The Shevet Mussar writes that he once spent a long time speaking to a broken- hearted person to give him hope and chizuk. A few days later, the man told him that if it weren't for that conversation, he would have committed suicide. The conversation saved him. Therefore, Shevet Mussar encourages everyone to be generous with their words and give chizuk to broken-hearted people. He calls it "tzedakah that doesn't cost money."
Reb Gad'l Eisner said, "I studied the sugyah of 'man' in-depth, and discovered that one kind word could turn a person around. Everything can be fixed."
There are many lonely people, and with some kind words, we can help them so much. This is also a form of tzedakah.
