A stranger's act of kindness has ripple effect on Humboldt Broncos tragedy

An act of kindness from a stranger in Dartmouth, N.S., is having a ripple effect on the fundraising effort for the families of those killed and injured in a Saskatchewan bus crash.

Todd Carruthers is head coach of the Barracudas, a midget team for the Dartmouth Whalers Minor Hockey Association. On Sunday, he and his team were celebrating the end of their season at Dartmouth's Mic Mac Bar and Grill. 

Each year the team fundraises for the dinner and donates the remaining amount to a charity of the players' choosing. 

"This one was an obvious choice," Carruthers told CBC's Maritime Noon.

Fifteen people were killed last Friday when a bus carrying the Humboldt Broncos hockey team collided with a transport truck on a rural Saskatchewan highway north of Tisdale on their way to a game. 

At the end of the meal, Carruthers asked for his bill. His server said the $390 bill had been taken care of by an anonymous person in the restaurant. 

"A regular had noticed that we were a hockey crowd and of kids there and we were well behaved and he took it upon himself to leave his credit card to pay."

Carruthers said he was "completely taken off guard" and that the gesture "was a ray of sunshine."

"All the kids were just, you know, gaping open mouth, smile on their face, they couldn't believe it. I had to explain it to them two or three times what was going on."

Kenzi Donnelly, a hostess at the restaurant, tweeted about the act of kindness. Her mother was the server. 

"She was so overwhelmed with emotion and a whole bunch of other feelings that ended up being passed on to our whole staff," said Donnelly.

"It was just really overwhelming that we got to witness such a great act of kindness and such a selfless act at our restaurant."

Donnelly's tweet has more than 50,000 likes and has been retweeted more than 7,900 times, including by former NHL player Theo Fleury and by Olympians Hayley Wickenheiser and Heather Moyse.

"So many people are sharing it and spreading the word all across Canada and even parts of the States there, so it's really incredible the response that we've gotten from it," said Donnelly.

The man who paid the Barracudas' bill wanted to remain anonymous. Carruthers said that thanks to him the team will be donating about $460 to the Humboldt Broncos fundraiser. 

As of Tuesday afternoon, more than $6.9 million has been raised for the survivors and victims' families.

"As a father looking down at my son, and there's a few other kids that have been on the team for four or five years — it's like-pseudo sons.… You can relate to it," said Carruthers.

Donnelly said it's a good reminder there is still good in the world.  

"In the face of such tragedy, I think it really just showed people how good people can be, especially in the face of such awful circumstances," she said.