A 65-year-old grandmother’s honest deed inspired strangers to return her generosity and give her the shock of a lifetime.
After her car broke down about a year ago, Dianne Gordon of White Lake Township, Michigan, has been forced to walk nearly three miles to and from work five days a week.
On one of her wintery treks home from her job at VC Fresh Marketplace, she stumbled upon nearly $15,000 in a plastic bag outside a BP gas station.
While Gordon could’ve used the cash for, perhaps, a new car, she told WXYZ, “I was taught if it doesn’t belong to you, you don’t keep it.”
So she didn’t hesitate to alert the authorities about her found cache of cash.
“It never really crossed her mind to do anything other than turn it over,” White Lake Police Lt. Matthew Ivory, told WJBK.
The bag was full of wedding cards that belonged to a newlywed couple, who local police were able to track down.
But then Gordon quickly became the recipient of the decency she showed — when the wife of the police officer who took her call about the money started a fundraising page for her.
“As a police officer’s wife, I typically hear the bad things, so this was obviously heartwarming,” Stacy Connell told the Washington Post. “I was hoping we could help her get a car since she could have walked into any dealership and used that money.”
More than $71,000 was raised so far, with the generous funds from many strangers going toward a new ride — a green Jeep Compass that arrived on Feb. 3, the Washington Post reported. The leftover funds will reportedly go toward car insurance and any maintenance the car needs.
“I never expected anything like this,” she said, according to the Washington Post. “I am overwhelmed. I was just doing what I was taught to do.”
Now she can drive to see her two grandkids when they compete in sporting events and avoid trudging along to work in the cold Michigan temperatures.
“My grandson is 13 and he plays hockey. And my granddaughter is 11 and she does gymnastics, and I haven’t seen her play or do gymnastics yet. So that’s going to be very important that I get to see her do that,” Gordon told WXYZ.
“It means the world to me. I miss them so much.”
