Police Officer’s Incredible Kindness Toward Starving Homeless Woman Goes Viral
When the police are called to a scene because of a homeless person, things don’t usually turn out so well for that individual. Often told to leave the area or stop loitering, homeless people aren’t typically overjoyed to encounter the police department. But one compassionate officer helped to change the perception of cops by going out of his way to help a hungry homeless woman.
According to the Huffington Post, earlier this month, Patrolmen Keith Perry and Adam Laprade from the Massachusetts Seekonk Police Department were called to a local Walmart about a homeless woman who had fainted in the bathroom. Perry spoke to the woman and learned more about her situation, discovering that she was homeless and hadn’t eaten anything in a long time. That’s when the police officer decided to go above and beyond the call of duty to help the homeless woman survive the harsh winter.
Officer Perry used his own money to buy the homeless woman groceries and even arranged for her to stay in a hotel for the night. There was reportedly a major snowstorm coming, so the officer wanted to ensure the homeless woman had somewhere warm and safe to stay while getting some food in her. Perry’s partner, Adam Laprade, took photos of the charitable act and posted them to the department’s Facebook page.
“After to coming to the aid of a woman in distress tonight, Officer Perry discovered that the woman was homeless and hadn’t eaten in quite some time,” said the post. “He then took it upon himself to buy her some groceries and helped her get to a hotel room to ride out the snow storm.”
Along with bread, peanut butter, and jelly, Officer Keith Perry also bought the homeless woman some beverages and snacks to enjoy while she waited out the snowstorm in a local hotel room. It appears that the unidentified woman had fainted as a result of going hours (or possibly days) without food.
Officer Perry’s generosity toward the homeless woman is going viral on the web at a time when the public opinion about cops is not especially high, mostly due to the reports about police officers unlawfully killing unarmed individuals. But Perry serves as a reminder to the world that many public servants will go out of their way to help those in need, even a homeless woman who can offer the cop nothing in return besides her gratitude.
Keith Perry claims he is shocked by the flood of praise that has come in from people around the world who heard about his act of kindness. But Lt. David Dyson claims that nobody else on the force had the same reaction. Perry apparently has a reputation for generosity.
“This is just typical of Keith Perry. Everyone said he did a great job, and I agree!”
According to CBS Local News, the Facebook post about Perry helping the homeless woman has received thousands of likes and shares as of Monday morning.
One commenter who claims to know Officer Perry gave another example of his compassion outside of the favor he did for the homeless woman.
“What a wonderful act of kindness. On Halloween Officer Perry was patrolling our neighborhood. He stopped and gave out candy to all the children and then took the time to answer all the questions the kids had about his patrol SUV. great community service. Thank you.”
The Police Department told the Huffington Post that Keith Perry’s kindness toward the homeless woman “epitomizes the meaning of public service.”
Do you agree with that sentiment? Do you think Officer Perry should be praised for showing compassion to a homeless woman who was starving in the middle of a snow storm?
[Image via the Seekonk Police Department]
