Livermore Costco Employee’s Adorable Drawings Delight Customers

LIVERMORE, CA — They only take her about 15 seconds to draw but they leave a lasting impression on her customers. Costco employee Diana De Araujo, known among her co-workers as "Picasso," creates little pieces of artwork daily, as she draws custom portraits of the kids who come through her line on the back of their parent's receipts. The adorable drawings bring smiles to the faces of her subjects and their families — an estimated 300 times a day.

De Araujo, who has worked at the Costco store in Livermore for 17 years and is known all over town for her impromptu artwork, humbly said she is no artist.

“I try to keep the drawings to 15 seconds or less,” De Araujo told Patch. “It’s just a little something to make them happy.”

If there are several children in the group, De Araujo tries to quickly sketch each of them. If the lines are backed up to the registers, she will pick just one or the parents will choose which child gets to be immortalized on the receipt. Some families save the receipts and put them up at home, according to De Araujo.

The Livermore resident said she is often recognized around the Tri-Valley as “Miss Costco” or "the lady who draws the faces.” Generations of kids have come through her lines over the years.

Her manager said they try to give her a little more time with the customers so she can draw even when the lines grow a bit long. De Araujo said she tries to make the tiny highlighter-colored faces look like the kids but that all of the staff at the door try to do some kind of fun drawing on the receipts.

"We have a lot of fun at Costco," De Araujo said. "We are always laughing."

Costco customer Joanne Lui recently passed through De Araujo's line and said she was delighted to watch her work.

“Good people like her definitely deserve recognition for their small acts of kindness,” Lui told Patch.

More Nice News On Patch:

• Police Converge On Boy's Birthday Party: WATCH
• Toddler's Celebratory Fist Bumps Spread Joy, Happiness
• See: Livermore Stranger's Heartwarming Gesture Brings Tears To Elderly Man's Eyes
• Blind Dog Missing In Santa Cruz Mountains Rescued By Off-Duty Firefighter On Hike

Photos contributed