Most people retaliate against those who do wrong by them.
But that just creates more wrong.
It takes a person of great strength and wisdom to love and even help his enemies.
So, when Jitendra “Jay” Singh found a shoplifter stealing from his 7-Eleven store in Ohio he didn’t call the police.
He gave the teen more food.
A clerk alerted Singh about the shoplifter and Singh was able to confirm the thievery through surveillance video footage.
Singh said he was taken aback by what the teen said when he confronted him.
“He said, ‘I’m stealing for myself. I’m hungry, and I’m doing it for my younger brother,'” Singh told ABC13.
At that point, Singh had a choice.
He could call the police and condemn the teen to the justice system where he would have a pretty good chance of ending up in and out of that system. Or, he could help the teen.
Singh decided he would help and show the teen that there are people in the world who want to help. He told the teen to get a pizza, sandwiches, and other food that he could take home for free.
“It’s not going to make any difference to me if I give him some food because we make a lot of food, we sell a lot of food,” said Singh. “If he goes to jail then he’s definitely not going to do anything good in life.”
But this isn’t out of the ordinary for Singh. He says he often helps people when he can.
“He has a big heart,” said customer Cedric Bishop. “He has a great, big heart.”
Bishop was in the store when Singh helped the teen and shared the story on Facebook.
“I went to the 7-Eleven store on Upton and Berdan and a young man around 15 or 16 was caught shoplifting. The owner of the store told the cashier to call 911. There was another man in the store told that offered to pay for the merchandise the young man took. The owner made him empty out his pockets. He had a lot of munchies. The young man said he only wanted to feed himself and his little brother,” Bishop wrote.
“The owner said, ‘This is not food. You want food, I give you food.’ The cashier had the 911 operator on the phone. The owner told her to hang up. He went and started putting chicken drummies, sausage rolls, and a whole pizza and gave him a 2 liter. I thought that was an amazing thing the owner did. I was so touched I gave the young man $10. Some young people just need to know that someone cares. Just thought I’d share this with you. Have a blessed night.”
That post was liked more than 4,000 times and many who commented said they would be sure to shop at that 7-Eleven.
Bishop said he was inspired by Singh’s act of kindness.
“I thought that was just beautiful because the young man could have had a record,” said Bishop.
Singh’s wife, Neera Singh, said she is very proud of her husband.
“We are part of the community, and we have to help the community,” said Neera Singh. “It is a part of our job.”
If you or someone you know is hungry, you can find information on food assistance here. Learn more about this story in the video below.
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