“At the beginning of the pandemic, I was volunteering at a local pizza shop to distribute slices to kids who otherwise couldn’t get fed because the schools were shut down.
There was a woman with three kids who came by every few days to get slices. It turned out the father had died unexpectedly right before the pandemic started and they lost their house because of the slumlord they were renting from. The mother lost her job because she had no one to watch the kids. They were living in their minivan and things were bad for them.
They were so nice and grateful, but ashamed when they would come by to get slices. I genuinely felt for them.
I had lost my job and got a pretty decent windfall of two months worth of unemployment and the CARES Act at once. My landlord had a few properties open and is a close friend, so I got in touch with him and we worked out me paying their security deposit and the first two months of rent and he would cover their utilities.
I gave her his number and said he might be able to help and they moved in the next day. They’ve been there ever since and are doing extremely well now.
I was homeless at one point in my life but didn’t have children. I couldn’t just stand idly by, especially because I had been given way more money than I even knew what to do with. With everything that was happening and uncertainty of what was coming, I figured the money needed to be used for good rather than my own selfish needs.”
