By Jodi Shivers of Dahlonega 

My daughter and I wanted to express our appreciation to a very kind stranger who not only brightened our day but also reminded us that the Christmas spirit is alive and well in north Georgia. 

On Wednesday, Dec. 2, my 3-year old daughter and I were shopping at Marshalls in Dawson County. After falling and scraping her knee on our way into the store, my daughter wasn’t her normal happy-go-lucky self. We were shopping for a Christmas outfit for her, and she was having an unusually hard time deciding between two, so much so that the poor thing began to cry. A couple of fellow shoppers walked by and offered kind smiles. After finally being able to decide on which outfit she wanted us to purchase, we made our way to the checkout line. While in line, one of the ladies who had seen us in the children’s section approached us with a Marshall’s bag. She had purchased the other Christmas outfit my daughter liked, handed it to us and wished us a Merry Christmas! I was so moved by this caring stranger’s generosity and thoughtfulness that regretfully I did not ask her name. I am very hopeful that she will read this and know that her act of kindness meant more to us than she will ever know. 

As we left the store, my daughter and I had a wonderful conversation about random acts of kindness, and she is so excited to now do something similar for someone else. I hope this story might inspire others in our community to do the same thing. What a wonderful way to share the Christmas spirit. Thank you again, kind stranger!