Linda and Bob Buckley of Casselberry FL decided to decorate their yard with an inflatable Santa for the first time since their last one was stolen years ago. They tell Channel 13 Orlando that they decided since 2020 was so rough for for so many that they’d put one up again to try and brighten spirits. This time, though, they anchored it down with reinforcements. Their neighbors appreciated the effort and would often honk when they saw them outside or just tell them if they ran into them.
Then one morning Linda looked out and said 'Oh, not again,'” said Linda. “And yeah it was again, Santa was gone.” This time the thief stole more than their yard decorations, they stole the Buckley's Christmas spirit. The Buckley's posted about it on social media and about an hour later, their doorbell rang. Scott and Tami Thomas, who had never met the Buckley's before, saw their post in a neighborhood social media group and came by with a surprise - a Santa even bigger than the last one.
“I literally couldn’t even speak to them because I burst into tears,” Linda says. And to make it even more touching? The Thomas's both just recovered from COVID and Scott lost his job during the pandemic, but they’re still spreading positivity. “Compassion comes from where we were raised, and we like to just put everything aside and make sure a person’s day is put back up to a brighter side,” Scott says.