Perhaps it was all the death, damage and human misery wrought by Hurricane Irma that nudged people to be nicer and kinder. Or is it that basic human decency sticks out so starkly because of its contrasts against the violence and destruction of the storm?

Whatever the reason, we're glad to share seven stories of extraordinary kindness, unexpected generosity, uncommon decency and even humor, each a found treasure as Irma wreaked havoc up and down the Florida peninsula: 1. This woman traveled 30 miles and found a lifesaver in Orlando.

The situation was urgent for Pam Brekke. Her father needs supplemental oxygen to breathe, and she rushed to a Lowe's home improvement store in Orlando to buy a generator, only to find the last one in stock had already been claimed by customer Ramon Santiago. Breaking down in tears, Brekke explained to store managers that finding a generator was a matter of life or death. Santiago overheard and insisted Brekke take the generator he had planned to cart home. "She needed the generator," Santiago told WFTV. "It's OK. No worry for them."

Brekke said she was "overwhelmed" by the generosity. "God will bless that man," she told the TV station. 2. This couple from Brandon found unbelievable generosity.

Deanna Feist and her husband evacuated in advance of the menacing storm and were about to stop for lunch at The Old Mill restaurant in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, when "all the lights in our dash came on, from airbags to tire pressure," she wrote on Facebook.

The stubborn engine refused to turn over, so the Feists asked a man in the car next to them to give them a jumpstart. As it turned out, he was a fellow named Mo Tamaddoni, who had managed the restaurant for 23 years. He not only helped them out but also bumped them ahead in the line to get a table. Their lunch arrived quickly, too, and what happened next is sweeter than any dessert on the menu.

"As we finished up, our waitress put an envelope on our table and said it was from the manager, and that our meals were on the house," Feist wrote in her post. "Inside was a voucher for free meals, $200 cash and a letter." Tamaddoni figured the Feists were evacuees. He has a brother who lives in Tallahassee, ironically a shelter for Irma evacuees but hit hard in the by-then tropical storm's final strike before leaving Florida Monday.