On Monday evening, Dec. 22, I checked in to the Monongahela Valley Hospital Emergency room with severe stomach pains. I was assured that 75 percent of the cases coming in that evening were from the stomach flu. Well, I was in the 25 percent.

On Christmas Eve, as I lay recuperating from an emergency appendectomy, my thoughts lay with food. I had not had anything solid in over two days and had just been allowed liquids that afternoon. Visions of sugarplums, among other things, were dancing in my head.

One of those things: pizza.

Not surprisingly, it was not part of the late dinner tray that night. My husband sprinted from my hospital room on a quest to satisfy my craving.

He sadly returned empty-handed. I told him that I would be fine without it and he didn't need to start looking for local pizza shops.

About a half hour later, a nurse (not mine) stopped in to ask if I was still hungry for pizza. My mouth began to water. She asked if two or three pieces would be sufficient, and said she would be back. "Word spreads fast in the Valley," I said to my husband. He just smiled.

Well, true to her word, my smiling angel of mercy appeared in the doorway once more that night, asking if I was still hungry for pizza. She was holding a pizza box containing a full medium pizza and three plates, having tracked down an employee party on the floor above us.

I did not get the nurse's name, but I want to thank her and the wonderful staff at Monongahela Valley Hospital. Another nurse named Rich personally made a large pot of caffeinated coffee to alleviate my caffeine withdrawal headache (which happened to be more painful than the surgery).

I know my family and I will remember the Christmas Eve of 2008 as one of warmth and compassion from the extra efforts of comfort and kindness that we received that evening at Monongahela Valley Hospital.

-- MARY FINE, Forward

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Last Friday turned into a filthy day weather-wise, with teeming rain that caused ponds of water everywhere. And there I was, newspaper on head, sans umbrella, standing at the corner of Centre and South Aiken avenues, attempting to cross the street to catch a 71A bus.

I felt a tap on my shoulder and looked up into the gloriously handsome face of a young man with deep brown eyes and an umbrella.

"Ma'am, do you want this?" he asked, meaning the umbrella.

"Certainly," I replied, "I'd be crazy not to. But what about you?"

"I'm going in here," he answered, pointing to the Coronado Apartments.

"But you'll be coming out."

He replied, "That's OK," handed me the umbrella and walked away.

My hero, knight in shining armor, frog prince: Thank you from the bottom of my 73-year-old heart.

-- LUCRETIA BIORDI ELSON, Squirrel Hill

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On Oct. 26, I went to get gas at Sheetz on Ford City hilltop. Since I don't like to use my credit card at the pump, I went inside to prepay for $20 worth of gas. The clerk punched that amount to the pump, and I went back out to get the gas, but nothing came out.

I tried again -- nothing.

I went in to tell the clerk and as we were talking, a man walked in and said, "I just got $20 worth of free gas at pump No. 8."

It turned out that my $20 had been credited to his pump, which was No. 7 and located behind mine.

When we all realized this, he gave the clerk $20 and told him, "Here, I'll pay for her gas."

As we walked out, I thanked the man for his honesty and asked his name.

George, you so easily could have driven off with $20 worth of free gas and no one would have known. And yes, honesty is its own reward, but, George, I do hope that you read this, and see how people like you make this world a better place. Thanks again.

-- E.M. CAPIZZI, Ford City

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I had a frightening experience a couple of months ago when I was in West Virginia at Mountaineer Racetrack & Casino. Toward the end of the day, I lost a little green money purse with $400 in it.

I went to the counter and spoke to a very sweet man, who in turn took me to the lost-and-found desk. The person there called a security officer, who took my name and phone number. He said if anyone turned it in, someone would call my name over the loudspeaker.

Within an hour, my name was called. I returned to the lost-and-found desk. The gentleman asked me the color of the little money purse and, after I said "green," he handed it to me.

I was so nervous and grateful, I tipped the cashier and the lost-and-found gentleman. They told me one of the cleaning ladies had found it and returned it, but they didn't tell me her name.

I anxiously opened it up: Inside was my $400! I could not believe it.

My bus left for home an hour later. I left really feeling like I had hit it lucky.

-- SISSY ABROMOVITZ, Baldwin Borough

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I would like to acknowledge Walter, the proprietor of Walter's Automotive in Friendship, for his kind deeds.

On Friday, Oct. 17, as I was riding along, my car began to ride a little bumpy. I thought it was the unevenness of the pavement, but as I continued to drive, the car seemed to ride even bumpier.

I pulled over and found that my tire was going flat.

I made a U-turn to return to a nearby gas station. I drove very slowly and just made it to the driveway of the gas station, by which time my car was making a terrible rubbing sound.

I got out and saw that the tire had come off the rim. I called my brother, who came and took the tire off. Walter's shop was not too far, so I rolled the tire down the street as my brother watched.

Walter took the tire and tested it, but could find nothing wrong. He filled the tire and offered to ride me back to the car, then put the tire back on my car as my brother watched and talked on his cell phone. Walter then suggested I return to the shop to clean my hands.

Walter's extended kindness -- he went the extra mile -- really touched my heart and answered my prayer. He never even charged me a fee.

Walter, thank you for taking the time from your busy day to help me. God bless.

-- SANDRA TALLEY, East Liberty

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Early on the morning of Monday, Dec. 22, I was on driving down Route 65 on my way to work when I had a bad tire blowout. It was bitterly cold that morning. I called AAA but was not getting a response right away. No one was stopping to assist me and I had no one else to call for help.

A gentleman driving the other way on 65 noticed my situation, turned completely around and came back to help me. He changed the tire for me in the very cold morning.

After he changed my tire, he gave me a big hug and wished me a Merry Christmas.

I did not get his name; all I know is that he said he lives in Quaker Valley. He mentioned that he was a single father and all his children were girls. I cannot express how much gratitude I have for this wonderful person and express how blessed his girls are to have such a great dad.

-- PAMELA DORSETT, Ambridge

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I'm a college student, going to school full time, and also working two jobs. I work every Sunday so I rarely get to see my beloved Pittsburgh Steelers play.

On Sunday Dec. 7, the day the Steelers played the Dallas Cowboys at home, I had somehow ended up with a day off at my Eat'n Park job. I was so excited at the prospect of getting to watch the game, not just get updates on the score. I had a number of errands to do, and was in a rush to get home for kickoff.

My last stop was Giant Eagle. As I went through the self-checkout, I was hurrying because the game had already started. I paid, collected my bags and dashed home.

During the second quarter, I went to get something out of my purse -- and it was nowhere to be found. I realized that I had left it at the checkout. It had my money, cards, iPod and cell phone. I was extremely upset. I called the Giant Eagle, but the woman at customer service knew nothing.

Tension filled the air. And the Steelers were not winning.

And then, during the fourth quarter, the doorbell rang.

I opened the door and there was a woman -- holding my bag. She explained that she had found it at the checkout, but there was no one at customer service at the time. So she looked at my driver's license, saw the address and decided to bring it to me. Everything was there -- my iPod, phone, and all my money.

I thanked her a million times, but forgot to get her name. I hope she reads this. Thank you so much for helping to make my Sunday off wonderful on all accounts. (Remember, the Steelers won, 20-13, in a thrilling fourth-quarter comeback.)

-- MAUREEN LYDON, Bethel Park