Struggling Single Mom Thanks Officer After Routine Traffic Stop Is Christmas Miracle
Picture this: You’re rushing through your typical day, feeling stressed and concerned about finances. Suddenly, you see those familiar red-and-blue lights flashing away behind you.
Your heart drops into your stomach, as you realize with dismay you’ve been speeding. And you’re positive you know exactly what will happen next.
Police officers everywhere are probably quite used to their reputation as law enforcers. Most people expect cordial treatment, promptly followed by some sort of citation or ticket.
But a woman in Hendricks County, Indiana, recently took to social media with a decidedly different narrative. Her traffic stop actually turned into a heartwarming holiday miracle.
It all started when single mom Megan Nierman got pulled over by Sergeant Evan Love of the Hendricks County Sheriff’s Office. She’d just dropped off her 2-year-old daughter at the babysitter’s house for the day.
According to WXIN, Nierman works as a salon manager at a nearby Ulta Beauty store. Her ex-husband resides in another country, so she’s largely raising her toddler without benefit of child support.
When Nierman saw that patrol car, she figured she was in unavoidable trouble. She instantly realized she’d been speeding, and she also knew her license plates were expired since money was so tight.
Nierman’s Facebook post explains that she pleaded with the officer for some leniency.
“I said, ‘Please take it easy on me, I’m a single mom and I don’t have the extra money. My ex-husband left … and doesn’t send us child support,'” she explained.
Love opted to issue Nierman a ticket, with some kindhearted conditions attached.
He told Nierman that if she renewed her plates within the week, that ticket would be torn up. He also gave her his business card, so she could send him an update.
Sure enough, Love was true to his word when he received Nierman’s note of compliance. But he wasn’t quite finished yet.
“Just from talking to her, I could tell she had a ton of stuff on her plate,” Love told WXIN. “I felt bad writing her the ticket in the first place, so I tried to help her out.”
KSBW-8 explains that Love realized the ticket fee could buy a few nice holiday presents. So the officer said he “made a couple of phone calls to some family members,” who agreed to lend support.
Not long after, Nierman was busy at work when she glanced up to see a familiar face. “I saw a family walking up — a man, a woman and two kids,” she told KSBW-8. “He started talking and I said, ‘I know you!'”
Love handed Nierman a very special Christmas card before leaving the Ulta store that day. She opened it when she got to her car and was stunned to find a $300 Target gift card tucked inside.
Nierman’s grateful Facebook post indicates that she teared up immediately. But she also came away with an invaluable lesson.
“We only hear about the bad,” she said. “But this guy is perfect. Any police officer should want to be like this guy, he is the prime example.”
As for Love, he emphasizes that he sees these small acts of kindness cropping up everywhere. “I know guys in our department that do this kind of stuff all the time,” he told KSBW-8.
It’s a pointed reminder to keep your own eyes open for people offering free meals, cups of coffee or simple encouraging words. A lot of folks, including police officers, help the world shine brighter thanks to compassionate hearts made of gold.
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