Man buys US$540 worth of cookies so Girl Scouts 'can get out of the cold'

A social media post about a mystery man’s act of generosity has gone viral after he paid hundreds of dollars to buy all the cookies a Girl Scout troop had for sale, so the youngsters could “get out of the cold.”

Kayla Dillard, who manages cookie sales for the Greenville Girl Scout Troop 1574 in South Carolina, shared the Facebook post Friday, with a picture of a man and two Girl Scouts.

The post said the man bought every box of cookies the girls had — US$540 worth — so they could ‘get out of the cold’. By Monday, the post had gone viral with more than 1,300 comments, 8,900 shares and 25,000 reactions.

There was a flood of comments on the post — all positive. Comments ranged from people asking if he’s single to people thanking and blessing him for his kindness and generosity. 

Marshall Culpepper commented, “As a troop dad who knows many cold days at cookie booths, I have to say, this guy is a HERO!” 

Dillard says she didn’t expect the post to go viral as it did. 

“People who share things on their page usually don’t expect things to go viral like that and honestly, I thought I had my Facebook set to private but I found out a few thousand shares later that is not the case.” 

Although the post warmed the hearts of people everywhere, Dillard says everyone was in complete shock after the man purchased the cookies.

“We were initially completely shocked,” she said. “After we had realized what was happening we packed everything up and proceeded with the check-out process.” 

Then the group got out of the cold and went home. According to Dillard, it likely would have taken the girls another day and a half to sell that many cookies. 

Apparently, this wasn’t the mystery hero’s first act of kindness.

“I use to manage a buffet restaurant in Taylor SC. I remember this man, he was one of the people that would buy gift cards so we could feed the homeless in the area. We kept an envelope of gift cards so the homeless could eat. He is truly a blessing to the world,” Naomie Ruth Wallace wrote in a comment on the post. 

Dillard has confirmed she does not know the man, but she says people can learn a few things from him.

“He filled our hearts. We’re very thankful for his gesture and people can learn a few things from him in that he really touched the hearts of many people not just here in Greenville but across the world.”