Father Moved to Tears After Discovering Why Daughter Keeps Giving Money To Neighbor

Something Wasn’t Right

Matthew Mogan was growing sick with worry every passing day. For weeks now, something had been going on with his daughter, and he had to get to the bottom of it.

He knew that it had something to do with his old neighbor, Keith. He’d seen his daughter lurking around the man’s house. But what was going on?

That day, all he wanted to do was get some answers, but he had no idea what awaited him. Before he knew it, everything would come crashing down around him.

Out Of Hand

Matthew never wanted the situation to get too out of hand, but as the days went on, he realized that something was seriously wrong.

Grace was coming home every day starving. For the past few weeks, her lunch money had magically gone missing.

But how was that possible? Who was taking her money? Matthew had an idea, but he needed proof. That was why he decided to buy the camera.

A Normal Morning

He’d set the camera up perfectly. It looked directly into his neighbor’s front yard. All he had to do now was wait.

He could hear his daughter’s voice in the kitchen downstairs. She and her mother, Melanie, were eating breakfast, but Matthew remained close to his bedroom window.

It wasn’t until a few minutes later that he heard the front door shut. Grace was on her way to the bus stop, but she had one stop along the way.

In His Front Yard

He watched with narrowed eyes as his neighbor, Keith, stood in his front yard, watering his plants. Matthew was sipping on a cup of coffee, and that was when it happened.

Grace looked over her shoulder, ensuring her mother wasn’t watching, before she ran across the street and toward the older man.

That was when Matthew’s blood began boiling. From his bedroom window, he could just see his daughter speaking to the old man. But it was hard to see what was going on.

They Spoke

Grace and Keith spoke for a few minutes before Matthew noticed something odd. Grace was taking her backpack off.

He watched from afar as she dug through her bag. Once she found what she was looking for, she stepped closer to the old man. But he couldn’t see what she did next.

His view from the window wasn’t the best, but he knew that the camera had caught all of it. He knew it was time to review the footage.

Checking His Laptop

Matthew placed his cup down on his bedside table and made his way to the lounge. Sitting down on the couch, he retrieved his laptop from the coffee table and started it up.

He wanted to look at the footage while it was happening. Something strange had been happening to his daughter.

He needed to know what was going on. He didn’t trust his neighbor. As soon as the laptop turned on, he opened the footage.

The Footage

The footage was blurry at first, but Matthew could more or less see what was happening. They were still just speaking.

He glanced at his daughter’s hand and noticed that she was still holding something. He squinted, trying to see what it was, but then he realized.

Grace was holding the $5 her mother had given her for lunch that day, but then, Matthew watched as something terrible happened. He had to do something.

A Happy Family

When Matthew and Melanie Mogan welcomed their baby daughter into the world, everything seemed to change for the better.

Packing up their busy lives in Atlanta, Georgia, they decided to move to the suburbs. Grace, their daughter, was everything they had ever wanted.

Matthew had never experienced the kind of love he had for his daughter, and she always came first. He swore to protect her no matter what.

The Suburbs

In the suburbs, life was simple. They fit right in and became good friends with their neighbors. Everything seemed to run smoothly for the next few years.

Grace grew up fast, and her parents couldn’t be more proud of her. But there was one neighbor that Matthew just couldn’t see eye-to-eye with.

When they first moved into their new home, Keith seemed nice. But over the years, he and Matthew stopped getting along. They just didn’t click.

A Grumpy Old Man

Keith was unlike anyone Matthew had ever met. He was grumpy and rude, especially to the neighborhood kids.

He always worried when his daughter left the house to play in the park with her friends. The last thing he wanted was for Keith to speak to her like all the other kids.

Matthew always wondered what had changed. Keith was decent at first, but now, he was becoming a neighborhood bully. But one day, something happened.

They Were Too Busy

At this point, Grace was eight years old and attending a new school. Due to their demanding careers, Matthew and Melanie didn’t have much time in the morning.

Therefore, they decided to give Grace lunch money every day. Her mother would have her $5 every morning before she left the house.

They wanted Grace to grab something nutritious and healthy. Initially, this worked well, but Matthew soon noticed something was wrong.

Picking Her Up

One afternoon, everything started to happen. Matthew finished work early and picked up his daughter from school. The young girl jumped right into her dad’s large truck when she saw it.

Matthew was a hard-working man who spent his afternoons in the office. It was a nice change of pace. But his day was about to take a turn.

After a kiss on the cheek, he asked how she was doing. “Good, but I’m starving,” she replied, rubbing her stomach. When they got home, he didn’t think much of it.

A Big Lunch

Once they were home from school, Grace raced to the snack cupboard while Matthew made her a sandwich.

That afternoon, she ate two whole sandwiches, including all kinds of snacks. Matthew couldn’t believe it. Grace wasn’t usually the type to eat that much.

“Oh my goodness,” He laughed. “Did you have lunch at school today?” He joked with his daughter. But he was confused when she shook her head.

More To It

Matthew thought this was normal behavior for an eight-year-old, developing girl. He used to eat a lot as a kid, too. But there was more to it than that.

However, the following day, something weird happened. Matthew was cooking dinner when his wife walked into the kitchen.

“You might want to fry some extra beans. Grace says she’s starving,” His wife laughed. He laughed with her until she said something else.

Something Was Wrong

“She is?” He smiled, stirring the beans around the pan. He’d always been the chef in the house, and he enjoyed every second of it.

“Yeah. When I picked her up from school, she said she hadn’t bought lunch,” She shrugged. This sent alarm bells off in his mind.

Why was she not buying herself lunch? That night, he spoke to his daughter about what was going on, but she refused to talk about it. Something was wrong.

Convincing Himself

Matthew tried to convince himself that it would be okay and that it would change in time. As the situation continued into the second week, he knew he had to investigate further.

He planned to call her school and ask what was going on the following week, but his first clue came that morning.

Getting out of bed earlier than usual, he watched his daughter leave the house through the window. That’s when he saw something strange.

Keith’s House

Instead of heading straight to the bus stop, his daughter decided to walk across the street toward Keith’s house.

Keith was in his front yard, watering his garden just like every other day. But what was going on here? Why was she going over there?

That was the day Matthew decided to install the camera in his front yard. He set it up among the bushes, looking straight into Keith’s front yard.

Concerned

That night, Matthew shared his concerns with his wife. “I just don’t understand why she’s going over there in the mornings,” He vented.

Melanie heard him out. Her stomach twisted into a tight knot. What was an old man doing speaking to a little girl?

“What if he’s taking her money? I told you, he’s a neighborhood bully. What if he’s forcing her to give him the money?” He continued.

He Couldn’t Sleep

Matthew hardly slept that night. He couldn’t wait until morning. The camera he had installed had a much better view of the neighbor’s front yard.

His plan was to wake up early and check the footage while his daughter was over there, speaking to the old man.

He got around three hours of sleep before his alarm went off. Finally, it was time to see why Grace had been speaking to the rude old man.

Lurking

That morning, Matthew lurked behind his bedroom window, watching the old man as he moved around his front lawn. He looked toward their house, waiting for the girl.

Melanie was getting Grace ready for school while Matthew waited. “Okay, it’s time to go!” He heard his wife’s voice from downstairs.

Finally, the time had come for him to discover the truth. He remained by the window, his eyes following the little girl.

As Expected

Keith was in his front yard, watering his plants as expected. Matthew had a cup of coffee in hand, which he’d hardly sipped from.

As Grace ran toward the older man, she looked over her shoulder to ensure her mother wasn’t watching.

Matthew’s blood began boiling at that point. He could only see his daughter speaking to the old man through his bedroom window. However, it was difficult to see what was going on.

Odd Behavior

During Grace and Keith’s conversation, Matthew noticed something strange. Grace had taken her backpack off.

He watched her dig through her bag from the bedroom window. She approached the old man after finding what she was looking for. He couldn’t see what she did next.

The view from the window wasn’t the best, but he knew the camera had captured everything. Now was his time to check the footage.

Going Down

On his way to the lounge, Matthew set his cup down on his bedside table. After grabbing his laptop from the coffee table, he sat down on the couch.

He wanted to view the footage as it happened. His daughter had been experiencing something strange, and he was going to figure it out.

It was important for him to know what was going on. His neighbor wasn’t trustworthy. He opened the footage immediately after turning on the laptop. But he wasn’t ready.

Blurry Footage

The footage was blurry at first, but Matthew was able to see more or less what was going on. They were still just speaking.

The father noticed that his daughter was still holding something in her hand. After squinting, he realized what it was.

Grace was holding the $5 her mother had given her for lunch that day, but then, Matthew watched as something terrible happened. He had to do something.

He Watched Them

His eyes were wide as he watched the little girl glance around before placing the $5 in the old man’s hand. He couldn’t believe it.

He watched as the old man stuffed the notes into his pocket and continued watering the lawn while Grace walked off.

She stared at the floor as she walked away from the old man. Grace seemed sad as she headed for the bus stop. It was time to intervene.

No Hesitation

By the time Matthew stepped through the front door, his daughter was already down the street and out of view. But Keith was still on his front lawn.

Without any hesitation, Matthew darted across the street and toward the grumpy old man. “Hey!” He said, his voice thick with anger.

Keith turned around, confused, when he saw the man standing before him. He had messed with the wrong family, and he was about to learn that.

Bullying Her

“Who do you think you are bullying my daughter into giving you her lunch money every single day?” He spoke, his voice laced with emotion.

Keith seemed caught off guard as he took a step back, confused by the anger in Matthew’s voice. “What?” It was all he could get out.

“I saw you take the money! Why are you taking my daughter’s lunch money?” He asked again, but he was not ready for the answer.

A Conversation

Keith shook his head in disappointment and looked at the floor. “I didn’t know it was lunch money. I thought it was just some pocket money,” he said.

But that didn’t excuse it. Why was the old man taking cash from his daughter in the first place? He demanded an explanation.

“Look, Matthew,” Keith sighed. “I had a conversation with your daughter a few weeks ago, and since then, she insists on giving me this money.”

The Truth

That was when he told Matthew a heartbreaking story. It all started when Grace walked past the old man’s house and noticed him coughing.

“She asked what was wrong, and I told her that I had been diagnosed with lung cancer two months ago. I mentioned that chemo was expensive,” He said.

Matthew’s heart dropped. But then, the man dug around inside of his pocket and removed a small bundle of dollar notes.

He Was Proud

He handed them to Matthew. “I’ve been saving her money so I could give it back to her, and she could buy herself something nice. Maybe a bike,” Keith said.

All along, his daughter was trying to help a sick old man. Matthew felt terrible and apologized, but it was no big deal to the old man.

That night, he spoke to his daughter and told her how proud he was. From that day, he spared an extra thirty minutes to prepare his daughter a school lunch every single day.