Aaron Young

ayoung2@dmreg.com

Jill Zimmerman didn't know anyone in Bettendorf on April 18, when she entered the city's Hy-Vee location to purchase "odds and ends," as she put it.

But when she arrived back to her home with six bags of groceries in one hand and six in the other, she looked down at the food she would prepare later that night. She was in tears. She was flabbergasted. She was thankful.

"I truly have an angel," Zimmerman said.

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Zimmerman, 35, moved to Bettendorf at the start of the month, she told the Register on Monday, adding that she has been disabled since 2011 and suffers from mobility issues. She rode the bus to Hy-Vee — which is about two to three miles from her house — to pick up items that afternoon.

But when she got to the cashier after collecting her goods, she reached into her wallet and felt nothing. Her electronic benefit transfer (EBT) card was nowhere to be found.

"I told the cashier to stop doing the transaction," Zimmerman recalled, saying that the cashier then requested the manager to come and void the purchase. "The manager asked me if I was able to come back later today, they were able to hold my cart for awhile. I told them probably not since it takes a lot out of me to get to the store and back."

A voice emerged from behind Zimmerman: "Can I pay for it? I'd really like to."

That voice was Marsha White's.

White told the Register on Monday that she happened to be in the store that day and thought, "'I'm here', and I was able to give her help that day." She said the amount of the bill was "just enough that I could help her out."

"I had told her I was very fortunate I had two friends who were dealing with severe health issues, and they both had good news last week," White, 59, of Bettendorf said.

Zimmerman couldn't believe it and questioned the request.

"I don't like taking money from strangers, you know," Zimmerman said. "She just had a very compassionate, loving face to her. And I could see it in her eyes that she was genuine."

Zimmerman obliged, but under one condition:

"Let me give you a hug and say, 'Thank you.'"

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The pair hugged, and both said their eyes were filled with tears as others watched. Zimmerman, who acknowledged "food stamps are the only way I get food," called White "a real blessing."

"For a complete stranger to walk up and say, 'Hey I'll pay for your groceries,' it's amazing to me," she said.

So Zimmerman, later that evening, shared her encounter on Facebook. She wanted to show the true good that exists in people — even strangers.

"I wanted to show other people that there are people out there that will do whatever it takes to help a stranger," Zimmerman said.

The experience was posted to the Facebook page "Love What Matters" on Thursday, where it has been shared more than 1,800 times and is filled with hundreds of comments from users sharing their own random-acts-of-kindness stories. Some of which even took place at grocery stores.

"When you least expect it, there is love," commented a Facebook user named Miranda Sharp from Columbus, Ohio.

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On April 19, the Hy-Vee in Burlington shared the post on its page, adding confirmation to the encounter.

The two woman have yet to re-connect, but both say they are overwhelmed by the amount of attention their moment has received, stretching from fellow Iowans to other parts of the country.

"I'm glad I got the nudge from somebody, somewhere, to help this woman," White said.

"I was very lucky that day."

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