Nursery nurse, 27, steps in to pay for stranger’s more than £100 shopping bill at Sainsbury’s after she overheard he’d forgotten his wallet
- Joe Bakowski only realised he’d forgotten his wallet after scanning his shopping
- Stuck, he was rescued by Kelsey Frost, 27, who paid for his £100-plus groceries
- The nursery nurse said ‘it was the right thing to do’ amid coronavirus outbreak
- Learn more about how to help people impacted by COVID
A kind-hearted nursery nurse came to the rescue of a stranger who was unable pay for his more than £100 coronavirus lockdown shopping because he had forgotten his wallet.
Kelsey Frost, 27, stepped in to help fellow shopper Joe Bakowski when he ended up stuck at a checkout in Sainsbury’s, in Oadby, Leicester at the weekend.
Kelsey spotted Joe patting each of his pockets in turn before realising he had left his wallet at home.
After overhearing him explaining his situation to the cashier, she walked over and told him she would happily pay for his shopping, which came in at well over £100.
She later said it was ‘the right thing to do’ and said people need to come together amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Kelsey Frost, 27, spotted fellow shopper Joe Bakowski at a Sainsbury’s checkout and realised he had left his wallet at home. The mother stepped in and paid his more than £100 bill
Joe, who repaid the cash a short time later, was so touched by her random act of kindness that he was moved to shared it with the world to express his gratitude.
He said: ‘Queuing outside in the sunshine, it was great to see the Sainsbury’s team working away calmly and professionally, but sharing a laugh with the queuing customers, too.
‘I was shopping for my parents and my uncle as well as for my own family, so ended up spending over an hour inside searching the shelves for unfamiliar products, only to find that – once I’d run everything through checkout – I’d left my wallet at home.
‘A young lady who had just finished at the next checkout immediately offered to pay for me – well over £100 – despite not knowing me from Adam.
‘Not only that, she then waited around, with her young child, while I ran my parents’ and my uncle’s shopping through, too, and paid for that as well.
‘Thank you Sainsbury’s staff for keeping calm and carrying on, but more than anything, thank you Kelsey F for showing how wonderful people can be when the chips are down.’
Currently furloughed from work, Kelsey, from Oadby, said she had been shopping with her daughter, five-year-old Bella, when she spotted Joe and realised he was in a pickle.
She made the heartwarming gestures at a Sainsbury’s, in Oadby, Leicester at the weekend and later said it was ‘the right thing to do’
She said: ‘I was at the self-service checkout and he was just a short distance away.
‘I could see him tapping his pockets and then I heard him say to the cashier that he didn’t have his wallet with him.
‘I just said to him that I would pay for his shopping.
‘It just seemed like the right thing to do – I wasn’t sure whether he’d have to go home for his wallet and come back to the supermarket and queue up all over again.
‘I paid for his shopping and then he paid me back later because he has online banking.
‘This is a difficult time and everyone has to come together and help each other where and when we can.’