When Carmen Mendez and her boyfriend went out to dinner, she had no idea that the night would change in a way that would touch her heart for days to come. One simple gesture made the difference to not just her, but another woman as well.

Mendez says that during her dinner she watched a homeless woman outside the restaurant stand beside a trash can and beg people to let her have their leftovers instead of throwing them away. Repeatedly people ignored the woman and threw their leftover food in the trashcan despite the woman’s wishes.

Mendez watched the woman’s sad eyes and promised that if the woman was still there when she was done with her meal that she would feed her. However, when Mendez stepped out of the restaurant, the woman was gone.

She says she was devastated that the woman had already moved on when she heard a soft “can I have your food?” Mendez turned around to the sparkling eyes of the woman who she had hoped to help. Without hesitation, she gave the woman her food.

Even though Mendez had given the woman what she wanted, it didn’t seem like enough, so she invited the woman into the restaurant to buy her a full, hot meal. Mendez explained to the restaurant what she was doing and asked them to allow the woman to stay inside and eat, and they did.

The homeless woman was so touched by the actions of Mendez that it brought her to tears. Grateful for the meal, the woman hugged Mendez tightly and thanked her for her kindness.

Mendez says the woman touched her deep in her heart and the hug felt like none she had ever had before. She says people shouldn’t be so quick to judge the homeless because not all of them are out there due to poor choices.