<p>Thanks for all of your ideas, they’re appreciated (and some are making me hungry!)</p>
<p>I wrote a nice note and am currently thinking a $50 gift card to Macy’s, but am still open to ideas. I’m going to look at Starbucks gift packages later today. The mom of my son’s friend will also be sending a note/gift.</p>
<p>It seems that my son’s car is going to be declared totaled, so it looks like we’ll be adding a car to the Christmas shopping list this year I keep asking my son if he feels any symptoms of whiplash, but he says no. I’m so grateful that he’s not hurt, given how hard he must have been hit.</p>
<p>So glad your S is OK. Re:Starbucks…everyone doesn’t like coffee. I don’t…never drank a cup in my life because the first sip has always tasted so bad to me! I am a preschool teacher and can’t tell you how many Starbucks gift cards I get every Christmas/Teacher Appreciation day. I really appreciate the thought but I never use them. I usually pass them on to my neighbor who loves Starbucks. Just my .02 worth:)</p>
<p>PackMom,Your neighbor is very lucky! I don’t drink coffee either and have been in a Starbucks only a few times in my life but I know they also have tea, hot chocolate,scones,muffins,etc. But , I would imagine, unless the person is known to really be into Starbucks, something more generic might work. Nice to hear of all the good samaritans out there!</p>
<p>With no disrespect intended but now many people would drive a total stranger four hours on Thanksgiving? If this were my kid I just would not know what to do for this woman. She obviously did not do it to receive a gift but that does not mean that a lovely and generous gift is not warrented. This woman was an angel. By the way I have never had a cup of coffee in my entire life but I do enjoy a wonderful meal at a great restaurant or a gift card to a place where I could purchase books and music. I have received wonderful gifts from clients to spas and once I received a wonderful gift certificate to a boutique hotel. I love gifts like these and I pass along the Starbucks cards and gift baskets to others.</p>
<p>How very nice of this Good Samaritan woman. Perhaps the most valuable lesson for the rest of us is to consider reciprocating with a random act of kindness of our own. </p>
<p>Agree that a thank-you note (from the OPs son and/or gf) and gift are appropriate. Also like the idea of flowers or perhaps a holiday wreath, centerpiece, etc. LLBean has some very nice offerings.</p>
<p>I love this idea that there is this little army of mothers, out there looking out for each other’s kids.</p>
<p>Just about a year ago, I was flying home from a wedding when our plane was unexpectedly diverted and we had to spend the night in other city. A young college boy was sitting next to me. I happily “adopted” him for the night–he joined our small group of adults as we navigated the coupons for hotels, ride to the hotel, wake-up calls, ride back in the morning, more delayed flights, etc. </p>
<p>I can’t tell you how happy it made me to lend that little helping hand (much less involved than this good Samaritan). I said a little prayer that another mother would do the same for my son in a similar situation.</p>
<p>I have given borders cards (or any bookstore) to be much appreciated- books, movies, etc.</p>
<p>And I would not at all be offended if someone gave me a target gift card!</p>
<p>Once our dog escaped and three highschool girls found and held her until I was able to pick her about, about 30 minutes. When I got there, I could see they were dressed for a party, but happily waited. I was able to only get one girls name, but found where they went to highschool. I picked up three $25 starbuck cards, went to the school, and told the principal to be sure the girls got my note and the cards. The principal was so happy that it was a good report!!! </p>
<p>What’s nice about a gift card, is the person can use it for themselves, or pass it along</p>
<p>I think all of the suggestions have been appropriate. But one thing is key…not to make her feel “paid” for doing something nice. I believe $50 is plenty to show your gratitude and not try to go overboard and “even the score”…don’t take away her warm, fuzzy feeling. You don’t know, but maybe someone did her a favor, and she was “paying it forward” so to speak. </p>
<p>When someone does a random act of kindness for my husband, I have heard him say, “Thank you…you are very kind. I will do something nice for someone else…” Let her know you will “pay it forward” instead of paying her back.</p>
<p>I think a nice $50 gift certificate of some sort and mentioning “paying it forward” would be a great touch, with the heartfelt note.</p>
<p>I was the recipient of a random act of kindness by good samaritans when I was a college student & we were stranded at the airport in Missoula MT. We were stuck at the top of the hill and they had just shut down all rental cars. This nice group of folks sort of “adopted me.” We all begged the car rental lady to drive us down the hill to the hotel to redeem the voucher the airline gave us so we could sleep there instead of trying to bed down in the airport for the night. She relented, as she had to drive down the hill to go home. All I had was a box of chocolate mac nut clusters, but she seemed surprised and pleased to get the gift. Was very happy not to have been stranded in a strange city airport during the blizzard but in the relative comfort of the hotel instead. :)</p>
<p>Our Good Samaritans were a young couple capming at Yellowstone one night when we got locked out of our car at a rest stop. They spent several hours helping us and waiting (it turns out AAA can’t come into the park, but for some reason AAA didn’t know that…). We did talk them into taking $50 and I think they may have needed the cash, but I really felt bad they missed a night of campfire. </p>
<p>A note and a gift card would be nice. Or perhaps a request for her favorite charity for donation. But it would be really wonderful if you can tell her that you were so inspired that you will make a special effort to help others in need as you encounter them.</p>
<p>It’s nice to read everyone’s stories, and you can bet that I’ll be looking for an opportunity to “pay it forward”.</p>
<p>I decided on a nice note of thanks and appreciation, incorporating some of the suggestions here, along with a $50 Macy’s card and a $25 Starbucks card. My son said they’d stopped at Starbucks and the woman had gotten coffee, so that seemed safe. The mom of my son’s friend will also be sending a similar note/gift.</p>
<p>I liked the idea of a restaurant gift certificate, but found it difficult to procure one. If independent restaurants made it easier to purchase gift certificates online, they’d probably find it to be a lucrative side business!</p>
<p>A few years ago when my sister was a freshman in college she was driving home for a weekend (she worked at her local job on weekends) and accidentally rear ended a guy in front of her that she thought was turning left but didn’t (I don’t know if he started to go and stopped or what). She bumped him right on his trucks back fender. Everyone was fine, it didn’t even dent his truck. (she had a dent in her front fender and a cracked headlight.) He could tell she was upset and they exchanged phone numbers addresses and insurance information and went on their merry ways. He called her that night but she was at work so he spoke to my mom. He told her that he wasn’t going to turn it in to insurance because he’d hate to see what they’d do to the insurance rates for an 18 year old kid when both he and his car were fine and she was going to have to pay to repair hers. He said he had a kid that was going to start driving soon and he just hopes that if she ever hits someone they will be nice to her as well (haha!). She had my sister hand write him a thank you note and she included a $50 gift card (i don’t remember where the gift card was for).</p>
I keep asking my son if he feels any symptoms of whiplash, but he says no. I’m so grateful that he’s not hurt, given how hard he must have been hit.</p>