Amid all the stories of COVID-19-induced retail chaos, violence, and selfish hoarding, there’s still hope for humanity, as one woman recently showed an elderly couple kindness just when they need it most.
As CBS News reported, Rebecca Mehra of Bend, Oregon, was more than willing to lend the couple a helping hand when fear prevented them from getting their grocery shopping done.
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The professional runner was getting ready to go inside her local Safeway when an elderly woman called out to her from her and her husband’s car.
“She cracked her window open a bit more, and explained to me nearly in tears that they are afraid to go in the store,” Mehra recalled in a Twitter post about the incident.
As it turns out, the couple, who are both in their 80s, had recently learned the coronavirus is primarily affecting older people, leaving them fearful of crowds and public places.
After explaining that they didn’t have any family nearby to help them shop, the couple offered Mehra $100 and their grocery list, hoping this stranger in a Safeway parking lot would show them a touch of kindness.
Thankfully, they picked the right stranger to ask.
Mehra said she bought the couple all the groceries on the list and even helped load the items into the trunk of their car.
After handing over their change, Mehra was informed that the elderly pair had been sitting in their car for 45 minutes before she had shown up, simply because they were looking for the perfect person who would be willing to do them this favor.
“I know it’s a time of hysteria and nerves, but offer to help anyone you can,” she wrote in a follow-up tweet . “Not everyone has people to turn to.”
Mehra’s Twitter thread describing the event has since gone viral, racking up hundreds of thousands of likes and thousands more retweets.
“Overwhelmed by the positive response to my tweet yesterday,” she wrote after her story blew up. “Frankly most people I know would have done the same thing I did. I was just in the right place at the right time.”
In an interview with CBS News, Mehra admitted her only regret is not learning the couple’s names.
“It just felt like a no brainer thing to do in the moment,” she said . “It seems like it’s inspired thousands of people hopefully to check in on their neighbors, check in on their grandparents, and their parents.”
As of writing, the U.S. has currently reported 2,885 confirmed coronavirus cases, with a total of 65 deaths.
According to CNN , West Virginia remains the only state to be untouched by COVID-19.
Worldwide, there have been 162,000 reported cases of the virus worldwide, with some 6,000 deaths, and around 76,000 patients having recovered.
Among those most at-risk of developing the disease are elderly citizens, as well as people with serious medical conditions, such as heart or lung disease.
