Greek Baker Gives Job to 12-Year-Old Thief

A Greek baker, named Giannis Vitsaras, gave a twelve year old boy who tried to steal from him a job rather than a punishment. Twenty-five years later, the boy, who is now fully grown, returned to thank his mentor and ex boss.

Greek baker gives job to a would-be thief

Vitsaras was invited on to MEGA TV, a Greek television channel, on Tuesday to tell his story involving a then 12-year-old boy which occurred 25 years ago in Heraklion, on the island of Crete.

The Greek baker caught the boy trying to steal from his store and decided, rather than chastising him, to have an honest conversation. He did not call the police or scream at him; instead, he chose to tell him calmly that stealing would likely impact him in a negative way and that it was not the right path for a young boy of his age to go down.

He told the boy to come work for him at the bakery instead whenever he had free time, and so he did: according to Vitsaras’ memory, the boy came to work for three whole summers when he did not have school. This allowed him to make an honest living and likely changed his life.

25 years later: the boy has learnt from his mistakes

“At one point his family moved and I lost him for years. Yesterday, the child, now a 37-year-old man, came and found me. He thanked me and told me that in that moment, in the way I dealt with it, I showed him the right way of life. He graduated from university and he started a family,” Vitsaras outlined emotionally.

“After 25 years, he came to find me and to thank me for the path he set and the stimuli I gave him. He is 37 years old today, he has graduated from a computer science university and has 2 children,” he elaborated to MEGA TV.

The Greek baker remained humble however, insisting that he was the one that owed the twelve year old boy a thank you. He would want to thank him for actually taking the opportunity he was given, listening to his elders and changing his own life.

“This is what we have to do when we see a child with difficulties: we must protect it,” said Vitsaras, staying modest and making it clear that he believes that anyone could have done what he did.

“He came to give me a big thank you, but it’s actually I who owes him one,” concluded Vitsaras.

Uplifting stories like these never fail to remind people what one good deed can mean to someone and how these small acts of kindness can multiply over time.

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