When we are given the opportunity to make a positive difference in someone’s life, it is very important that we take it. That’s exactly the position that Denny Kukich found himself in on a recent flight!

Denny had just placed his suitcase into the overhead luggage compartment and settled into his seat when a group of soldiers boarded the flight and sat nearby.

“Where are you headed?” Denny asked one of the soldiers. He responded that they were going to Petawawa and would be in special training for two weeks before being shipped off to Afghanistan for deployment.

One hour into the flight, a flight attendant announced that sack lunches were available to all passengers for $5. The flight was going to be a long one, so Denny bought one for himself. He then heard one of the soldiers say that he was not going to buy a lunch for himself.

“That seems like a lot of money for just a sack lunch,” the soldier said. “Probably wouldn’t be worth five bucks. I’ll wait till we get to base.”

When Denny noticed that none of the soldiers bought a lunch, he took matters into his own hands. These soldiers were about to put their lives on the line to protect our freedom, so Denny wanted to give back to them. He walked up to the flight attendant, handed her $50 and instructed her to give each soldier a sack lunch.

“She grabbed my arms and squeezed tightly,” Denny said. “Her eyes wet with tears, she thanked me. ‘My son was a soldier in Iraq; it’s almost like you are doing it for him.'”

The chain of kindness did not stop there! When Denny later headed to the bathroom, a stranger approached him.

“‘I saw what you did. I want to be part of it. Here, take this,'” Denny recalled him saying. “He handed me $25.”

The captain even walked up to Denny in his seat.

“I was a soldier and I was a military pilot. Once, someone bought me a lunch. It was an act of kindness I never forgot,” the captain told him.

As Denny left the plane, the entire plane applauded him, and two strangers gave him $25 each.

“Upon entering the terminal, I saw the soldiers gathering for their trip to the base,” Denny said. “I walked over to them and handed them $75. ‘It will take you some time to reach the base… It will be about time for a sandwich. God Bless You.'”

It’s wonderful to know that there are people who appreciate the sacrifices our soldiers make. God bless our military men and women!