Woman Floored When Billionaire Bill Gates Turns Out To Be Her Secret Santa
People have mixed opinions about the whole “Secret Santa” thing. Without fail, every year, in every office or group that participates, there are two main categories of participants: Those who painstakingly pour out part of their soul to ensure they get their giftee just the right item(s), and those who forget until the last minute and frantically wrap up a neutral item they’ve been gifted in the last few days.
Perhaps this is why some people have come to avoid Secret Santa. There’s no guarantee that you will get as thoughtful a gift as you give.
But for those who want to participate in all the anonymous fun and widen their gift-giving and -receiving to virtually the entire world, there are groups that make such a dream reality. Reddit is one of those groups.
“Welcome to the 11th annual Reddit Gifts Secret Santa!” the page for Secret Santa 2019 proclaims. “Over the years, Reddit users from around the world have come together during Secret Santa for a common theme — to spread goodwill and joy to one another through the spirit of giving and receiving happiness.”
“In our eleventh year, we invite you to join us once again. It’s a time where love and optimism is needed across the globe, and at Reddit Gifts, we rely on the kind hearts of Reddit users to shine a little light during the holiday season — and this year is no different.”
The counter in the top right corner lists 113,701 participants. One of the most famous repeat gift-givers on this platform is no other than Bill Gates himself.
The odds aren’t great that if you sign up, your giver will be Gates, but one participant began to wonder if maybe, possibly, she might just be the Chosen One this year. It started when the woman known only as either szor or Shelby from Detroit got a notification on Dec. 17 that her Secret Santa package was on the way, and that it was being overnighted.
“I log in and am a bit taken aback that the package is being FedEx overnighted — sounds expensive,” she wrote. “I also noticed that it was being shipped from Washington state, and as a seasoned RedditGifter, I remark to my husband, ‘Huh, wouldn’t it be something if my Santa was Bill Gates? LOLOLOLOL!’ Cue bedtime.”
The next day, she had her work’s holiday party, but she kept noticing details about the package coming her way that made it harder and harder to concentrate.
“I check the shipping page to make sure the package is still on track, and something curious catches my eye- 81 pounds. 81 POUNDS. 81. POUNDS. MY PACKAGE IS BEING OVERNIGHTED ACROSS 8 SHIPMENT ZONES AND IT WEIGHS 81 POUNDS. This is when it hits me that this is something truly special. It’s only 9:30 a.m. and I can’t just ditch to go home to accept this surely gigantic package.
“I call FedEx and ask them to please hold the package at a location between work and my house and plan to collect it later that afternoon. I feign competence for the next 7 hours, confiding in one of my co-workers that, OMG, maybe my package is from… A CELEBRITY!
“There is a lot of speculation flying over text with my husband. At the work holiday party, I bowl a respectable 114; it’s my lucky day! I let slip to a few more co-workers that something insane may be about to happen and that I’ll text them later once I’m certain.”
She lost no time getting to FedEx immediately after the work shenanigans were over. When she checked in with the clerk, her suspicions were confirmed.
“OH MY GOD!” the clerk said, according to Shelby. “You’re the BILL GATES package!!!!!! We’ve been waiting for you all day. Is this really from Bill Gates, or is it a hoax? Grab a cart because you’re going to need it.”
The careful attention to detail displayed by Gates started from the moment the giant box came out into the pickup area. This was the 95th Reddit gift exchange that Shelby/szor had participated in, so “#95” was written on each side of the box.
The package was too big for Shelby to move. It was too big for her car. It was too big for her husband’s car. So she was left with no other option but to open the box and carry the gifts, one by one, to her vehicle.
“I open the box and am immediately struck by a package that is literally lit up with a strand of fairy lights. Wow! I see the infamous Bill Gates letter placard and photo and my stomach flips. THIS JUST HAPPENED.”
Once she got home with her haul, she noticed the presents were specifically wrapped with paper relevant to the gifts. And there were a lot of those.
She listed all the items that came in that 81-pound box, which included a hammock, a Harry-Potter-themed Santa hat, a handmade Zelda quilt, an assortment of candy, cat toys for her cat, books, intricate LEGO sets, Twin Peaks memorabilia and so much more.
Shelby also revealed that this gift meant so much more than it seemed, as this had been a rough year for her and Christmas just hadn’t felt the same.
“Bill Gates,” she wrote, “you are a blessing. This year has been a complete rollercoaster of emotions for me; in March, I lost my mother completely unexpectedly only 10 days before my destination wedding.”
Raise your hand if matching with Bill Gates for #RedditGifts Secret Santa is a life goal. ?♀️Just when she needed it most, one lucky giftee (u/szor) struck Secret Santa gold & was blessed with the Christmas of a lifetime. Well done, @BillGates. https://t.co/pZelK3ao9v pic.twitter.com/RY4DrKHU6g
— Reddit (@reddit) December 21, 2019
“It has been hard to drum up holiday spirit this year, and this has been a taser of Christmas cheer. I have felt like I’ve been on another planet the past few days and I still cannot believe how lucky/cool/honored/all the adjectives I am to have had someone craft such a special and personal set of gifts just for little ol’ me. And your donation to The American Heart Association in my mom’s memory is the most special gift of all. It means more to me than I can express.”
“Raise your hand if matching with Bill Gates for #RedditGifts Secret Santa is a life goal,” Reddit tweeted. “Just when she needed it most, one lucky giftee (u/szor) struck Secret Santa gold & was blessed with the Christmas of a lifetime. Well done, @BillGates.”
To read the entire hilarious post in Shelby’s own words, check it out here. And maybe consider joining in next year — you never know what might happen.
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