If you’ve lost faith in the kindness of strangers, this story is for you!

One of our riders, Kajal, shared with us a heartwarming story of an elderly lady sharing kindness and “hugs” on a recent transit trip.

I was on the 4 bus on Tuesday around 1pm when a lovely old lady with a walker came and sat beside me. She struck up a conversation with a gentleman sitting across from him who was offering his seat up for her so she could be more comfortable. Refusing, she in turn responded that she wanted to give him something.  

Seeing his confused look, she pulled out a stack of these little cards with “hug” expressed in bold red letters. Laughing, she began distributing cards to everyone on the bus. Soon, everyone on the bus had received a hug save for me. 

When she saw me sitting beside her laughing, she exclaimed “did you get a hug? You didn’t! You have to holler at me, I’m 92 years old so I don’t hear very well!” and with a beautiful smile, she passed a card to me.  

As I exited the bus, I could hear her spreading joy among strangers who felt like familiar friends. Days like these I appreciate Vancouver more and more. 

“Anne” has been spotted riding the number 004 – POWELL/DOWNTOWN/UBC, 020 – VICTORIA/DOWNTOWN, and at the SeaBus.

Have you seen Anne the hugs lady? We want to catch up with her!

If you’ve seen Anne, or received a “hug” of your own, please share the details below in the comments section!

Author: Sarah Kertcher