Kindness. It’s a word we hear often, and we do our best to follow through as often as possible.

Extending compassion towards our loved ones and strangers doesn’t need to be done through grand actions, either.

It can be as simple as giving a warm smile, opening a door for someone, or holding your tongue when you feel the urge to react negatively.

It’s grace, patience, and gentleness.

It opens up possibilities for the world to heal.

Jodi and Dawn Gieber, a married couple from Arkansas, crossed paths with a homeless man named James.

James has been living in the streets for over a decade, and he didn’t have such a good reputation with the residents of the place.

For most people, James was unfriendly.

Dawn and Jodi thought otherwise. James wasn’t a bad person. He was just hungry.

The couple would always see him on their way to work, and they knew he wasn’t the terrible man people made him out to be.

The couple felt the urge to reach out. Dawn told KARK:

“He was cold. He was eating out of dumpsters. James just had no resources, and my husband and I just felt that there was something we needed to do to help him.”

On her way to work one morning, Dawn stopped to talk to James.

She asked him how he ended up homeless, and he admitted going down a destructive path and losing contact with his family.

James also shared how he was clueless about how to begin searching for them. This was Dawn’s cue.

When she went home that day, she told her husband about the exchange.

Then, they started their work online: searching on Google, calling people, and reaching out through email and social media.

Frankly, the couple wasn’t expecting any leads.

But right before Thanksgiving, they received a reply from a woman who said she was James’ niece, and they had assumed he passed away after they couldn’t find him.

Dawn didn’t think twice about telling the niece that James had been searching for them all these years.

James’ family loved him.

They kept searching for him, and they assumed the worst when they couldn’t locate him.

This was the first thing Dawn explained to the homeless man – that he was loved and cared for.

Dawn and Jodi made arrangements to assure the niece that they were truthful in all they told.

First, it was for James to speak to his family over the phone finally.

James became emotional throughout the conversation, making the couple realize that James and his family needed a proper reunion.

But outstanding warrants for the homeless man stood in the way.

Determined to help, Dawn bravely stood before the court and explained James’ situation, followed by an offer to pay off the warrants.

This resulted in the dismissal of all charges and, finally, the case’s closure.

Before setting off on a 600-mile road trip to Illinois, Dawn and Jodi helped James prepare by buying him a set of clothes and shoes.

It was more than James ever expected from the compassionate couple.

When they arrived, Dawn knew she had to record the emotional reunion.

James’ brother met him with a tight hug while his niece began to sob as they held each other.

Now that they were finally together again, there was no returning to James’ old life.

He currently lives with his sister in Wisconsin, and the family continues to send Dawn and Jodi photos of James living a happier life.

Watch how an act of kindness brought James and his family together again in the video below!

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Source: YouTube – THV11, FaithPot, KARK