TUESDAY evening November 6, at 10.15pm I attempted to put petrol in my car at Tesco in St Helens near the stadium.

It was raining, pitch black I was on my own and didn’t have a coat.


The pump would not accept my normal debit card for some reason, my odometer showed I only had one mile left even though when I set off it said six miles.

So I don’t know where that went as the petrol station was less than two miles away.


I was getting distressed at this point and asked the gentleman behind me if he was having trouble.

He said he had to do it twice as only allowing £10 – there was a tanker on site delivering.


I tried again but still no luck. At this point there was quite a queue forming and then that’s when a total stranger stepped up and showed a random act of kindness that I can only describe as astounding. 


He came over put his card in the pump and paid for £10 petrol for me.

He did offer me more I just wanted to get home, he wouldn’t accept the cash I had on me or give me his name, just wished me a Merry Christmas and got in his car and drove away.


You may think ‘so what he is a good person?’.

But it was more to me than that as what he didn’t know is I live in Great Sankey, I would never have got to another petrol station or home and my daughter had gone into labour at Warrington Hospital with my first grandchild.


A random act of kindness which I think needs a mention.


Janet Barnes
Via news@sthelensstar.co.uk