Police, who had two small children with them, were stopped when they left the store.
Lima takes one of the women aside so they can talk about what happened without the children hearing it. Store employees kept the kids busy so they would not know what was going on.
“The woman I spoke to explained that she was working but the mother of the children was not working and had some other family issues going on, and that what she was taking was Christmas dinner for the children,” Lima told WJAR.
He looks at the receipt to see what the women are planning to buy and sees that they are only getting food.
“Obviously this family was in need and I can not imagine having to make the decision to go to Stop & Shop and just pay for what I can afford – or do I go there to take things for Christmas dinner for the children? ” Lima told WJAR.
He served them with a notice not to enter, but did not file any complaints, police said.
“They were very grateful, they were very shocked. I’m sure many people in the same situation would think there would be a different outcome, and maybe they would be arrested or have to go to court. “
Lima bought a $ 250 gift card for the women so they could buy their groceries at another store.