Thanks to a generous stranger, Annamaria’s grandfather had the best birthday ever!

Annamaria Jacob wanted to show her grandpa a special time for his 84th birthday. Thanks to a generous stranger, they scored a day neither will ever forget!

Ever since she was a little girl, Annamaria Jacob and her grandpa, George Moore, Jr., had been best friends.

Some days, they’d paint birdhouses. Others, they’d browse through bookstores: Grandpa was the one who bought Annamaria her beloved Harry Potter books. It didn’t matter what they did; it only mattered that they were together.

So as George’s 84th birthday approached, Annamaria wanted to celebrate— especially as the week of his birthday had become difficult for him since his wife of 50 years had died.

Knowing her grandma’s birthday would have been two days after her grandpa’s, Annamaria longed to make him smile. And then it struck her: Why not take the lifetime sports fan to the upcoming Jacksonville State University football game?

I have two club tickets. May I offer them to you?

“Sounds fun!” George smiled. And, after a stop at the bookstore to buy a souvenir T-shirt, George cheerfully said, “I think our team has a good chance.”

Annamaria knew it was a long walk from the bookstore to the stadium. Then, once they arrived, there were all the stairs they’d have to climb to the budget bleacher seats she’d been able to afford. And though George was in good health, he was 84 . . .

“I think there’s a shuttle,” Annamaria said.

She didn’t see a bus anywhere, though. But she did spot a golf cart with a driver wearing a university employee ID badge.

“Excuse me. Do you know where we can catch the shuttle?” she hailed the driver.

Don Killingsworth had just dropped off the university president. “I’m on my way there now. Hop in!” he offered.

Annamaria tucked her grandpa into the shotgun seat, then squeezed into the back.

“Annamaria is a JSU graduate. And if I have anything to say about it, she’ll be back here soon for her PH.D.,” George winked.

Don listened as George shared how the game day was a special gift from his granddaughter.

“She takes good care of me,” he smiled, and Don smiled. His own grandparents were a gift to him. And suddenly, he had an idea.

“I have two club tickets. May I offer them to you?”

“What? Wow! Can I pay you for them?” Annamaria asked, knowing she’d be living on peanut butter sandwiches for weeks. But for Grandpa’s birthday, it would be worth it.

“Absolutely not,” Don replied. “The university president gave them to me. Now they’re my gift to you.”

Don drove Annamaria and George to the stadium and escorted them to the club.

“Oh, my!” George gasped, his gaze darting from a wall of huge high-definition TV screens to an indoor tailgate party’s spread of delicious snacks and beverages. The indoor seats were feather-cozy, and the special outside deck offered the best view of the field.

“This was so generous of you!” Annamaria turned to thank their benefactor, but Don had left.

The grin never left George’s face as he enjoyed the game on a comfy couch, munching sandwiches and cookies. He even got a visit from the team mascot! And their team won!

But for Annamaria, the victory was seeing her Grandpa filled with joy.

On their way out, Annamaria asked the receptionist for the name of the stranger she only knew as Don. Thank you! she e-mailed Don the next day.

It was my pleasure. If it was my grandpa’s birthday, I’d want to make it special, too, Don replied.

“I don’t get to spend as much time as I’d like with my grandparents. So it was a treat to be able to sweeten their day,” he says.

“What Don did was beyond measure,” Annamaria says. “He gave my grandpa a special birthday and memory for us to share. You can’t put a price on that!”

A grandfather is someone with silver in his hair and gold in his heart.

Author unknown