Michigan Woman Receives 81-Pound Package from Her Secret Santa, Bill Gates
Secret Santa is all about the luck of the draw — and one Detroit resident scored big this holiday season.
Shelby, the 33-year old Michigan woman who asked that her last name not be published, was matched with Microsoft founder and billionaire Bill Gates through RedditGifts’ Secret Santa exchange, ABC27 reported.
After participating in 94 exchanges using the online platform, Shelby received an impressive 81-pound package delivery and on Dec. 17 for lucky number 95 and soon realized that the software mogul, 64, was behind it.
Shelby documented the eventful gift exchange in a Reddit post, in which she explained that she received an email notification that her present was being overnighted by FedEx.
“[S]ounds expensive,” she wrote. After noticing that the package was being shipping from Washington, she quipped, “Huh, wouldn’t it be something if my Santa was Bill Gates?”
And sure enough, when Shelby picked up the large shipment from FedEx the next day, she recalls the clerk shouting: “OH MY GOD! You’re the Bill Gates package! We’ve been waiting for you all day. Is this really from Bill Gates, or is it a hoax?”
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Upon opening the package, Shelby discovered a personalized placard and photo from none other than Gates himself. The gifts included a hammock, chocolates, eight hardcover books, LEGO sets and toys for Shelby’s cat, among other things.
Reddit thanked him on Twitter, writing, “Just when she needed it most, one lucky giftee struck Secret Santa gold & was blessed with the Christmas of a lifetime. Well done @BillGates.”
“Bill Gates, you are a blessing,” Shelby wrote on Reddit. “This year has been a complete rollercoaster of emotions for me; in March, I lost my mother completely unexpectedly only 10 days before my destination wedding. It has been hard to drum up holiday spirit this year, and this has been a zap taser of Christmas cheer.”
“I have felt like I’ve been on another planet the past few days and I still cannot believe how lucky/cool/honored/all the adjectives I am to have had someone craft such a special and personal set of gifts just for little ol’ me,” she said.
“And your donation to The American Heart Association in my mom’s memory is the most special gift of all,” Shelby added. “It means more to me than I can express.”
A rep for Gates did not immediately reply to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
