‘A NIGHTMARE week’ for a Bridport resident was turned around thanks to the kindness of a stranger.

Pinque Lawes had been feeling low after a terrible week involving a number of personal health challenges.

Now she is thanking a supermarket worker for 'a random act of kindness' after she was given some flowers.

Pinque, 39, had suffered two seizures within the week, both of which resulted in her falling and hitting her head. She also came off her electric scooter which caused her to break three ribs and pull several muscles in her leg.

She entered Waitrose on West Street on Tuesday, March 2 feeling very low when she was cheered up by a random act of kindness.

Pinque said: “It had been an absolute nightmare week. I was feeling pretty miserable when I hobbled into Waitrose to grab myself some tea and the lady behind the till asked me if I was ok.

“She seemed very interested and sympathetic and couldn’t do enough for me really. I’d seen some flowers I really liked and I asked her how much they were and she responded saying ‘they’re on the house'.

“Very occasionally staff are at liberty to use some gift vouchers and she used hers to give me these really lovely flowers. I almost burst into tears, it completely changed my day."

She added: “The cashier had been off work and she ended up going back to work early to help out and spread a bit of sunshine.”

The act of kindness is part of an initiative run by the supermarket chain called 'Give a Little Bit of Love' - which allows staff members to give back to their local communities.

Days later, Pinque ran a fundraising campaign to raise some funds for the cashier. She was able to raise £80, which the woman asked to be donated to Dementia UK.

Pinque praised the Waitrose worker for her 'warmth, kindness and empathetic nature'.

She said: “She wrote me a really touching email that the fundraiser raised her spirits and gave her more confidence to return to work.

“We lifted each other up when we needed it. I had been feeling so low that day and by the time I came out of Waitrose I was walking down the road with the biggest smile on my face.”

Mark Shepherd, branch manager at Bridport Waitrose, said: "This is just one example of how the 'Give a Little Bit of Love' initiative can make a person's day or even week.

"The project is particularly based on people who are going through difficult times individually or as a family. It’s what we’re about as a company – we recognise we are part of a community and we want to do our best to support that community."