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Good Samaritan pays for customers' power bills

STOCKBRIDGE, Ga. — A Henry County good Samaritan paid the power bills of more than a dozen customers earlier this week at Georgia Power's Stockbridge office.

Channel 2's Diana Davis found out before his good deeds were finished, the anonymous man paid more than $1,500 cash to help complete strangers in need.

Monday, a customer at the office heard another in line tell the clerk he couldn't afford to pay his long overdue bill.

It's a hardship longtime Georgia Power clerk Glenice Harris told Davis she hears often, especially during the last few years.

"The bill was about $230-something. He said, 'I just don't have the money right now,'" Harris said.

The man told Harris that he'd just waited hours in line with hundreds of others in Clayton County, hoping to qualify for an assistance program that would have helped him pay his power bill, but his appointment was days away.

When the good Samaritan heard the story, he dug into his pocket and paid the entire bill. Both clerks told Davis they'll never forget it.

"He really was like an angel sent. It's like he just dropped from the sky," clerk Athena Brewer said.

The good Samaritan's good works didn't stop. He continued to pay all or part of the bills for other customers in each clerk's line.

"He just ended up standing in between the two of us and just helping people. You know, 'How much is their bill? How much is this bill? How much is their bill?'" Brewer said.

The payments ranged from $100 to $300.

Harris told Davis when the man heard that one woman's power was cut off, he paid her entire bill to get the lights back on.

Harris said he then gave her more cash to feed her children.

"And I could tell it was spontaneous and he was smiling, and people were like, 'I can't believe this.' They actually started taking pictures with this guy," Harris said

Each of the Georgia Power clerks has worked for the utility company for at least 13 years. They said they regularly hear hard-luck stories, including the good Samaritan's.

They said they met him earlier this year. He was in financial trouble himself, a once-homeless disabled vet.

Harris choked back tears as she talked about the man.

"And for him to be able to be where he is now, to be able to help somebody, oh my God, it was amazing. He was just like, just giving, you know?" Harris said.

The story about the good Samaritan has going viral. Customers struggling to pay their own bills told Davis they were overwhelmed. So were both Georgia Power employees.

"There is really a God and that he does send people to help others that are in need," Harris said.

Both women told Davis they believe the man's actions remind them that in this life, you can never tell when a blessing will come.

Georgia Power says about 4 percent of its customers are behind on their bills.

Project SHARE can help. Each month, Georgia Power customers can check off a spot on their own bill and make a donation to others in need.

Georgia Power will match the donation dollar-for-dollar. Click on this link for more information on Project SHARE.

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