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Woman shares her struggles of working full-time while homeless, and it changes her life

Sometimes the internet really delivers.

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Royalty-Free photo: Woman holding mop | PickPik

Sometimes the internet is like a great big community. One that supports its members who are in need of help.

Aaliyah (@oc.liyahh) revealed her struggles of working full-time, without a home of her own, in a heartfelt TikTok video. Little did she know that sharing her story would lead to not only sincere support from total strangers online, but some actual solutions for her problem.

As a full-time employee at Home Depot, Aaliyah worked eight-hour shifts, five days a week. But once she clocked out, it didn’t get much easier.

Having only her car for shelter, Aaliyah would have to use facilities like Planet Fitness to take a shower, only occasionally being able to afford a night in a hotel. With those kinds of challenges, it’s perfectly understandable she admitted to always being tired and “barely ever smiling.”

@oc.liyahh #fypシ #viraltiktok ♬ Sure Thing (cover version) - Tik Toker

Aaliyah’s clip soon went viral with more than 5 million views, and though there were some accusations of Aaliyah “faking it,” the overall response was incredibly supportive. Some even came out to share similar experiences.

“I used to sleep in my car and take showers at the gym also and worked two jobs and barely slept,” one person wrote, encouraging her with, “now I own a small business, my house and two vehicles.”

Another added, “keep at it. I was homeless…I would shower at friends’ houses and ride a bike to work. Now I got my own place and car.”

It does help to hear how others have overcome obstacles you’re currently facing, but Aaliyah received even more reason to remain hopeful.

Unbeknown to her, Aaliyah’s very workplace could provide assistance. Many TikTok users informed her of the Homer Fund, a grant program that provides financial assistance to employees facing hardship. According to the company website, more than 150,000 associates have already been helped.

In a series of follow up videos, we find out that Aaliyah did reach out to the Homer Fund, and received not only emergency funding to get a hotel, but permanent housing as well.

This young woman went from “barely being able to smile” to dancing and feeling “beyond grateful.”


This article originally appeared on 2.3.22

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Joy

Tense video shows two barbers rushing to save little girl from running into traffic

The heroes say they went into "dad mode" and immediately acted.

@obthebarber/Instagram

Some people step into action without a second thought.

When two barbers noticed a young girl racing by their window and into oncoming traffic, they only had seconds to act. And thankfully, they did without hesitation.

Osvaldo Lugo recently posted a harrowing surveillance video to the Instagram account of his Connecticut-based business, the Look Sharp Barbershop, which shows himself and an employee, Rafael Santana, racing out to scoop up a young girl mere seconds away from bolting into oncoming traffic.

Lugo tells ABC7 that he simply went into “dad mode” the minute he spotted the girl in the shop window, who had escaped her mother at a nearby bus stop. Thank goodness he did, and that he and Santana were able to help the girl reunite with her mom, who seemed “confused and shocked but grateful,” per Today.com.

Even knowing this story has a happy ending, viewers found the footage terrifying, and commended the barbers on their bravery and fast action.

“I can’t believe how long I was holding my breath while watching, even knowing that you both were to save her before she ran into the traffic,” one person wrote.

Another added, “Omg this gave me chills! Thank God you guys saw her & most importantly went into action.”

The East Hartford Police Department also praised Santana and Lugo in a Facebook post, which read:

“Heroic Barbers to the Rescue! Today, we want to give a massive shoutout to the quick-thinking and brave duo, Osvaldo Lugo and Rafael Santana of LookSharp Barbershop.Their swift action saved a little toddler who had escaped from his mother and started moving towards traffic on Main Street. Thanks to them, a potential tragedy was averted, and a family remains whole. We’re incredibly grateful for these everyday heroes among us!”

As for Luca and Santana, their actions aren’t considered anything out of the ordinary. As Santana shared with TODAY.com, “We did this out of love and we’d do it a million times again. We protect and serve our community at all costs.”

It’s never a bad time to share stories like these. But right now, they seem more important than ever.

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Community

Man returns woman's lost purse to her house and their lovely chat was caught on camera

A good deed turned into a heartwarming display of humanity.

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A good does of good deeds

As any avid Upworthy reader will tell you—we have our fair share of heartwarming stories involving strangers returning lost items to their owners. It’s just such a perfect example of humanity at its best.

But this story has all that, plus an extra layer of feel-good.

Here’s what happened:

An Englishwoman named Georgia Girelli, had lost her purse and was “crying her eyes out” because of her missing item.

Luckily, the man who found it at a gas station ventured up to her house to return it. Girelli wasn’t home at the time, but her doorbell cam captured their entire exchange.

In the clip (shared to Reddit/MadeMeSmile) the man shared that he had intended to wait until morning to return the bag, but then remembered the inconsolable distress felt by an ex who was in a similar situation, and wanted to help Girelli avoid feeling that kind of stress.

Moved by his thoughtfulness, Girelli insisted on paying the man back, even telling him to take some money out of the purse itself.

But the man simply said, “Nah, just pay it forward. Just do something nice for the next person.”

Before exiting, the man shared that “I’m a firefighter, I don’t need money for doing a good deed.”

Of course, you can read all this. But then you miss the accents and use of words like “wheelie bin” that might just give you your “Ted Lasso” fix. The guy even looks like Roy Kent, for goodness sake.

Watch below:

Stranger finds lost bag and returns it to the owner
byu/Solo_Odyssey inMadeMeSmile

It’s nice enough that this man made the effort to return Girelli’s purse, even nicer that he returned it as soon as possible. But then there’s that extra lesson of spreading kindness.

We all know that doing this helps make the world a better place, and makes us feel pretty damn good in return. But it can be easy to miss opportunities to actually do it. So seeing almost effortless examples can maybe help bolster our resolve. And heaven bless the individuals who set the example.

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Joy

Animal shelter celebrates being empty for the first time in nearly 50 years

The silence coming from a Pennsylvania animal shelter during this holiday week is being hailed "a true miracle."

Adams Count SPCA/ Facebook

So many animals spent Christmas in loving homes.

For the first time in 47 years, the Adams County SPCA met the holidays with silence. Not a creature was stirring—not even a mouse.

Because this year, every kennel was empty. All the animals had either been adopted or reunited with families, thanks to what the organization called a “true Christmas miracle.”

To celebrate, the Adams County SPCA shared a photo of its employees and volunteers smiling alongside all the empty kennels, and thanked the community for its continued support.

“This year we have adopted out 598 animals and reunited 125 strays with their owners! WOW! It has been a busy year!” the post read.

This miracle comes despite the shelter “discouraging” potential pet owners from adopting pets during Christmastime, as there is a long-standing belief that animals adopted during this season as gifts are more likely to be returned weeks later. (TODAY)

While this belief is certainly warranted (there are plenty of tragic stories of Christmas pets being returned once the novelty wears off), studies show that might not necessarily be the case. In fact, a lot of research has found the opposite—that animals given as gifts are far less likely to be returned to shelters.

And to add to that optimism, several people responded to the Adams County SPCA’s post with pictures of their own fur babies adopted from the organization, showing them in happy, healthy homes.

"Happy Jack who was named Briscoe, is excited to hear the great news!"

"Toulouse (adopted 16 years ago) says Meowy Christmas and congratulations"

"Harper was adopted 4 years ago from Adams County SPCA. So grateful for all you do. Merry Christmas!"

The shelter also regularly adds “happy tails” of adopted animals living their best lives, including Bootsie the cat, adopted in November.

As Bootsie's new parents can attest, the sweet feline is “adored” by all, but has been a “game changer” for their autistic daughter, hope.

"Hope cuddles Bootsie when she’s upset instead of having full blown meltdowns, cuddles him and practices her verbal expressions of compassion, love and affection. Thank you so much for all you do!" their post read.

So maybe, just maybe, we can really believe this was a well deserved miracle after all.

But still, the work continues. As the organization explained in a subsequent post on Dec 26th, other overwhelmed shelters in the state have reached out in need of support. Right now resident owner surrenders still take priority, but they are branching out to surrounding counties when able.

In their words: “We are going to do the best we can to help as many animals and people [as] we can.”

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