Boy gives his only dollar to millionaire he mistook for a homeless man, gets a life-changing surprise in return

We are always encouraged to do good and spare acts of kindness for needy people. Many even believe that, in some way, they will be rewarded for their kindness. Sometimes, this reward comes in the form of joy, self-satisfaction and more. Other times, the reward is quite grand. Either way, both leave a lasting impact. When a 9-year-old boy named Kelvin Ellis reached out in goodwill to a stranger, what followed was remarkable, per WBRZ News. Young Ellis always dreamed of helping someone in need, especially someone who was homeless and without support. He knew he couldn’t do much but he was keen on doing all that he could. 

Early one morning in March, Matthew Busbice was woken up by the sound of a fire alarm. He rushed out of his building, and having nothing better to do, he stopped by a coffee shop nearby. Since he hadn't offered his morning prayer, Mathew finished it in a corner of the coffee shop. That was when Ellis spotted Matthew. Seeing a stranger with his eyes closed in the corner of the outside seating area, the young boy assumed him to be homeless. Without much thought, Ellis decided to do something selfless.

“I started to slowly open my eyes, and there was a kid coming toward me, about my height," Mathew said, per CBS News. The man feared that after an untoward fire, he may have to face some trouble as the boy was approaching him with a clenched fist. Instead, the boy walked over to Mathew and offered him a dollar. The CCTV camera captured the young kid walking towards Mathew, mustering all his courage and engaging in a conversation. 

Ellis only wanted to help out of goodwill and had no idea about the man’s identity. After Mathew inquired about his act, completely puzzled, Ellis said, “If you're homeless, here's a dollar." On further interaction, Mathew realized that the dollar was all the 9-year-old had received for performing well in school. The man was touched and invited the boy and his father for a bite. After further conversation, they realized that Mathew was not homeless but, in fact, a multi-millionaire. As a wealthy co-founder of Wildgame Innovations, the man was flourishing in his business. He didn’t accept the dollar but responded wholeheartedly.

He appreciated the boy’s heartfelt gesture and rewarded him heavily. He took Ellis to a store where he was given a shopping spree to pick out anything he wanted from the place. The duo shared more than a few dollars that day, they shared joy, kindness, love and humanity out of everything. It was the most precious gift anyone could ever receive. Little Ellis was thrilled to receive the things in return but above all, he was glad with just the joy of giving. "Joy, because I helped someone. Give something away, and you feel like you've got a lot of things from it,” he remarked. 

Meeting Ellis was a blessing the man cherishes. He, on his part, was grateful to have stumbled upon the misunderstanding. “I haven’t had that much faith in humanity in a very long time,” Mathew recalled. “If you give, you're actually going to get more out of that. I couldn't grasp that as a kid. And if we can spread that around, everything changes,” he shared.

This article originally appeared 3 months ago.