Melksham’s supermarket good Samaritans – do you know who they are?

THE Talking Newspaper team are searching for a pair of good Samaritans, who came to the aid of a couple in distress in a Melksham supermarket.

The couple, who are regular listeners of the talking newspaper, were left unable to pay for their shopping after a cash machine retained their card for an unknown reason.

Luckily for them, two women offered to help, paying for their shopping. But the good Samaritans disappeared before the couple were able to ask for their details so they could pay them back.

Chippenham & District Talking Newspapers volunteer, Brian Heath, who records the Melksham Talking Newspaper using all the latest stories from Melksham News, said, “The Talking Newspapers team has recently received a heart-warming story from a Chippenham couple whom I shall refer to only as Mr & Mrs H; Mrs H is a partially-sighted listener to our Chippenham and Malmesbury edition.

“It is a fixed part of Mr & Mrs H’s weekly routine to travel from their home to the Aldi store in Melksham; they started this long before there was an Aldi in Chippenham and they saw no reason to change their weekly outing.

“Also, part of Mr & Mrs H’s unvarying routine is that half-way round the store they always stop at the ATM cash dispenser machine to draw out enough cash for the coming week. But on a recent occasion the cash machine decided to confiscate Mrs H’s card for no reason they could think of.

“Mrs H was devastated, as without either the card or the cash she was planning to withdraw, they could not pay for their weekly shopping. She asked an assistant for help, but rather than call the manager, who could, one assumes, have opened the machine to retrieve the card, the assistant simply said he could not help, and walked off, leaving a very distressed couple contemplating the task of putting all of their shopping back on the shelves before going home with nothing.

“However, another shopper nearby, who had with her a teenage girl, presumably her daughter, heard the exchange between the upset couple and the assistant and went up to them to offer some help. Mr & Mrs H were amazed when the lady told them to finish off their shopping, and that she would meet them at the checkout and pay their final bill on her own card. Mrs H, in particular, was very unsure at first, but eventually she agreed, saying that she would post the kind lady a cheque to cover the amount as soon as she got home.

“So Mrs H and her husband completed their shopping, and sure enough the good Samaritan and her young daughter were waiting by the checkouts for them.

“Mr & Mrs H busily packed the various items into their bags as they were scanned, and while they were finishing off this task they were aware that the lady was paying their bill as she had promised. When the last items had been packed they turned to obtain the lady’s name and address so that they could send the agreed cheque – but the lady and her daughter were nowhere to be seen! 

“They had simply left the store without another word, and Mr & Mrs H have not seen them on any subsequent visits to Aldi in Melksham.

“If anyone recognises herself as the benefactor in this story, or knows who the lady in question was, Mr & Mrs H would very much like to hear from you so that they can finally track down the lady to offer their sincere thanks for her help and kindness in a very upsetting situation, and reimburse her!

“This little tale goes some way to confirming one’s faith in human  nature and true community spirit. Long may this sort of selfless kindness continue!”

If you have any information about the good Samaritans, contact Brian Heath on 01249 814005 or 07944 818971.