There are times when a small act of kindness can create so much love and make such a huge difference.
For a homeless man named Patrick, meeting a random stranger in front of a local Walmart in Huntsville, Texas, was all it took to change his life for the better.
Patrick was a homeless man in the sense of not having a roof over his head, but he actually had a home… his dog was everything he owned, his sense of home, and his best friend.
Due to unfortunate circumstances, his dog was taken away from him, and thus, was everything he cared for.
But, Patrick wasn’t going to abandon his best friend. He decided to fight for him, even if it meant begging people on the street for help.
Random Act Of Kindness
For Wilma Price, a Texas native, going to her local Walmart to shop was something she did regularly. That day, everything seemed to be as usual until she exited the store and saw a homeless man holding a cardboard sign.
“Dog in pound. Need help.”
This unusual request written in black on a single cardboard sheet caught Wilma’s eye. Those five small words and a desperate look on the man’s face shattered her heart.
With only $8 in her pocket, she initially kept walking, but something about that desperate look made her turn around and approach the man.
Wilma told CBS News, “I looked at him and I couldn’t get over it. He looked like a little boy standing there lost.”
So, she approached the man and asked him to explain what had happened.
According to CBS News, the man, whose name was actually Patrick, explained that a couple of days prior, he got into trouble for trespassing and had to spend two nights in jail.
During all this chaos, his dog, named Franklin, was taken by the local animal shelter and labeled as a stray.
When Patrick was released from jail, he started looking for his dog, but they told him that in order to get his dog back, he would need to pay $120.
Patrick was brokenhearted because he did not have any money. “I’m not leaving this town until I get my dog,” he told Wilma.
Touched by his story, Wilma gave him her card and went to see how she could help.
First, she called the dog pound to make sure that the story was true, and he wasn’t asking for more money than was necessary. It all turned out to be true. There was only one thing he wanted back – his dog.
Patrick assured Wilma, “My dog eats before I do. That dog is my life.”
And, she could see that everything he said was actually true. Hanging from the side of Patrick’s backpack was a dog bowl with some toys and dog food.
Franklin was truly everything he owned and cared for.
Within two days of meeting Patrick, Wilma was able to get a hold of her friend and collect enough money for Franklin to be released from the dog pound.
When they finally met again, Franklin immediately jumped to his owner’s arms while happily wagging his tail.
Everyone was in tears, seeing how much the dog loved his owner, and how much Patrick cared for his furry friend.
“You did more for me than most people have done in my life,” Patrick said to Wilma.
Seeing how incredibly grateful Patrick was, Wilma just couldn’t stop at that. She decided to help Patrick a bit more for him to make a new start.
She decided to set up a GoFundMe page to raise money for this unfortunate pair. Since then, she has raised more than $20,110.
“The lesson here is, don’t judge a book by its cover,” Wilma told CBS News. “That’s the whole thing. We’re in such a judgmental world. Everybody deserves a chance — you never know, in the blink of an eye, that could be you.”
Sometimes, when just one person lends a helping hand, incredible things can happen, and this story is a true example of that.
If you’d like to support Wilma and all she does, she and her daughter actually have a pet shelter called Mr. K’s Halfway House for Hounds & Kitties Too (or Wilma’s Dogs), so you can always donate or support their cause.
