Earlier this week, our Fare For All team witnessed a warming and incredibly generous random act of kindness at our Roseville Fare For All site. As dozens of customers lined up, snaked through the parking lot and out into the street, they waited patiently for our sale to begin. Just after the Fare For All staff discussed the sale model and emphasized safety with our volunteers prior to beginning the sale, donors who wished to remain anonymous approached staff and said they wished to pay for the first $1,000 worth of customer sales. The FFA staff strategized with the donors on the smoothest and most effective way to deliver this gift to customers.
As the sale began, Fare For All staff motioned the first vehicle to drive forward. The vehicle had, like many others, arrived early and had been waiting approximately an hour for the sale to begin, eager to make a holiday pack purchase. After telling the Fare For All staff their order, they were informed that an anonymous donor had taken care of the payment for their food and they could simply pull forward to the order pickup area where volunteers would load their food into their vehicle. The customers in the vehicle were stunned and shared their gratitude.
Customers continued to work their way through the winding line. As they placed their order, payment method ready in-hand, they continued to be told that their order had been taken care of by an anonymous donor and that no payment was needed. As the total sales approached the $1,000 donation, the donors approached staff and said they would like to make another equal donation.
More and more vehicles continued to line up through the parking lot and out into the street. Customers continued to trickle through the line patiently and were told after placing their order that an anonymous donor had paid for their food today. Multiple customers said they were going to cry upon hearing the news. A few customers quite literally started crying. One customer was so stunned and grateful they said “I can’t even drive! I am in such shock!” They took a few deep breaths and were able to be on their way.
Meanwhile, inside, the anonymous donors continued adding to their gift as an hour passed, two hours passed, and we were approaching the final half hour of the sale. The donors informed staff they would like to pay for every last customer that came to the sale, and they did! After over three hours, and approximately 150 households had passed through our FFA drive-through line, the sale came to an end. Over $8,400 in donations went directly to serve our customers. A truly remarkable and heartwarming moment for our customers, our mission, and our community.
To learn more about Fare For All, visit www.fareforall.org.
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Visit Hunger Solutions for additional food resources.
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This post was written and contributed by Jay Knaeble, Driver at The Food Group