This Formerly Homeless Man Shows What It Truly Means to Pay It Forward

Magic of Rahat has struck again!
It’s the third chapter of the YouTube star’s video series featuring a homeless man named Eric. And now, this incredible story has come full circle.
Back in March, Rahat orchestrated a “prank” on Eric that set him up to be a lottery winner. After scoring $1,000 in cash, Eric immediately wanted to share his prize. His heartwarming gesture touched so many viewers that they opened up their wallets and donated so much money ($44,000!) that Eric now has a furnished home that is completely paid for for the next year.
Now that he has a job and is no longer living on the streets, Eric is helping others in need — and his amazing act of kindness is captured in the video below.
With $1,000 of his own money, Eric approaches a homeless busker on a sweltering day and offers to pay for a hotel room. The man is suspicious at first, but ultimately takes up Eric on his kind offer.
At the hotel lobby, the two learn that the $1,000 will pay for a whole month at the hotel. When they get to the room (complete with air conditioning, a fridge, and a stove), the man is so overwhelmed that he breaks down in tears.
“I wanted to help,” Eric tells his new friend after a warm embrace. “And this is not the last time you’re going to see me.”
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According to a recent report from the National Alliance to End Homelessness, there are more than 610,000 people who do not have a roof over their heads. We need to do so much more to get our homeless Americans off the street. While it sounds like a daunting task, it can be done.
As you can see from Eric’s story, a little compassion can go a very long way.

Meet the Mystery Woman Who Doled Out Kind Acts Throughout Boston

Blankets for the homeless. Lottery tickets scattered around. Coffee and meals bought for complete strangers. For the past several years, an unknown person has been sprinkling the city of Boston with random acts of kindness.
The generous soul has been unmasked as Watertown resident Cathy O’Grady. As Boston Magazine reports, this kindhearted woman never did it for the attention. “Somebody squealed on me,” she told the publication after word got out about her philanthropy. “I’m not bummed, but I didn’t put it out there for me to be found. But I’m not bummed about it. If I can motivate other people to help out, that’s the purpose of all this.”
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Boston Magazine highlighted a recent project of hers in which she and her friends performed 318 random acts of kindness to honor the number of days in which O’Grady’s friend Colleen Wogernese’s late husband lived with cancer before he passed away. O’Grady and her team helped pay for meals, handed out hundreds of care packages to homeless shelters and hospitals, and even placed quarters in vending machines for kids. According to Huffington Post, O’Grady even helped raise $1,000 to pay for a Disney World trip for the Wogernese family.
O’Grady told HuffPo that she dedicated her life to good deeds after her mother passed away from breast cancer 15 years ago. Her most emotional project yet? The 26 gestures she performed in the memory of the 26 lives that were lost on the day of the tragic Sandy Hook Elementary school shooting. In addition to her kind acts, O’Grady has a day job as an online jeweler where her creations help raise awareness and funds for specific philanthropic causes and non-profit organizations such as Children’s Cancer Research Fund and the Colon Cancer Alliance. 
She’s also proof that if one does good, others will follow. After leaving out scarves for the homeless, Boston Magazine informed her that a few dollars had been attached to them. “That wasn’t me that did that,” she said. “So how cool is that?”

14 Ways To Give Back This Thanksgiving

In this article, Amy Neumann displays 14 ways we can give back this holiday season. While donating money or food baskets are common, Neumann focuses on some other effective methods that are not as popular. Some of these include: volunteering online, preparing an emergency kit for a friend or relative, teaching someone to read, or lending a hand at a local animal shelter.
 

Get Your Tissues Ready: A Video Mashup Of Good Deeds From Strangers

In honor of World Kindness Day, this video offers a heartwarming compilation of random acts of kindness from strangers that’s aimed at inspiring viewers to pay it forward. From random handouts of cash to a young kid giving another boy a baseball he caught at a game, these small deeds are sure to add a little joy to your day. Just be sure to watch out for any chopped onions that might be lurking nearby.