By Police1 Staff
PAINESVILLE, Ohio — A 9-year-old girl got more than a couple dollars for the lemonade she was selling when an Ohio sheriff’s deputy came by her stand, TODAY reports.
Gabrielle Garcar was selling lemonade to raise money for an electronic tablet to use for school and games. Her family was reportedly tight on money and the fourth grader decided to work for what she wanted.
When Sheriff’s Deputy Zak Ropos stopped for a cup and heard about what Gabrielle was doing, he went home to find his old iPad to donate to her. Upon discovering his old device no longer worked, he went to an electronics store to purchase a brand new one for the girl.
“She’s 9 years old and she’s willing to work for what she wants, and I found that very admirable of her,” Ropos told TODAY. “I knew her lemonade stand wasn’t probably going to bring in enough money for a tablet, but seeing that she was willing to work for what she wanted, I was willing to help her. People have helped me out in my life, so it was kind of like a pay-it-forward type thing.”
Gabrielle’s mother told the sheriff’s deputy that just before he arrived, Gabrielle had offered to give all of her lemonade money to her mom in order to buy gas for their car, the Lake County Sheriff’s Office wrote in a Facebook post.
“When I said, ‘How did your lemonade sale go?’ She goes, ‘Well, I made a few dollars but Mommy’s gas tank was empty so I gave the money to her,’ and that just that made me melt,” Ropos said.
Ropos, confused about his newfound internet fame, told TODAY he works among many generous officers. He said one recently donated $200 to a needy family, and others bought a bike for a boy who needed transportation to soccer practice.
“I really didn’t want all the media attention. I just wanted to see the smile on a little girl’s face and that was worth a million dollars to me, so that’s why I did it,” he told TODAY.