said.
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Mark Chalifoux sent 40 pounds of cookies to a soldier hed never met.
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Courtesy Mark Chalifoux
Mark Chalifoux was accidentally added to a family's group chat as they discussed sending care packages to "Christian" (name changed to protect his privacy), a relative of theirs serving in the military.
Instead of replying "wrong number" and forgetting about it, Chalifoux started a GoFundMe page to raise money to buy cookies forChristian and his unit. The silly but heartfelt campaign gained momentum as it was shared bycelebrities on Facebook and picked up by news outlets. A local Girl Scouts troop even donated cookies of their own.
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Chalifoux raised enough money to send 40 pounds of cookies, plus a second shipment of essentials like toiletries and more nutritious non-perishable snacks, to the soldier. He's still receiving their group text messages.
Read more here .
A dad asked the internet to send his bullied son birthday wishes and "broke Twitter" when celebrities responded.
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Sian Welby/Twitter, Darren Craske/Twitter
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A Twitter user named Christopher ( @Hopenlesmyth ) asked people on Twitter if they knew of someone famous who could send birthday messages to his son Ollie for his ninth birthday. In a series of tweets, he explained that Ollie wasbeing bullied by someone who kept makinghim feel worthless, and that he could use some positive energy on his big day.
Ollie's parents were overwhelmed by the number of kind, enthusiastic responses 6,500 replies and 14,000 retweets, to be exact.People around the world sent Ollie their best, as did celebrities like actor Russell Crowe and YouTube stars Alfie Deyes and Zoe Sugg.
Read more here .
Strangers bought a car for a fast food worker after finding out he walked 3 miles to and from work every day.
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Andy Mitchell/Facebook
Andy Mitchell offered a ride to a man he saw walking on the side of the road in 95 degree Texas heat.
The man, Justin Corva, told Mitchell that he walked three miles to and from work every day because he couldn't afford a car.
Inspired by his tenacity, Mitchell snapped a selfie with him and posted it on Facebook. Local business owners heard about Corva's situation and came together to raise enough money to provide him with a 2004 Toyota Camry,a year of insurance, two years of oil changes, and $500 of gas.
Corva'semotional reaction streamed on Facebook Live garnered around 358,000 views.
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Read more here .
A Trump supporter left his waitress a $450 tip and a heartwarming message about unity.
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Busboys and Poets/Twitter
Jason White and two friends, all Trump supporters, were in Washington, DC, for President Trump's inauguration when theystopped into Busboys and Poets for a bite to eat. The restaurant, decorated with African-American art and photos, is known for promoting social justice causes.
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White suggested that one of his friends remove his "Make American Great Again" hat, but his concerns about getting political were averted when hestruck up a friendly conversation with their waitress,25-year-old Rosalind Harris.
When White and his friends received the bill for $72.60, he added a $450 tip along with a message to Harris:
"We may come from different cultures and may disagree on certain issues, but if everyone would share their smile and kindness like your beautiful smile, our country will come together as one people," he wrote. "Not race. Not gender. Just American. God bless!"
His act of kindness went viral on Twitter and was featured in The Washington Post .
Read more here .
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This photo of chickens evacuating from Hurricane Irma in the back of a car was shared nearly 50,000 times.
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Key West Finest/Facebook
Chickens normally roam the streets of Key West, Florida, without a care in the world.But with Hurricane Irma threatening the area, locals decided to make sure their feathered neighbors would be safe.
The Facebook page Key West Finest posted a photo of the chickens wrapped in newspaper in the backseat of a car, captioned "CHICKEN EVACUATION." It has since been shared over47,000 times.
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The chickens may look constricted, but rest assured they don't mind.
"The way the chickens are wrapped up with their wings tucked down, is how you carry a chicken. You flatten their wings to their sides and carry them like a football under your arm, so really, overall the chickens should be moderately comfortable and should not get hot," commented Lacey Bacon-Stonebraker , who herself owns 50 chickens and three roosters.
Read more here .
A nine-year-old boy paid for a police officers breakfast and left a heartwarming note saying "I want to be you when I grow up" on the receipt.
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LakelandPD/Facebook
Nine-year-old Noah Smiling saw a policeman eating breakfast at Denny's and asked his mother, Amanda Cantin, if he could pay the officer's bill.
He wrote a note on the receipt that said "I want to be you when I grow up. Thank you for your service."
Officer Eddie Benitez was stunned and touched by the boy's kind gesture. Heasked Smiling for a picture, which the Lakeland Police Department shared in a post on their Facebook page.
"It meant everything," Benitez told WTSP News . "It meant that I'm supposed to wake up every morning and put on this uniform and go out there and do what I do. You know? It means that I need to keep trying to be a good example to all these young guys."
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Read more here .
Heroic bystanders caught a 14-year-old girl as she fell off a ride at Six Flags Great Escape in Lake George, New York.
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A video captured by one of the onlookers and posted to Facebook shows a 14-year-old girl dangling from a stopped gondola ride at Six Flags Great Escape as a group of employees and park go-ers gather beneath her. When she plummets towards the ground into their arms, the surrounding crowd applauds and whoops in relief.
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The teen was reported to be in stable condition and did not experience any serious injuries, according to a statement from the Warren County Sheriff's Office. One of the men who caught her, 47-year-old Matthew Howard Sr., was treated for a minor back injury.
"I couldn't let that little girl die," Howard told the Associated Press . "No one wants to put himself underneath a body like that, but I couldn't stand by and watch."
Read more here .
A woman returned to a Starbucks drive-thru with an apology note and a $50 tip after she snapped at a barista.
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circleaddict/Reddit
The card reads:
Greetings Starbucks Barista! Yesterday at your drive thru we had a less than cheerful encounter. At no fault of yours, you were out of carriers and said you could not take my empty cup (trash). I was less than understanding & my manner was curt. I need to apologize. The thought of leaving a trail of unkindness like that is not the path I want to reflect. Not for you, not for me. You are a young man, clearly working hard to build a fortune and you should be commended. Keep your attitude of cheer & hope. Stay hopeful no matter what kind of people cross your path (or drive thru). Surely, God has good blessing in store. You taught this ole lady something yesterday about kindness, compassion & staying humble. I thank you! God bless you today and all your todays. Debbie.
The barista shared a photo of the card on Reddit , where it went viral.
A bride and groom almost missed their wedding reception when their bus caught fire but then the firefighters gave them a ride.
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Avon Volunteer Fire Department/Facebook
Maria Leonardi and Justin Stone were on a bus from their wedding ceremony to their reception when the engine caught fire. The Avon Volunteer Fire Department came to put out the fire and gave the bride and groom a ride, sharing a photo on Facebook of the couple in their wedding attire with the firefighters.
Thepost broke AVFD's record for their most "liked" Facebook post withover 5,600 reactions. Better yet, the couple didn't miss their party.
Read more here .
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Madalyn Parker notified her team at work that she was taking time off to focus on her mental health, and the CEO commended her for setting a positive example.
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Madalyn Parker/Facebook, @madalynrose/Twitter
When Madalyn Parker sent an email notifying her coworkers that she was taking time off to focus on her mental health, the CEO of Olark, Ben Congleton, responded with an encouraging message.
"You are an example to us all, and help cut through the stigma so we can all bring our whole selves to work," he wrote.
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She shared her boss' email on Twitter , where it has been retweeted over 16,000 times and liked over 45,000 times.
Read more here .
A grocery store clerk let a boy with autism help him stock the fridge and their compatibility went viral, inspiring people to help them both.
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Delaney Edwards Alwosaibi/Facebook
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Twenty-year-old grocery store clerk Jordan Taylor was restocking a refrigerator when he noticed that 17-year-old Jack Ryan Edwards was watching him, interested. Edwards has autism, and after a brief chat Taylor asked Edwards if he wanted to help him , and the two began stocking orange juice together.
The moment was captured on video by Edwards' sister, Delaney Edwards Alwosaibi, and she shared the heartwarming story on Facebook . In her post, she wrote: "We all know autism makes going out difficult and sometimes grocery stores can be a challenge. This young man (Taylor) took the time to slow down and allow Jack Ryan to help over 30 minutes, guiding him as he finished his task."
"He could have ignored him. He could have made an excuse and said he couldn't allow him to help. Instead, he let him have his moment and in turn gave my family a moment we will never forget."
In return, Edwards Alwosaibi set up a GoFundMe page for Taylor to help pay for his college education. The campaign surpassed $50,000 within the first 24 hours . The grocery store also offered Edwards a job, and he accepted.
An Indian pilot gave back to his village by taking 22 of its senior citizens on their very first plane ride.
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After he became a pilot, Vikas Jyani made sure that 22 residents from his village ages 70 and up got to experience the magic of flying.
Jyani comes from a small village in India called Sarangpur, in Adampur, and he couldn't wait to give back to his community after he achieved his dream of becoming a pilot. And the passengers from Sarangpur were thrilled with Jyani's gift.
One of them, a 90-year-old woman named Bimla, had never flown before and said to The Times of India that her trip felt like a dream. Bimla stressed that "many people make promises to the elderly, but [Jyani] kept his word."
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A secretary secretly amassed $9 million in her lifetime, and donated almost all of it when she died.
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Sylvia Bloom worked as a secretary in a New York City law firm for 67 years, quietly amassing a secret fortune of $9 million by carefully investing her money and, as INSIDER previously reported , "taking note of which stocks her managers purchased and then buying the same things in smaller amounts."
When she died in 2016 at the age of 96, none of her coworkers, or even close family members, knew she was a multi-millionaire. In fact, she and her husband lived modestly and took public transportation.
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In her will, she stipulated that $6.24 million of her fortune go to the Expanded Horizons College Success program at the Henry Street Settlement, which helps underprivileged students with their college education. The rest was distributed among her family members.
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