Police Officer Buys Family Groceries After Man's Card Gets Declined

Mike Kelly
Mike Kelly

He said he felt God told him to do it.

A selfless Tennessee police officer has been praised for an act of kindness he didn’t expect anyone to see. 

Mike Kelly, an officer with the Cleveland City Police Department, said he was working security at Walmart for some extra cash on Friday when he noticed a dad's card was declined as he tried to buy groceries.

"They went to self-checkout and he went to put his card in," Kelly told InsideEdition.com. "The attendant says, 'I am sorry.' They start walking out."

Kelly said it was one of the children’s faces that caught his eye.

"The little’s girl face got me, her eyes were welling up and it broke my heart. I felt God telling me, ‘I put you up here for a reason,'" Kelly said. "I walked up to him, and said, 'Please let me bless you today.'"

Kelly said they re-rang up the groceries and bought the kids some candy.

A stranger captured the act of kindness and posted about it on Facebook, where the post was widely shared.

Kelly said he didn’t want any attention for the good deed.

"I think anyone in our department probably wouldn’t have done that," Kelly said. "It’s important to show acts of kindness. It doesn’t have to be money. It just changes people’s lives for the good."

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