Struggling Vermont community checks donation bucket, finds gold coin worth $4,100
'It helps us feed our kids who...' the charity shared.
Kindness goes a long way. It may not guarantee short-term success, but eventually the universe does grant your wishes. A Salvation Army location in Vermont experienced this after an anonymous donor left them a gold coin worth thousands, according to a report by NBC 5 on December 12.
Ahead of the holiday season, the staff decided to count the donations for their annual Red Kettle Campaign and, surprisingly, found a gold coin tucked inside a taped dollar bill. Confused, the staff went to a jeweler and were stunned to realize that the gold coin was worth $4,100. Interestingly, the gold coin came their way when they were trying to reach a $55,000 fundraising goal to work for underprivileged kids. The Salvation Army had achieved only 30% of the goal, and the anonymous donation made their job a lot easier, the organizers confessed.
"It helps us feed our kids who come on Tuesday nights for music lessons. It helps put oil in somebody's oil tank, and it really means a lot that somebody is so generous that they would do something like this, and anonymously," Lt. Caitlin Lyle-DeLong told the outlet.
Moreover, the staff expressed deep gratitude to the kind donor who helped them reach their goal. Notably, the tradition of the Red Kettle Campaign began in 1891 and has been helping the underprivileged of society. Every year, it runs from November through Christmas Eve, when the organization puts red buckets outside storefronts nationwide in hopes of donations. Previously, in 2023, someone had similarly left a gold coin in the Salvation Army in Barre, which was worth $2,000. There is no greater joy than helping someone when you can, and that's exactly what the kind donor did by donating a gold coin worth thousands.
The customers of a McDonald's in Massachusetts experienced something similar when Jaydon Gierbolini, a staff member, informed them about a kind stranger who had paid for all their meals. Apparently, a man walked into the store and gave Gierbolini a lump sum of money, asking him to continue giving away free meals to anyone who arrived between 1:30 and 5 pm until the money ran out. The shop owners, David Yee and his daughter Christine, initially doubted that the money could be counterfeit, but later the police assured them. Acknowledging the kind stranger's gesture, they planned a special event where they printed cards for customers. "You have just received a random act of kindness. An anonymous Haverhill neighbor's gesture has paid for your McDonald’s meal today. We hope this brightened your day. If you feel compelled, pay it forward to someone in your own way," the note read.
The owners thought people might take advantage of the free meals, but to their surprise, nobody ordered more than necessary, making the event more special. "We were given a special opportunity to spread some kindness. We hope everyone who got a meal for free today passes that good feeling of caring forward," Christine told Wavelengths.
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