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‘My heart welled’: Woman shares man’s good deed for veteran at Iowa Walmart

Posted at 4:36 PM, Mar 19, 2018
and last updated 2018-03-19 18:36:02-04

ANKENY, Iowa – A man's selfless deed for a veteran at an Iowa Walmart store has been shared thousands of times after it moved one shopper to post on her Facebook page.

Alana Ruthann wrote that she was looking at her phone while waiting to check out Saturday, "absorbed in my own world of technology," when she saw a beautiful exchange between two men ahead of her

A young man told an older man wearing a hat indicating he was a military veteran, “Sir, I’m paying for your items because you paid by serving my country and I’m grateful for you.”

Alana Ruthann wrote that the older man was caught off guard by the gesture and struggled to hold his emotions in. The young man quickly paid for the items and thanked the veteran once more before leaving.

The veteran seemed at a loss and asked the cashier what he should do now, and she replied with a smile “You have a good day!”

"It was that moment I realized I had TWO heroes in line in-front of me," Ruthann wrote. "My heart welled as I watched our veteran readjust his Veteran ball cap, straighten up, and hold his head with pride as he walked out knowing someone was grateful for him."