Receiving gifts from your secret Santa is always exciting for people, but how many of you would expect your Secret Santa to be Bill Gates?
A woman from Michigan, USA, was gifted a huge package weighing more than 81 pounds only to find out that her secret Santa was Bill Gates.
As reported by ABC27, “The Microsoft founder joins RedditGifts’ Secret Santa exchange every year.”
In 2019, 33-year-old Shelby from Detroit, Michigan, participated in 95 RedditGifts exchanges and hit the jackpot on Christmas.
“Shelby’s holiday haul from Gates includes plenty of nods to her favorite movies, books, and video games, including a Harry Potter Santa hat and a pair of elaborate Lego building sets, including a giant Hogwarts castle from Harry Potter, and a retired R2D2 puzzle, since the Star Wars droid is her spirit robot, according to Shelby.”
ABC27 reported, “There’s also a handmade quilt depicting scenes from Nintendo’s iconic ‘Legend of Zelda’ video game series, which she believes was custom-made since she can’t find another one like it online. And the crate is packed with tons of ‘Twin Peaks’ memorabilia, including an embroidered L.L. Bean jacket worn by one of the crew members on set between 1990 and 1991, as well as five scripts from the second season.”
Shelby also received a priceless gift – a manuscript of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s masterpiece, including scans of his handwritten notes.
“The Great Gatsby is my favorite novel,” she told Marketwatch. “I had some lines from it in my wedding vows. So this really is a special book to me.”
“I always thought it would be super cool to be matched with him someday, but I never really would have expected this to happen to me,” she added. “The amount was so large that Shelby wasn’t able to fit the box in her car. Instead, she had to open the items individually at the FedEx location to place them in her car.”
The multi-billionaire also sent a donation of an undisclosed amount to the American Heart Association in honor of Shelby’s mother, who passed away in March 2019.
“I was really touched by it. It was really thoughtful,” said Shelby. “I had mentioned in my Reddit gift questionnaire that my mom had passed away, but I hadn’t mentioned the AHA at all.”
The package also included a photograph of Gates signing a letter for Shelby as proof.
The text in the letter read, “I know no gift will ever make up for losing someone so important to you. I was very sorry to hear about your mom and I’ve made a donation to the American Heart Association in her memory. I hope you and your family find your new normal this holiday season.”
There were a few boxes of Oreos, cat treats, and a hammock in her gift package.
Reddit shared the beautiful gesture of the philanthropist on Twitter with photos of Shelby opening her gifts. The tweet read, “Raise your hand if matching with Bill Gates for #RedditGifts Secret Santa is a life goal. Just when she needed it most, one lucky giftee (u/szor) struck Secret Santa gold & was blessed with the Christmas of a lifetime. Well done, Bill Gates.”
What are your thoughts on this beautiful story? Let us know in the comments.
Sources: ABC27 – Twitter – Marketwatch
