Thank you, Sheriff

We are almost in New Mexico (read "out of Texas") on our drive home.  For a few brief moments, in looked like we were going to be spending more time in Texas than originally planned.  We have been navigating our drive today using Google Maps on our Android phones.  Both Sarah and I have this functionality so we have been able to share driving and navigation equally.
We have been very pleased with our route as it has been off the beaten path but very direct.  We are making much better time than we would on the interstates.
We came through Amarillo and still had a quarter tank of gas.  I was driving and made the decision to keep going to the next town.  Funny thing is that Google Maps knew some secret back roads.  We made great time down a little farm road with a 70 mph speed limit and no traffic!  The gas warning light came on as we were flying across western Texas.  I knew that meant we had about 50 miles to find fuel and the town of Channing was less than that.  We arrived in this little town and saw the city limit sign, Channing TX, pop.354. 
A little panic started to set in.  We drove through the center of town, from which point, we could see the edge of town in all four direction.  There was no sign of any retail establishment of any kind!  We drove in the direction of our next destination only to note that it was almost 20 miles away.  The indicator on the dash estimated we had 7 miles of fuel left.  As we sat at the one stop sign in town, we saw a homemade sign, Gas, Food, 4 blocks.  Woohoo!!!
We gave a collective sigh of relief and followed the sign.  We found the place but immediately noticed the absence of gas pumps.  I parked and went in with cash.
The young girl behind the counter had a bit of panic on her face when I asked about gas.  Apparently, they had 5 gallons of gas in a can somewhere but she wasn't sure where.  Great!
Just about the time I'm wondering about the quality of the school system and the availability of rentals, our salvation stepped forward in the form of the county sheriff.  Tall, graying but perfectly pressed in his uniform, he asked where we were headed.  We chatted for a couple minutes and then he offered to take us to the county lot for some fuel.  We followed across town, maybe 6 blocks, to the lot where the county maintained their vehicles.  There, he put 5 gallons of gas in our tank without accepting any payment.  He made certain that we had enough to get to Dalhart where there would be plenty of gas stations.  I could have kissed him. 
As we left Channing, I thought about how lucky we really were.  The sheriff told me a little about their county and the gas was flowing into our tank.  It covers 1600 sq miles with a population of about 5000.  They have a single officer on duty at anytime.  Given those details, it was a miracle to have that one kind officer cross our path, right at the moment when we needed him most.
The county will be getting thank you notes this week for this officer's kindness and service to these grateful travelers