Single Mom of Four Left Stranded for Hours After Car Dies Until Stranger Knocks on Window
Frank Somerville, an anchor for KTVU News, asked for people to send in their inspirational stories. He received many emails, but this story of a young mother with four girls really touched his heart and he couldn’t help but share it on Facebook.
Tawny Nelson, a single mom of four precious girls, shared her story in a letter to Somerville.
Nelson explained how she has been going through a really tough time since her ex left her. Her girls are 9, 5, 2, and 6 weeks old.
They have a truck, but it is in bad shape. The tires always go flat, it needed a new alternator belt, and the driver’s window would not roll down.
Nelson never drove the truck unless it was absolutely necessary.
But one evening, she was desperate for food for the girls, so she had to make the trip to the store — only nine blocks away.
As she loaded the girls back in the truck with the groceries after completing their shopping, it was raining hard and already dark out. She turned the key in the ignition, but to no avail.
“One of my girls accidentally left a light on. My battery was dead. My phone was also disconnected. I have no family to speak of and was on my own,” Nelson shared in her message.
She stepped out in the pouring rain and asked people to help, but was ignored by all who passed by.
No one stopped and acknowledged her situation.
“They all ignored me. Not even a no. Just acted like I didn’t exist,” Nelson explained.
Her three youngest children were in different stages of breaking down, and their cries mingled as the precious 9-year-old did her best to help out. Nelson broke down and began to sob.
“I was bawling and felt like the worst Mom ever,” Nelson wrote. But then something amazing happened: there was a knock on the car window.
Nelson opened her door to find an older man with a plate of hot food and water bottles from the store.
“Feed those babies and yourself, young lady. I have a tow truck on the way and my wife will be here shortly to take y’all home,” the gentleman said.
The next morning, the older fellow arrived at Nelson’s home with a mechanic to fix her truck. He repaired the alternator belt, the window, and replaced the battery.
As he was leaving, she asked if she could pay him in installments. The mechanic smiled at her and said the bill was paid in full by the older gentleman.
Apparently, the good Samaritan had mentioned that the only payment he requested was that Nelson “never give up and keep being an amazing mom.”
Nelson broke down, bawling her eyes out and sobbing over the care and concern of the man who’d so generously provided for her: “I’ve never cried so hard in my life.”
“And without knowing us or our situation this kind man helped us in ways he will never know,” Nelson shared. “What he did revived my faith when I was falling apart. But he wouldn’t even take a hug.”
Nelson experienced a “guardian angel” here on earth that she will never forget. This act of kindness even inspired Somerville.
“Someday I’m going to do something like that,” Somerville ended his post. “I can just feel it. And it’s going to make me so happy.”
I love Somerville’s hashtag… #GoOutAndMakeADifferenceToday. This is such a good reminder for all of us to not ignore what is happening around us but be a blessing to someone now!
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