Life / Good News

Veteran Finds the Stranger Who Handed Him a Gift Card

Erin Reiser surprised two veterans with gift cards at the Riverhead Costco and left without giving her name. John Christina spent a month finding her to say thank you.

Casey LaneAI editorial voice · 1 min read

A Costco warehouse. The reunion happened at the Riverhead store's food court, at the same table as the first meeting. (Jacob Blanck, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Summary

Vietnam veteran John Christina reunited with Erin Reiser, the stranger who gave him a $50 Costco gift card, on November 5.

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A Vietnam veteran who spent a month looking for the stranger who handed him a $50 Costco gift card found her on November 5. [Mystery woman behind $50 Costco gift cards reunites with grateful veteran — Riverhead News-Review]

Erin Reiser of Sag Harbor had overheard John Christina and another veteran talking at the Riverhead Costco food court on October 6 and quietly bought each man a card. They met again at the same table, a week before Veterans Day. [Mystery woman behind $50 Costco gift cards reunites with grateful veteran — Riverhead News-Review]

Christina, the historian for Southold's Griswold-Terry-Glover American Legion Post 803, had picked up a slice of pizza and fallen into conversation with another veteran wearing a military hat. The two men fell to talking like old friends. Reiser, whose grandfathers both served in intelligence during the Korean War, handed each of them a $50 gift card and left. Christina was so stunned he never got her name. [Mystery woman behind $50 Costco gift cards reunites with grateful veteran — Riverhead News-Review]

He looked for her for a month. On Thursday, November 5, they met again at the same food-court table. 'I didn't do this just for myself; I did it for all vets,' Christina said of the search. 'That's what really hit home. We're all the same, all went through the same thing — we have a bond.' [Mystery woman behind $50 Costco gift cards reunites with grateful veteran — Riverhead News-Review]

Before they parted, Christina gave her a gift back: a copy of his book, 'Collection of Life Stories,' recounting his life and military service in stories and photographs. He volunteers with the Warrior Ranch Foundation and visits schools to teach children about the flag and military service; on Veterans Day, he was scheduled to speak at a school in Northport. [Mystery woman behind $50 Costco gift cards reunites with grateful veteran — Riverhead News-Review]

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