A mystery man is providing cheer to Walmart shoppers in Vermont.The man paid off the entire lot of layaway items at a store in Derby, near the Canadian border.Brownington resident Sandra Cortez told WCAX-TV she thought it was a rumor. But she learned it was real when she went to the store to find her items paid off.Another shopper, Julie Gates, asked the man, "This can't be. Who can afford to pay for everyone's layaway?"She said the man responded, "Santa Claus can."The man declined to give his name but made quite an impact on so many people's lives and holidays. "It's was kind of like surreal when they said no balance due, then it was really a reality," shopper Tammy Desautels said to WCAX. Desautels said money has been tight ever since her husband's foot was injured. " really have a feeling that there is hope for mankind or whatever. There's still good people out there," said Desautels.Walmart officials confirmed the story and said it happened earlier this month. Store officials declined to say how much the man spent, but Gates estimated how much money might have been spent. "There were people ahead of me who eight, nine, hundred dollar layaways," she said.As many people wonder who the man was and why he helped out, Gates said she chalks it up to a Christmas miracle. "I get goosebumps thinking that - that is the true magic of Christmas. That's the Christmas spirit walking among us," she said.