When Mary realized she had left her wallet in a friend’s car, she was about to walk away from the grocery store empty-handed — until a young boy behind her stepped in. “I’ll pay for it,” said Mark, no older than 12. Mary tried to refuse, but the boy insisted. “Sometimes, we just have to do good things. Karma pays us back,” he smiled, repeating his grandmother’s wisdom. Touched, Mary asked for his number to repay him later.

After returning home and telling her daughter Anastacia the story, the women couldn’t stop thinking about the boy — especially after noticing he didn’t…especially after noticing he didn’t seem well-off.When Mary got her wallet back, she and Anastacia went to return the money. Mark greeted them politely, but hesitated to invite them in. “My grandma would be mad,” he said. Then he revealed something heartbreaking — his grandmother was in the hospital and needed expensive surgery.

Mark had started a GoFundMe, but few had noticed. “It’s just us,” he said quietly.That’s when Mary and Anastacia took action. After meeting Mark’s grandmother and hearing her story, Anastacia shared the GoFundMe online — and wrote about Mark’s act of kindness on Reddit. What happened next was beyond anyone’s imagination.

The story went viral. Donations poured in. A major news outlet picked up the story and featured Mary and Mark in an article. Within days, the GoFundMe exceeded its $230,000 goal — enough to cover his grandmother’s full treatment. All because one boy spent $20 to help a stranger — and that kindness came back to him in a way he never expected.