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Heart Warming Holiday Stories

goodnewsnetwork.org
Bus Driver Saves Money From Every Paycheck to Buy
Christmas Presents for All 70 of His Students
A compassionate school bus driver went above and beyond the call have been reading each individual card before packing them up and
of duty to show his students how much he cares. sending them to homeless shelters across Canada.
Curtis Jenkins has worked as a bus driver for his school district in This year, she says that she even sent cards to shelters in Los
Angeles, and she planned on hand-delivering a shipment of cards to
Dallas, Texas for seven years. This year, however, he wanted to do
something special for his little passengers during the holiday season. a youth shelter in Seattle.
Originally, Jenkins wanted to host a gift exchange, but his wife
remarked on how some of the students’ parents might not be able Uber Driver Surprises Fast Food Worker With New Clothes
to afford a gift. After Hearing About Her Christmas Wish
So instead of facilitating an exchange, he simply started saving A compassionate Uber driver is being praised for surprising one of
money from his pay checks to buy gifts for all 70 of his students her passengers with an unexpected gift.
from Lake Highlands Elementary School. Lamiyah Jabbar had first picked up Diane early one morning last
After asking each student what they wanted for Christmas, he waited week so she could take the Tim Hortons employee to work.
until the last school day before winter break to load up his bus with As they were chatting during the car ride, Diane mentioned that she
wrapped gifts and dole them out to the kids. had been looking forward to Christmas because she was hoping to
“When I opened that door, one of the kids asked me, ‘Are you receive a new robe, house shoes, and a dress for church.
Santa?’” Jenkins told KXAS. “Seeing those faces on the kids was While these may not seem like extravagant purchases, Diane said
more than anything I could ever do with the money.” that she did not have much money for herself because she uses most
Though Jenkins was happy to fulfill his labor of love on his own, he of her finances to help take care of her grandkids.
says that he also received some financial contributions from a co- After Jabbar dropped Diane off at work, she abstained from picking
worker and a compassionate parent up any more passengers so she
who was touched by his gesture. could head to Old Navy to do some
shopping.
Woman Collected Thousands of
Christmas Cards From Strangers Jabbar then returned to the Tim
to Place on Homeless People’s Hortons where Diane worked in
Pillows Buffalo, New York so she could
surprise Diane with a new dress and
Erin Schulte may not get to see the a $50 Visa gift card for the shoes and
fruits of her labor in person, but she robe.
has been working like an elf to spread
a little Christmas cheer to homeless In a video that Jabbar uploaded to
people across North America. Instagram, the Uber driver can be
seen pulling up to Diane’s drive-thru
Schulte, who is from Delta, British window to say hi. At first, Diane
Columbia, has been collecting doesn’t recognize her; but then Jabbar
thousands of holiday cards to place reminds her of their conversation
on the pillows of people living in homeless shelters on the nights earlier that morning and hands Diane the dress.
leading up to Christmas. “This was on my mind from the moment she got out my car, so I had
The Canadian woman began the “Christmas Card Collective” last to contribute,” Jabbar wrote in the Instagram video caption. “Can
year when she asked her friends and family members to send her you imagine waiting till Christmas just to get a robe, house shoes
cards that she could pass on to the less fortunate. and a outfit for church? We tend to take things for granted, but why
After setting a modest goal of 225 cards, Schulte was stunned to not help someone else if you can?”
receive over 800 letters – so this year, she took to social media in the Diane was stunned—and extremely grateful for the gift, saying: “Oh
hopes of collecting even more. my God. Thank you so much! This has been such a horrible day and
Sure enough, Schulte says that she has already received thousands you just made this day so much better!”
of additional cards from strangers young and old, and their heartfelt Jabbar later told CBS News that she offered to return to Tim Hortons
messages have moved her to tears. later that day so she could give Diane a ride home for free.
“These are the most words from complete strangers. You don’t “I’m one of those people who’s like, you can’t tell me your issues
know if it’s someone in kindergarten, an 80-year-old lady… it’s just and I can’t move on without helping,” she told the news outlet.
a big beautiful bundle of Christmas spirit and giving,” Schulte told
CTV Vancouver as she sorted through piles of cards. Jabbar also said that she does not usually publicize her good deeds on
social media, but she hopes that the video will inspire her followers
Over the course of the last few months, Schulte and her friends to do something kind for a stranger.•

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