An elderly, isolated man has develop into the “honorary grandpa” of a Rhode Island family as they now spend almost day-after-day and holidays together in what’s truly a heartwarming good deed.
Sharaine Caraballo, 32, along along with her husband Wilson, 42, first met Paul Callahan, 82, in March 2022 once they moved into Pawtucket, Rhode Island.
Callahan’s wife had died six months before the Caraballos arrived — they only met when the widower offered Wilson a ladder to do home tasks.
“He was coming over with tools. He’d bring screwdrivers and teach Wilson methods to fix up the garage, and Wilson followed all his advice,” Sharaine told South West News Service of the octogenarian, a retired Texas Instruments manager.
Soon enough, the three hit off and, as she put it, “He’s like an honorary grandpa to us.”
Meanwhile, the Caraballos were initially apprehensive about meeting their neighbors, she said.
“When Paul welcomed us into the neighborhood I knew I had made the fitting selection.”
Now, Callahan comes by every other day and is commonly seen at family cookouts.
The couple just gave him a recent outfit on Father’s Day as well.
“My husband’s father is within the Dominican Republic, so even his mom says, ‘Here comes your dad, Paul!’” Sharaine, a case manager for domestic violence survivors, told SWNS.
Callahan has also made a deep reference to the Caraballo’s children and infrequently brings them “little trinkets.”
“They play with him lots and call him Uncle Paul. He’s got stories for days,” she said.
“I asked what drew him to us, and he said he was a really social person and that he grew up around numerous kids.”
