Struggling Mom Donates Lottery Winnings to Cop Shot in Line of Duty
Story of single mom's gesture to law enforcement has unexpected ending
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When someone makes a selfless gesture despite struggling themselves, it shows the true character of that person.
Shetara Sims of Kansas City, Missouri, a single mother who tragically lost her daughters in 2012, is one of those people.
Sims lost not long ago lost her job, so when she was in the parking lot of a grocery store and spotted a dollar bill lying on the floor, she took it as a sign.
Sim used the money to buy a lottery ticket and ended up winning $100.
When Sims’ 12-year-old daughter Rakiya saw they had won, she felt compelled to donate it to a pressing cause.
“Mom, we should give that to the police officer who got shot,” the girl said, according to a GoFundMe page that was set up for the family.
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Sims quickly called the Kansas City Police Department and asked to donate to the officer, who was in the ICU after being shot on July 2.
But when the police department urged her to keep the cash for herself, she insisted they took it.
She explained that when she lost her daughter eight years ago, the detectives who investigated the case “were like her therapists, fathers, and lifelines all in one.”
KCPD posted the story, which quickly went viral.
“Today, Shetara and her daughter Rakiya came to meet some of the coworkers of the officer who was critically wounded,” the department wrote Monday on Facebook.
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“They also were there during the shooting. Shetara and Rakiya are the ones who had little money, but after finding a dollar in a grocery store parking lot used it to buy a lottery ticket that ended up winning $100 and then decided to donate it to the wounded officer.”
Then something beautiful happened.
Readers were touched by Sims’gesture and wanted to bless her back.
But because Sims hadn’t given her name or number, though, it took a while to find her.
But KCPD did, and they set up a GoFundMe for her.
“It took a while to find them, but we’re so glad we did, and we’re so glad they got to meet the wounded officer’s coworkers and friends. (And because so many people reached out wanting to help Shetara and her daughter, we set up this GoFundMe page: gf.me/u/ygr4ya),” the post continued.
The campaign raised over $57,000, and the goal was $10,000.
And it all started with a selfless gesture of kindness.
