Woman wakes up alone on a train station bench, finds note and money in her hand

Editor's note: This article was originally published on December 20, 2022. It has since been updated.

Ellie Farnfiled will forever be grateful to the good Samaritan who helped her when she really needed it. On October 21, 2015 she was traveling from Redhill in Surrey to London Victoria, when she fell unconscious. To her surprise, when she woke up, she found a £10 (about $12) note and a handwritten letter from a person called Tom. According to the Independent, the note read: "I hope by the time you read this you are feeling better. You had a seizure on the train and I took you off." He apologized for having possibly hurt her leg when he walked on it "before realizing" she was on the floor "having a fit."

"I'm also sorry I can't stay with you now but here is a coffee to perk you up later and £10 to make sure you get a taxi home," Tom wrote.

He also apologized for not having any more money to leave with her and hoped that she didn't live far away. He wrote: "I've contacted people from your phone and medical help is on its way and you're with train staff. Wishing you all the best and a quick recovery. Love Tom.” Farnfield, who was very moved by the stranger's kindness, posted a picture of the letter on Facebook and launched a campaign called #findtraintom to thank him for his kind act. She wrote: "Faith restored in humanity in London last night. Thank you so much to everyone who helped me–especially 'Tom.'"

Farnfiled told reporters that she was "quite emotional" by Tom's generosity and wanted to thank him and also return the money. "Anything could have happened. I could have hit my head, fallen off the train, been there for a long time," she said.

"There is something really lovely about the kindness of a stranger. If I meet him, drinks are on me," Farnfield added. Sharing that she was "overwhelmed" by the response from people on social media, she said: "Fingers crossed we find him." Farnfield, an acupuncture student, has reportedly had many seizures in the past and her family and friends are rooting for the #findtraintom campaign. Speaking to Mail Online, she said: "Everyone thinks Tom is great. There has been lots of speculation about who he might be, what he does, what he looks like, and friends 'shotgunning' him as their future boyfriend."

Many on the internet shared the post to find Tom. One wrote: "I hope that if I ever have a seizure while by myself that a guy like this would help me." Another person shared their own experience, writing: "I don't know if Tom was ever found but I really hope he was because reading this has reminded me of the man who helped me during my first seizure in Ashton-in-Makerfield around April 2011. He pulled over and got out of his van after he saw me fall and go into a fit, he then stayed with me until the paramedics arrived."

A spokesperson for Southern, the train operator for the section of the line where the incident took place, said: "What this mystery man Tom did just goes to show how thoughtful and kind-hearted many of our passengers are. This would have been a frightening experience but thanks to our good Samaritan this young lady woke up in good hands with a taxi fare home."