From The Huffington Post PRESENTED BY EBAY The holiday season is a time for giving. Oftentimes, it’s a gift from the heart that means the most. Inspired by this beautiful notion, we partnered with eBay to share some of the most heartwarming stories from around the country — tales full of generosity and thoughtfulness that truly capture the spirit of the holidays. Enjoy! A Present From the Police Nineteen-year-old Jourdan Duncan graduated from high school last spring and took a job working the late shift at Pro-Form Laboratories in Benicia, California, while he saved money for college. Because his job was five miles away from his home and because his car had broken down and he “didn’t want to burden anyone with a ride,” Duncan walked more than two hours each way, every day. This past fall, Corporal Kirk Keffer was on a late-night patrol in an industrial-park area of Benicia when he saw Duncan walking home. It was around midnight, and seeing a teenager in the area was a surprise. He asked Duncan if he was stranded and learned that he was not — that Duncan walked to and from work nearly five hours each day. Keffer offered Duncan a ride home. During their time together, he learned a lot about the teenager, including his dream of becoming a police officer. Inspired by their meeting, Keffer told his colleagues about Duncan and his incredible work ethic. He also told them that he wanted to help Duncan. Keffer’s colleagues wanted to help, too. The police officers chipped in and purchased Duncan a $500, brand-new mountain bike. And after Keffer presented the bicycle to a stunned Duncan outside of his work one day, the two continued their friendship. More recently, the Benicia Police Officers’ Association launched a GoFundMe page for Duncan that has raised more than $35,000 to help him save money for school. A Pair of Shoes for His Teacher Hector Montez, age 18, grew up in foster care sharing everything with his “brothers.” “Well, they weren’t my actual brothers,” said Montez, “but that’s what I called the other kids I lived with in foster care. If one of us had something, we’d share with the others. “Growing up, I was a kid who wished for things but didn’t get them. So when I got older, if I could give someone something they wanted, it felt really good,” added Montez, who was adopted by his best friend’s parents when he was a sophomore in high school. That same year, Montez met Thomas Walser, a teacher at his Lubbock, Texas, high school, the school’s football coach, and the man who became a mentor to him. In an offhand remark in class one day when giving an assignment, Walser mentioned how he had wanted a pair of Nike Air Jordans since he was a kid but couldn’t afford them when he was younger. Most students heard and quickly forgot it. But not Montez. The comment stuck with him. More than two years later, Montez worked his first summer job, and he saved money from his paychecks to buy his mentor the Nike shoes “Coach Walser” had always wanted. “You told me sophomore year, this is your favorite shoe,” Montez told his teacher in a video he posted on Twitter that has since gone viral. “It’s good to give back to the man who’s always been by my side.”
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