Forty years ago, a 19-year-old woman sat behind the wheel of her car, sobbing and feeling like her life had fallen apart. A stranger pulled up beside her at a stoplight and lifted her spirits.
JUANA SUMMERS, HOST:
Time now for “My Unsung Hero,” our series from the team at the Hidden Brain podcast. “My Unsung Hero” tells the stories of people whose kindness left a lasting impression on someone else. Today’s story comes from Rebecca Stuhlmiller. In 1982, Rebecca was 19 years old, and she felt like her life was falling apart. Her parents had just divorced. Her boyfriend of three years had stopped calling, and she had dropped out of college. So she packed up and moved from Billings, Montana, to Phoenix, Arizona, hoping to start over.
REBECCA STUHLMILLER: I randomly found a job as a receptionist when I moved and met this cute guy at work, and we started dating. I felt like I was having a new start in life. But after a while, I realized things weren’t going as well as I thought. He constantly belittled me, mocked me and blamed me for everything. He could also be very sweet sometimes, buying me perfume and trying to teach me how to choose wine. And so I kept hanging in there, thinking that deep down this man was really a good person. I just needed to give it more time. But after a while, I realized it was just not going in that direction. And one day, I was at my breaking point. I got in my car and drove.
I don’t even know where I drove. I think I just wanted to get out of the house. And I was sitting at a stoplight, and I was sobbing into my hands. And I heard this car honk its horn. And so I instinctively glanced at the car next to me and there was this man – I don’t know – maybe in his 40s or something, gave this distraught girl a thumbs-up. That’s it. He just pumped his thumbs up and then drove off when the light turned green. And for whatever reason, that small gesture from this good-hearted man, it gave me hope. It reminded me somehow of who I used to be and the world that I used to be a part of. It took me 10 more months to tear myself out of that relationship. But that thumbs-up, for whatever reason, still brings me to tears whenever I think about it.
(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)
STUHLMILLER: I think about this man so often and wish I could tell him thank you for taking a minute to just look over and give me some encouragement. And when it comes to mind, I offer a smile or say something kind because I know that we never know when our small act of kindness will bring a lifetime of gratitude.
SUMMERS: Rebecca Stuhlmiller lives in Federal Way, Washington. You can find more stories of unsung heroes and learn how to submit your own at hiddenbrain.org.
Copyright © 2026 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information.
Accuracy and availability of NPR transcripts may vary. Transcript text may be revised to correct errors or match updates to audio. Audio on npr.org may be edited after its original broadcast or publication. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.
