There are those times in life when a good deed can make a profound world of difference.
Sherwood Park resident Deborah Day set out for Calgary earlier this month to visit a seriously ill relative, when her vehicle suddenly started to falter as she neared Ponoka.
"We were driving to Calgary to see a family member, and we weren't sure what his last day would be," said Day.
"I was on cruise control, and the (speed) just kept going down, so I pulled off at the next exit which happened to be Ponoka. I barely made it to the Fountain Tire lot - I was only going about 30/km per hour when I got there."
Staff found that they needed a particular part - and it would have had to be delivered from Red Deer. That meant what could be hours of waiting.
"So then we were looking into renting a car, or taking a bus."
Neither option was available.
"And then Colin (Zimmer) came up and said, 'Why don't you take my vehicle, go see your family member, and we will get your car fixed for you while you have your visit'.
"I was speechless. Even now, it still blows my mind that someone would do that. I'm don't know that I would even think to do that! I'm a kind person, but I don't know that it would cross my mind to do it. It was unbelievable - really unbelievable.
"I'm fortunate enough to encounter amazing people, but this was above and beyond - 100 per cent," she added.
For Zimmer, who owns and manages the shop, he was just really happy that he could help Day out in making such a personally important trip.
"We realized we were going to need some parts to further diagnose it, but we wouldn't have been able to get them in until later in the day," he said.
"She was really thankful - they really needed to get there, and so it was the least that we could do," he added.
"I've been in that situation where I've had to go and say good-bye to a loved one, so I understand how important that is."
In the meantime, Day is enjoying spreading the word about what Zimmer did for her.
"People are amazing, and I love sharing the story," she said, again emphasizing how grateful she was - and is - for Zimmer's act of such generosity and thoughtfulness.
"Everyone I tell this to is just shocked!"
