Stranger Buys $540 In Girl Scout Cookies To Get Troop Out Of Cold

Editor's note: The "good Samaritan" has been arrested on federal drug and racketeering charges. Read the latest.

MAULDIN, SC — It’s been so cold in so many places this winter that people have gone out of their way to make sure their neighbors are cozy and warm. While those frozen in the Midwest — where wind chill temperatures this week are in the single digits below zero — may not not quite relate to South Carolinians’ lament about the cold, they’re still likely to get warm, fuzzy feelings about one man’s gesture toward Girl Scouts trying to sell their cookies out in the cold.

He put down $540 to buy Troop No. 1574’s entire stock of cookies Friday. The benevolent cookie lover, whose identity is a mystery, initially bought $40 worth of cookies, then circled back and bought the entire stock.

Kayla Dillard, who manages cookie sales for the Mauldin, South Carolina, Girl Scout troop, said on Facebook that when he returned, he said, “Pack up all of your cookies. I’m taking them all so y’all can get out of this cold.”

It was about 34 degrees in Mauldin on Friday.

“What an amazing soul,” Dillard posted about the man. She told Yahoo Lifestyle the $540 Girl Scout cookie purchase outside a Bilo grocery store left everyone “in total shock.”

The Girl Scouts did some quick calculations on the cost of the cookies — Thanks a Lots, Caramel deLites, Shortbread, Peanut Butter Patties, Peanut Butter Sandwiches, S’mores, Thin Mints and Lemonades.

She told Yahoo she and the girls are “just thankful,” but they’re not sure who to extend their gratitude to because the man left without giving his name.

“He mentioned he owned several businesses,” Dillard said. “We assume he was going to give the cookies away.”

Dillard’s post on Facebook has been shared at least 8,600 times, but so far, he hasn’t stepped forward.

But those commenting — at least 1,100 comments have been logged so far — are celebrating his $540 gesture of goodwill.

“This is what a real life hero looks like,” one person wrote. “God bless you.”

“This just warms my heart,” wrote another person, a den leader for girls in Cub Scouts. “It really is hard selling that stuff and meeting the quota. … Just made my day.”

Wrote another: “Wow, what a great big heart he has!! Kudos to him for doing such a wonderful thing! That is something they will remember for the rest of their lives!”

See Also: Girl Scout Cookie Money Stolen At Woodbridge Center Mall

And, of course, there were a few light-hearted jokes.

“Very heartwarming but part of me thinks he struggles with a Samoa or Thin Mint addiction,” someone commented.

But not all Girl Scouts have experienced such kindness. Someone stole Girl Scout cookie proceeds — about $500 in cash, plus several checks — from girls who were selling their cookies in Woodbridge, New Jersey, police said.