MONTECITO, CA (KEYT/CNN) - For one Montecito, CA, man who was trapped in his home when mudslides ravaged his neighborhood, nothing represents the sacrifices of first responders better than a pair of shoes.
The kicks mysteriously showed up at his front door months after he gave them to a barefoot firefighter.
In the hour after a mudslide tore through Kevin Rittner's home, he signaled for help with a flashlight.
It was pitch black outside.
"About an hour later, this guy comes walking through," he said. "The mud is three to four feet high down here."
The guy was a firefighter who waded across the road to Rittner's property.
The firefighter was barefoot and alone.
"He came across that road of mud barefoot, up and comes up and he asks, 'are you OKAY?' I said, 'yeah we're fine.' and he's like, 'do you have any shoes?' " Rittner said.
With Rittner's family stuck but safe, he didn't think twice about helping a first responder.
"I think my shoes might have been a little small for him too, but it was the first pair that I could grab, the best pair that I had for him," Rittner said.
The firefighter thanked Rittner and disappeared into the darkness.
Fast forward five months later.
"The fact that he brought them back clean at all, is amazing," he said.
Rittner found this box on his door step with his clean shoes inside.
There was also a handwritten note from the firefighter.
The letter read: "Hi, I'm returning the shoes you let me use on the Montecito mudslide. Your generosity and your help in providing these shoes allowed me to help a lot of people in need. Thank you. Please go enjoy a fresh pair as these have seen a lot. Yours truly, Santa Barbara County Fire."
The firefighter also left a gift certificate so Rittner could buy a new pair.
Rittner said he would love to see the firefighter again just to thank him.
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