NYPD officer offers shoes to homeless man; picture goes viral

An act of kindness on the streets of New York City almost went unnoticed.  A tourist photographed an NYPD officer in a moment of giving, and that photo has gone viral.

Jennifer Foster snapped a picture of Officer Lawrence Deprimo giving a pair of boots to a homeless man.  She emailed it to NYPD, which then posted it on their Facebook page, according to CNN.  The picture generated tens of thousands of comments and went viral.

Officer Deprimo says he was on patrol in Times Square when he saw the homeless man with nothing on his feet.

"You could see the blisters were about the size of my hands," he told a reporter.  "My heart just went out to this man."

He says he offered the man of pair of socks.  The man said no, but thanks and God bless.  Touched by his words, Deprimo went to a nearby store and bought him a pair of boots.

"He looked me right in the face and the smile just went ear to ear," Deprimo said.  "And again he said God bless me and he said be safe."

Deprimo says he keeps the receipt in his bulletproof vest as a reminder of those less fortunate.