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Two Separate Acts of Kindness Demonstrate the Best of Humanity in Peru

Categories: Latin America, Peru, Citizen Media, Good News
Imagen en Flickr del usuario ORAZ Studio (CC BY-NC 2.0).

Wallet. Image on Flickr by user smalljude [1] (CC BY-NC 2.0).

A boy's honesty and a neighborhood's gratitude are two pieces of good news freshening up summer in Lima, where things are heating up not only because of the weather phenomenon El Niño [2], but also because of the country's ongoing presidential campaign.

On January 14, a Facebook user shared [3] what happened at Cerro Azul beach, located 120 kilometers south of the Peruvian capital:

[…] yendo hacia la playa se me cayó la billetera, con efectivo documentos y tarjetas.
Yo no tenía ni idea que se me había caído hasta que Brando llegó corriendo a decirme: “toma se te cayó”.
Él es Brando uno de los tantos niños que cuida carros en la playa de Cerro Azul.

- Les quiero pedir un favor enorme, cada vez que vengan búsquenlo para que sea el el que les cuide el carro, que sepa que cuando uno obra bien, la vida te gratifica.
Y si está en sus posibilidades, un almuercito estoy seguro que le caería muy bien! Jaja

Gracias Brando, porque sin saberlo no solo me devolvías una billetera…me devolvías la ilusión!!!

[…] going to the beach, I dropped my wallet full of cash, documents and [credit] cards.
I hadn't the slightest idea that my wallet had dropped until Brando came running and told me, “Here, you dropped this”.
Brando is one of many children that take care of cars at Cerro Azul beach.

- I want to ask you a huge favor, every time you come, look for him, so he might be the one who takes care of your car, so he may know that when you do good deeds, life rewards you.
And if you can afford it, I'm sure he'd love a lunch! Haha

Thanks, Brando, because without knowing you not only returned my wallet to me… you returned my hope!!!

The story of Brando's good deed made its way to other websites [4], which praised [5] his honesty and urged other people to share the tale to “promote good values”.

Example! Peruvian boy who takes cares of cars is trending on social media due to his good deed.

One hashtag, #oBrandobien, made a play on words of Brando's name and the phrase obrar bien, meaning “to do good”:

#oBrandobien [Brando doing good] Brando for PRESIDENT!

Thanks, Brando, because without knowing you weren't just returning a wallet… you were returning hope to the country!!

I pay my respect to BRANDON [sic], the boy who returned a wallet full of money and cards in Cerro Azul. An example politicians should follow today.

On January 16 in Puente Piedra, on the other side of Lima, a fire destroyed [15] a cardboard warehouse. For hours, more than 40 firefighters units fought the flames until they were able to contain them and put them out. Their hard work lasted from mid-afternoon until well into the night.

Once the fire was under control, 15 families that live in the affected area decided to show their gratitude to the almost 200 firefighters who responded to the emergency, preparing food for everybody.

Great news! They deserved it =)

Puente Piedra: This is how firefighters were thanked after the fire.

An example to be followed – Puente Piedra: This is how neighbors thanked the firefighters after the blaze.

Fire consumes recycled paper warehouse in Puente Piedra.

Firefighters are especially appreciated in Peru, as they are all volunteers [27]:

Los llamados hombres de rojo previenen, controlan y extinguen incendios, realizan acciones de atención en accidentes vehiculares y emergencias, rescatan vidas expuestas a peligro de manera voluntaria, es decir, sus servicios no son remunerados.

The so called “men in red” prevent, control and put out fires, assist with car accidents and emergencies, and rescue those in danger, all on a voluntarily basis, meaning they don't receive any payment for their services.