Thank you!

It was a pretty busy Saturday morning at House of the Harvest. In fact, it was raining a little bit, which always makes things a little messier and a little more chaotic. I am standing inside, breaking down boxes to send to the dumpster. A lady comes in the exit and begins walking toward me. She is an older lady. It’s clear she is on a mission.

She walks over and hands me an envelope. She says, “I wanted to bring you this because this place has meant so much to me.” I smile, take the envelope, and say, “Could you tell me how you mean?”

She replies, “I used to come here and get food every Saturday. This place helped me through a very rough time and I will never forget it.” At this point, I begin to tear up. She continues, “I was able to get a job and get myself to a place where I don’t need to come here anymore. This place was so important to me that I wanted to give back.”

I open the envelope. Inside is a check for $50. She says, “I hope this helps. And I hope this place is always here.”

Me too. Me too. I felt so blessed in that moment. To know House of the Harvest accomplished its’ mission. To know that we did such a good job building relationship, that someone wanted to give back when they had the opportunity and she wanted us to know it. She didn’t have to feel compelled to give back. Even though she did, she could have mailed that check. Sent us money online. But she woke up Saturday morning, put on her raincoat, got out in the rain, and hand delivered her $50 check...with a message, a message that simply said “Thank you.” And because of that, I felt honored.

So I put my arm around her, and I say, “Thank you so much!” She replies, “For me to say, ‘Thank you,’ isn’t enough.” My reply, “For me to say, ‘Thank you,’ wouldn’t be enough either.”