When Danny Wakefield bought a sunflower to put on the windshield of a woman he had a crush on, he had no idea what a difference it would make in the life of a woman. That woman, however, wasn’t the one that he had bought the flower for.

After deciding that putting the sunflower on his crush’s windshield might come across too strongly, he decided to give it to someone as a surprise to brighten their day. He wasn’t sure who that person would be, but he hoped it would put a smile on their face.

He decided to take the flower and go sit in the local coffee shop. Usually he drove through for his morning java, but decided to take some time inside to see if he could find the perfect person to surprise with the sunflower.

One look at the woman across the shop, and Danny knew she needed the flower. He didn’t know why he was drawn to her, but she had tears streaming down her face as she read a book at her table. He says it was like the sunflower had a magnet in it and was screaming to be given to her.

Danny slowly walked up to the table and said, “I have this sunflower that I was hoping to give to someone special and that someone I had in mind didn’t work out, but I can feel that you’re special too, so I want you to have it.”

He had no idea the overwhelming response the woman would have to his simple gesture. She immediately sprung to her feet and enveloped him in her arms. It wasn’t just her actions that surprised Danny, it was what she said next that really caught him off guard.

She explained that her fiance had just died and on their first date, and periodically since, he’d given her sunflowers and told her that she was the light of his life. She told Danny that his gift was like her fiance telling her that she will always be the light of his life even though he’s not by her side anymore.

Danny took to Facebook to share his story. “I’m shaken, awaken, and feeling raw,” he said. “You never know how much a simple gesture of giving someone a $5 flower will change their life as well as yours. Life is about giving and being of service to others.”

He has since issued a challenge to everyone that might come across his story. It is called the #sunflowerchallenge and challenges everyone to give a sunflower to someone they don’t know. He says we should all find a way to make someone’s life a little bright each day and to be of service. He says you never know what kind of impact you can have on someone.