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Michigan Resident Trades ‘Diet Dr Pepper’ Twitter Handle for Flint Water

She lives an hour away from the tragedy.

Photo via Twitter

Big hearts and large bank accounts aren’t always distributed to the same people. So for many of us, when tragedy strikes, although we’d like to help we may not always have the means. But that doesn’t necessarily mean there’s nothing we can do. A heartwarming story out of Dearborn, Michigan, shows how a woman’s resourcefulness allowed her to do something powerful for the victims of the water crisis in nearby Flint.


Back in 2009, Diana Hussein joined Twitter and had no idea what to use for her handle. She looked at her computer desk for inspiration and saw a can of Diet Dr Pepper staring back at her. So she signed up under the handle @DietDrPepper. This January, the Dr Pepper Snapple Group reached out to Hussein to negotiate a deal for her to hand it over to the beverage giant. But all the company offered was a trade for some merchandise.

Photo via Twitter

Hussein had been very concerned for the residents of Flint and thought she could strike a deal that could help the crisis. “Maybe I could convince them to do some kind of monetary contribution to help Flint,” she told ABC News. “When I found out they owned and distributed [bottles of water], I thought that was a really great opportunity.” Brian Bell, Dr Pepper’s public relations manager, was impressed that Hussein wanted nothing for herself in the deal. “She wasn’t trying to come after a monetary value,” he told ABC News. “Diana was very straightforward. She was very open and honest with us.”

In exchange for the @DietDrPepper handle, Dr Pepper Snapple Group agreed to send 41,000 bottles of water to help the people of Flint. Hussein now tweets under the handle @HeyaDiana. Hit her up and tell her she did something amazing.

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