When I worked at a fast food restaurant, just a few days after I started, our night manager caught a homeless man rummaging through the dumpster just before closing. Without hesitation, he had us make a combo meal and gave it to him. After that, a different person showed up every night, and our manager would hand over a free meal to whoever was outside.
After about 9 or 10 days, the first man returned, and our manager asked why it had taken so long. The man explained that they had been taking turns, each coming by from a nearby makeshift camp to get a decent meal. He then said, "From now on, stop taking turns - bring everyone tomorrow."
The next night, we paid more attention to what we were throwing away. Any returned items or leftover food, instead of being tossed out, were set aside. On top of that, each of us was entitled to one free combo meal per shift, and most of us chose to give it up for the men outside.
That evening, eight men showed up just before closing, and our night manager approached them with a dozen bags of hot, fresh food. He passed them around and said, “Come back tomorrow, and we’ll see what we can do.”
For the rest of the summer, this became our routine. On nights when food was scarce, the manager would buy bread and cheese with his own money and we’d make grilled cheese sandwiches for them before closing.
In just two months, we fed 8-10 men a night, probably without the franchisee ever knowing. I grew up in a privileged environment, but those two months taught me the importance of giving back. We were just four teenage girls working the night shift, but we never felt unsafe. We left work each night knowing that, in our small way, we had helped others.
Sometimes, people just want to help. Let them.
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