Aleteia logoAleteia logoAleteia
Sunday 24 November |
Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe
Aleteia logo
Inspiring Stories
separateurCreated with Sketch.

Man returns purse with $700 in it, says he’ll give his reward to church

MAN RETURNS PURSE

KETK News | Twitter

Zelda Caldwell - published on 06/15/17

Just when we need it, an inspiring story of honesty and kindness.

This report out of Longview, Texas reminds us that, in spite of all the bad news in the world, there are still honest and kind people out there, and they are the stuff of good news. Thanks to Traces of Texas for alerting us to an inspiring story.

When a Kilgore woman (who wishes to remain anonymous) realized that her purse was missing last April, she thought she would never see it again – after all it contained $700 in cash and her credit cards.

Instead, days later, she was hugging James Thomas, the man who found her bag and met with her to return it.

“I never thought I would get it back,” the woman told the Longview News-Journal. “I feel so blessed. God is good.”

It all started when the woman placed her bag on the back of her car while pumping gas. It wasn’t until she had left the gas station and gone to another store that she realized her bag was nowhere to be found.

Thomas, who works for the Longview Public Works Department, saw the woman’s purse on the road as he was driving by. When he picked it up, he found the $700, along with a Social Security card, a bank card, and a Visa gift card. He alerted the Longview News-Journal, the owner of the bag was identified, and the two arranged to meet.

The woman gave Thomas a reward from the money in the bag, which he said he intends to give to his church, according to the News-Journal report.

“Knowing it got back to the right person,” Thomas said, “that’s all I was worried about.”

Tags:
CharityInspiration
Enjoying your time on Aleteia?

Articles like these are sponsored free for every Catholic through the support of generous readers just like you.

Help us continue to bring the Gospel to people everywhere through uplifting Catholic news, stories, spirituality, and more.

2025-Aleteia-Pilgrimage-300×250-1.png
Daily prayer
And today we celebrate...




Top 10
See More
Newsletter
Get Aleteia delivered to your inbox. Subscribe here.