A friendly-spirited Louisiana woman with a healthy work ethic for her job at Walmart, who sometimes walks six miles to her job won’t have to worry about the long trek any longer now.
According to New Orleans station WWL, Anita’s Singleton, 52, has been an employee of the big box store for three years now, and she is known for her enthusiasm about her job. “We share a bit of ourselves with each other every day and that is a blessing,” she said. “But without transportation, at least once a week, she would walk the long distance from her home to the store.
“Just because I don’t have a vehicle is no excuse for me not to show up at work,” she said.
However, a chance encounter with Officer Bradley Peck of the Slidell Police Department would change Singleton’s luck – and commute to work- forever. Recently during his own ride home after work around 5:30am, the off-duty cop spotted Singleton in the wee hours of the morning, walking to Walmart. It was then that Officer Peck would find out how far she was traveling, and offer her a ride.
After learning Singleton’s story, the cop was compelled to recap his moments with the employee, an excerpt of which was shared by the department’s official Facebook page:
“I learned that [Anita] is 52 years old and had as much energy as my two year old. ‘I thank God everyday when I put my key in the door’ she told me…. She told me when she can’t get a ride she has to do what she has to do.”
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It appears Singleton’s story soon went viral, and caught the attention of local Chevrolet dealership owner Matt Bowers, who felt inspired to help Singleton out.
Baton Rouge newspaper The Advocate reported that during an interview, Bowers stated, “Well, logically, I’m a car dealer, and I made the decision that the right thing to do for the community was to give Anita Singleton a car.”
On Wednesday, Peck picked the unsuspecting Singleton up from work, and drove her to the Chevy dealership, where she was presented with her choice between two cars, a white Chevrolet Captiva and a red Traverse. Singleton ended up going with the Captiva.
The Advocate also reports that Bowers plans to cover all accompanying expenses for Singleton, including insurance, taxes and registration bills.
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