Toddler whose first bike was stolen smiles again after homeless woman steps in with priceless surprise
'No matter what happens in life, we go through our troubles, but there's always somebody out there watching over us,' she said.
People don't have to have a lot of money to be rich; all they need is a kind heart that empathizes with others. When the 3-year-old's first bike was stolen from a sidewalk, a homeless woman made sure he got it back so he wouldn't grow up with a negative impression of the world.
Will Fuller-Wright, the boy, was elated when his parents gifted him his first bike, a Spider-Man model. "He saves everybody by catching bad guys in the net," he told WMTW, sharing why Spider-Man was his favorite superhero. Will had accompanied his mother to Walgreens, and they stopped midway so the boy could enjoy a candy treat for successfully riding the bike half a mile. "We came out, and the bike wasn't there, and I walked up and down the length of the sidewalk, thinking that because there are those big cement columns, maybe he couldn't see it. But it wasn't there," Will's mom, Liz Fuller-Wright, said. Later, when they checked the security footage, they realized someone had stolen the bike. Liz felt a mix of emotions running through her veins — anger, sadness, and disappointment. "He's 3 years old. This is his first bike. And you don't want to think that anybody would do that," she added. Will's parents informed the police, and they posted the surveillance images, hoping to find the bike. The post reached a homeless woman, who couldn't help thinking about the boy.
"What this little boy was thinking when he came out of that store with his mom, and saw his bike missing, I cried. I [was] worried about what that little boy would be growing up and thinking about the world. I went to Walmart and I purchased the one and only bike, got him the helmet, the lock, and then I took it to Rockland," the woman who lived in her car told WMTV. She said she went to buy a bike identical to the one that was stolen, with whatever money she had, and dropped it off at the police station.
The department shared the update on Facebook (now-deleted), and the Mid-coast Recovery Coalition informed that they are accepting donations to help the homeless woman. "I was able to give her a call. And we spoke for a few minutes. And she told me her story. And I just couldn't believe it. She's not someone flush with cash. But she gave so much so generously to a little boy she'd never met, never known. Because she wanted him to be happy. She didn't want him to think that there were bad guys in the world. She wanted him to have faith in humanity," Liz said.
Unpleasant experiences early on in childhood leave a lasting impact on kids that they eventually carry throughout their lives. On a bigger note, research states that adverse childhood experiences are linked to increase the risk of physical and mental illnesses later in life. The homeless woman was possibly worried that the boy would grow up with severe trust issues because of this one incident, and hence, did the unthinkable. When asked what she would tell Will if she met him, she said, "I'd probably let him know that no matter what happens in life, we go through our troubles, our ups and downs, but there's always somebody out there that's watching over us. He's never alone."
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