Kansas Teen Gifted with Work Boots He was Caught Stealing

Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.

Police officers in Roeland Park Kansas near Kansas City put that ancient proverb into practice Thursday when they made a gift out of a pair of work boots a displaced juvenile was trying to steal from a local Walmart.

Roeland Police chief John Morris says officers were called to investigate a case of shoplifting but they soon learned that the boy needed the boots to be able to get work.

So, instead of punishment, the officers headed to the cash register.

After some words of encouragement to find a job, finish school and stay out of trouble, the teen was gifted the same pair of boots he had attempted to steal.

Morris says the teen had tears in his eyes after he was given the boots. He says the story “almost made me cry, too.”