A bagger at a North Carolina grocery store was just doing his job when he looked outside and immediately started running. Customers and his fellow employees were completely caught off guard by his sudden reaction, and they went to the windows to see the reason for the urgency. That’s when they witnessed an unexpected scene.
It started off as a regular day on the job at Ingles Market, but it was about to end differently than other days for Aaron Sanders. After what this young man did without hesitation, he earned a standing ovation by store patrons and employees, who were awestruck by a simple act of kindness that was taught to him by his mother.
While an elderly lady was picking up some essentials inside the grocery store in Canton, North Carolina, it started to rain. By the time she was ready to walk to her car across the parking lot, the rain had become a torrential downpour. Despite the adverse conditions, the little old woman declined help out to her car and began making her way out the front door. She was stubborn, but luckily for her, so was Aaron.
The situation didn’t sit well with Aaron, who was raised to be a gentleman. “I asked her if I could help her out and she said no a couple of times, said I don’t want you getting wet,” he said, according to WATE. “And, I just said I prefer if I helped you out. And, then, she said ‘OK.'”
Aaron gladly grabbed an umbrella, and side-by-side, the two went to her car. He shielded the woman from getting wet, at the expensive of his own comfort, and he also let her hold onto him the whole way. “As soon as she went inside her car, the umbrella just flipped inside out and just soaked me. And, I came in. I was dripping,” he said.
As soon as he walked through the front doors, everyone began clapping and thanking him for his thoughtfulness. The sight touched everyone who watched from inside the store, including Aaron’s co-worker, Violet Baiera. She snapped a photo and shared it on the Ingles Market’s Facebook page, where it rightfully garnered a lot of attention. “My phone like died within an hour because I was getting so many notifications,” Violet said.
“I just love this photo that I took today while one of the bag boys was taking a sweet older lady to her car,” Violet said along with the photo she uploaded. “When the rain came down harder as they were walking she put her arm around him and pulled him close, before they got to the car the umbrella folded up on them, when he came back in he was dripping wet, and just a few minutes after that the rain let up but I thought it was so sweet that he would do that for her knowing he was gonna get drenched.”
Aaron Sanders says he’s surprised by all of the recognition, both locally and online. “I want to say thank you to everybody who’s commented and liked this photo, I come from a hard past with just my mother. She’s the reason I am what I am. I’ve never had a father figure in my life so all the credit goes to her, and she cried seeing what all you kind people had to say about this,” he said. “I thank you all once again. I hope this puts a smile on your face as it does mine.”
Aaron said his mother raised him well. She was always an example to him because of her own selflessness. “She’s always been there and taken care of me,” he explained. “She always made sure that I was fed even if she didn’t eat that night, so my respect goes to her.”
Remaining humble and gracious, Aaron Sanders said that he was just doing his job. “With all the attention, I still try to be humble you know, it’s my job. It’s what I like to do. I like helping people whenever they need help. And, I’d do it all over again,” he said.
Aaron is a gem among the entitled people of his generation, who are more interested in what others can do for them than how they can be of help to others. He is the type of person who everyone, regardless of age, should aspire to be like. He reminds us that a simple act of kindness can make a big difference in the course of a stranger’s day.
