Pay it forward. You’ve heard the phrase, you’ve heard the stories. When you’re down on your luck and someone helps you out, when you get the opportunity you can pay it forward by helping someone else in need.
This is the story of a man who helped a single mother in need and then the tables turned when “Pay It Forward” came full circle.
Jeff Simmons works a full-time job and then comes home to work on his passion side project. He designs and creates custom woodcut works of art that he sells on the internet. As this news story shares, Simmons doesn’t make tons of money selling his art, but when he got a little extra cash in his pocket something wonderful happened.
The opportunity to give isn’t always clear, and it’s difficult to see those moments when they arise, but it takes a special person to actually sacrifice themselves and take a step to help.
Simmons had saved up some money and decided to treat himself by getting his truck detailed at the local car wash. That’s when he saw someone in distress.
“She was wiping her eyes, and crying, and I didn’t know what was going on.” Simmons recalls.
The person in distress was Christy Stevens, an unemployed single mom who had just been told that her tires were worn dangerously thin.
”They were smooth, they were bald, absolutely bald.” Christy remembers.
Seeing this stranger distressed about the dangerous tires on her family’s only means of transportation, Simmons knew what he could do. He called his wife and they decided they could put their extra cash to better use by giving it to this stranger.
Christy couldn’t believe what was happening when Simmons approached her with a wad of cash. He was going to buy her four new tires.
Simmons and his wife are no stranger to tough times.
“I just figured, we’ve been behind, playing check to check for so long, it’s something that we’re used to doing.” Simmons explains.
Christy was floored by the amazing good deed she received.
“I got goose bumps. I almost got sick a little bit, because I just couldn’t believe somebody would be willing to do something like that.” Christy said.
A close friend of Simmons was so taken by his good deed that she had to make sure it didn’t go unnoticed. She contacted CBS5 News because they do a news segment called “Pay It Forward.”
The CBS5 News Team’s weekly “Pay It Forward” news segment highlights good people in the community. And they showed up at Simmons’ garage workshop with something special.
CBS5 News recognized the special sacrifice the Simmons made. And they paid it forward to the Simmons by gifting them with $500 for their good deed.
Pay It Forward came full circle and was met with joyful tears. Simmons was shocked when the news cameras brought their camera’s into his workshop.
And guess who else arrived to celebrate this Good Samaritan. Christy pulled up with her new tires, and the two strangers had a chance to relive the emotional day at the car wash.
“This is something that helped give me a little bit more faith to remember that times are not always so awful, people are not always so bad.” Christy told CBS 5.
People helping people and watching the full circle come around brings hope that generosity is still alive and well.
Watch their touching story below!
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