WASHINGTON – Whether it’s a couple hundred dollars or just a few, anonymous donations to strangers can generate a lot of good will.

A Secret Santa recently paid several hundred to close out the layaway accounts for seven families at the Toys R Us store in Sterling, Va.

The Secret Santa announced his generous act with an anonymous email to ABC7 saying he hoped the gesture would inspire more Secret Santas to appear.

Hearing about what happened from WTOP caused some shoppers at the store to gasp. Some waxed nostalgic about the meaning of Christmas. Others reflected upon the need for altruism in our society.

“I love that people do something kind for Christmas. I think it’s great,” says Michelle Meyers of Ashburn.

“I actually paid for someone’s Starbucks this morning, so I’m paying it forward too,” she added laughing.

The cost of Meyers’ Christmas coffee donation she says was “about five bucks.”

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