Winnipeg teacher stunned by random act of kindness at local bookstore

A Winnipeg teacher says she’s still in shock after a random act of kindness she experienced at a local bookstore over the weekend.

Stephanie Rempel, who teaches Grade 3 at Harold Hatcher Elementary School in Transcona, said she was shopping for books for her students at McNally Robinson when it took place.

“I typically go shopping — the big shop — about once a year for my classroom. We get a certain amount according to our school budget for books we can buy for our students,” Rempel told 680 CJOB.

“As most teachers know, we almost always go over that amount because you just see books one of your students would love to have — so I did go over, and I just thought … I can’t put these books aside, I’m going to have disappointed students if there’s something they don’t see in the box of books that I bring, so to me that decision was already made — I’m going to do this.”

When Rempel was at the cashier buying the books, she realized she’d overshot her budget by a little bit more than she thought.

“As I’m getting her to scan these extra books, I was hoping for it to be around $150 to $160 … so I had her stop about halfway, as I was already over that.

“I thought, ‘OK, not today, I can’t take all of them today.’ So she started putting it to the side, and before I know it, this beautiful person is right beside me, asking if I’m a teacher and if these books are for my students, and I said yes to both.”

The anonymous benefactor, Rempel said, put some cash on the counter and walked away, leaving the teacher — and the cashier — speechless.

“I didn’t think I was being pranked, but I just thought, ‘This can’t be real life.’ People don’t do these things,” Rempel said.

“I had a moment of disbelief, and the complete kindness of this person kind of eroded that frustration — and probably anger, too — that’s been building up over the last weeks with what’s been happening over the country — it shattered that and just filled me with this joy.

“I don’t know this lady’s story, how she’s doing with the pandemic, and whether this is even something she could afford.”

Rempel said the woman who helped her obviously isn’t looking for credit, as she left as soon as she had put the money on the counter — but the story itself is worth sharing, especially at a stressful time.

“People need to hear a positive story of the good that we know is out there in our community, in our province, in our country.”