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A Lidl worker has spoken out after his act of kindness for an elderly customer went viral.

Store staff member David Vance, working at the supermarket giant's outlet in Connswater in east Belfast, was spotted coming to the aid of the pensioner on Tuesday when the man's card was declined.

The 35-year-old customer assistant quietly paid for the shopping out of his own pocket.

Karen Gibney saw how things unfolded at the till and shared what she saw on the Lidl Northern IrelandFacebook page and her post quickly went viral, Belfast Live reports.

She wrote: "Today I watched one of your till staff pay for an elderly man's shopping from his own wallet.

"I don't think the man was aware that his card kept declining and didn't seem to understand that the staff member had paid for it as he didn't say thank you, he just walked on with not a word.

"But I saw it. I saw him discreetly pay and sat back down at his till like it never happened.

"I wanted to let you know that this is one of the kindest acts I've seen from a staff member ever.

"It was in your Connswater branch just after 9am. It would be nice for him to hear a thank you that he didn't get from the customer he helped."

Speaking after becoming an internet sensation, David said: "I love my job and colleagues, everyday is different but it’s a pleasure to serve all our customers in a busy Connswater store. I enjoy the customer facing part of my role, especially when they might need a little help.

"Last week I didn’t think I did anything out of the ordinary, I just noticed one of our regular customers needed a hand. I was a bit taken aback to hear about the Facebook post and the traction it got - I don’t even have Facebook myself!

"It was lovely for someone to take the time to post the story but I am just happy I was able to do something nice for a loyal customer."

A spokesperson for Lidl added: "At Lidl customer satisfaction is at the heart of everything we do and David is a fantastic ambassador for our business. We were delighted to see David’s actions be recognized by a customer on our Facebook page and so we are making David our ‘Customer Service Champion’ for October.

"David’s professionalism and focus on delivering exceptional customer service is second to none, and we are proud to have him as part of our team."