When an Uber driver in Florida picked up her passenger from a children’s hospital, she knew she had to do more than take the new mom to her destination.
Nikki Ihus had traveled from Kansas City to Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital (St. Petersburg, FL) to have her baby there after doctors diagnosed him with Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia, a rare birth defect.
One day while her newborn son, John Henry, was being cared for by doctors, Nikki wanted to hit up a children’s clothing store for a pop-up consignment shop and it was the LAST DAY of the sale, because her little one badly needed some items.
She was already having a bad day after John Henry had a “terrifying” procedure that helped him start breathing on his own, without the help of a machine, for the first time.
Belinda Smith was the Uber driver that picked up Nikki.
Before she knew it, Nikki had begun sharing what she was going through with Belinda, and that’s when Belinda knew she would not just be dropping Nikki off.
As Nikki was sharing what she had been going through with her son, Belinda thought to herself, “Oh gosh, this is her first child and she is having to go through all of this. It’s so sad.”
Once at the store, Nikki thanked her driver and went into the store.
Shortly after . . . Belinda followed and told Nikki she shouldn’t have to shop alone.
Together, the women picked out baby clothes . . . and for a little bit of time, Nikki was able to forget her family’s struggles and enjoy shopping for her baby.
The next thing Nikki knew, Belinda was handing her a bag full of clothes for her baby John Henry she’d just purchased herself.
Belinda shares, “She gave me a hug and started to cry. I wanted to cry. Honestly, I was just happy to do something nice for her because she was having a rough day.”
Of the incredible kindness from a total stranger, Nikki says, “It was amazing, I was like, ‘Are you serious?’ I didn’t expect anything at all. I just needed to tell someone what was going on, and there she is — She just showed up and offered to buy clothing. It was amazing. It definitely brightened my day because I was definitely not in the mood to go shopping, and [Belinda] made it fun.”
Belinda took Nikki back to the hospital, with the two women sharing a hug and trading information before parting way.
Belinda went to visit Nikki at the hospital on another day and got to meet John Henry.
The little one is expected to be in the hospital for another few months, but the new friends are already planning a Disney World tip with John Henry and new lifelong friend Belinda in the future.
Belinda adds, “I just really feel that a lot of people need to have a little more warmness in their hearts and stop being so caught up in everything and look at people around you because you never know what they are going through.”
(Fox News)
