NYC Officer Showcases Christmas Spirit by Gifting Homeless Man a ‘Special’ Pair of Socks

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A New York City officer was caught acting out the Christmas spirit.

NYPD Transit Bureau’s Anti-Terrorism Unit officer, Frank Rendina, noticed a homeless man Ron Brown fervently digging through a trash can while at Grand Central station.

In response, officer Rendina approached the 70-year-old homeless man to find out what he was doing. Brown told the officer he was searching for special socks to help with his diabetes, a local ABC News affiliate reported.

To the surprise of onlookers, who went unnoticed by Brown and Rendina, the officer offered to purchase the socks he needed as a Christmas gift.

Joshua Lagan witnessed the act of kindness last Friday and decided to share the story to his Facebook page.

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“When I saw two cops surround a homeless man in grand central today,” Lagan wrote, “I thought I knew exactly what would happen. I couldn’t have been more wrong.”

“I was waiting for my train in Grand Central this morning when I saw this homeless man open the trash can, and then start to sort through it. As New Yorkers are conditioned to do, we turned our backs and let him continue picking through the trash looking for cans to redeem. This is incredibly common in NYC, so common in fact…”

The post has received over 3,000 shares and even caught the eyes of the Police Commissioner James O’Neil, who shared his admiration and appreciation for the officers and city residents.

In response to all of the acknowledgement, Redina has been taken aback.

“It was just being nice to someone that needed something, it wasn’t anything outstanding, it was a couple of bucks,” he explained.

Stressing that, “it wasn’t anything outrageous. It was someone who needed something and couldn’t afford it. I was able to do it.”

The story has even attracted the attention of actor Hugh Jackman, who praised the officer from his twitter account on Wednesday.