An anonymous 91-year-old Korean War veteran walked straight to the customer service counter at a North Carolina Food Lion and donated $1,500 to the store’s “Holidays Without Hunger” program.
He also donated $500 for 100 pre-packaged meal boxes — also part of the program — which contain enough food for a family of four and are distributed to local food banks.
It was the largest individual donation in the charity’s 17-year history.
“I was completely caught off guard when he handed them to me, and it took me a few seconds to gather my thoughts,” store manager Charles Campbell told CNN. “I finally asked him what his motivation was for this generous gift.”
The veteran told the store manager that he spent two years as a prisoner of war during the Korean War and was rarely fed, bringing him to a dangerously low weight of 90 pounds.
He added that he knew what it was like not to know where or when the next meal would come.
When Campbell asked the 91-year-old veteran if he would like to speak with any media representatives at the store’s corporate office, the veteran replied, “I’m not doing this for any publicity or recognition. I just plain and simple don’t want people to be hungry.”