Joyce Rhinehart was out to get ice cream with her grandson one day, when she spotted a family sitting on a bench nearby. They too were enjoying ice cream, and Joyce claimed she felt a sudden compulsion to take their photo…

As Joyce explained in a later Facebook post: “On June 8th I was at Rita’s Italian Ice with my grandson Blake treating him after his tennis lesson. As we were about to leave, there was this sweet family all sitting together on one of the benches enjoying a custard cone. Something urged me to ask them if I could take their picture…”

Joyce ended up doing just that, before the two families went their separate ways. It was a pleasant, heartwarming exchange like any other, and that would have been that.

Sadly, though, fate had other ideas.

Joyce’s post continued: “I took this picture below and then handed my phone to the young daughter and told her to go ahead and text the picture to their cell phone.

Left to take Blake home and explained to him how I have done this before when I see cute family moments of total strangers so they can have the memory.

Usually, I do this on vacation.“

Days later, however, Joyce was sitting on her patio when she got a text message from an unknown number.

“This was the message::::::” Joyce explained.

“Dear madam, you took our picture in front of Rita’s on June 8th. My wife has passed away yesterday and this is the last picture we have together as a family. Please accept my deepest gratitude for your kindness, it means the world to me. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.”

Joyce further clarified that she had sent a number of messages back and forth with the man and found out that his wife had been ill for the past year.

“My heart is heavy for this sweet family I don’t even know and the tremendous gift that was left to them cause I listened to my gut that day. I’m in awe!!” Joyce said.