Good Is Everywhere: When a Shopping Trip Becomes Something More
Sometimes, a simple act of kindness can grow into something much bigger.
Recently, a group of 57 VyStar Credit Union human resources employees volunteered with Lutheran Social Services as part of VyStar’s Good is Everywhere volunteer campaign. Nine volunteers joined staff from LSS’ Advocacy, Care & Education (ACE) program for a shopping trip to purchase essential toiletry items for clients in the ACE Jail Link initiative, HIV-positive individuals re-integrating into our community.
The group headed to the Walmart on Philips Highway, just down the street from LSS, and filled their cart with shampoo, soap, toothpaste, toothbrushes, toilet paper, shaving supplies and other personal-care necessities.
These items may seem simple, but they can make a meaningful difference for ACE clients living with HIV who have recently been released from incarceration. Many individuals returning to the community have limited, if any, personal resources and face immediate difficulty obtaining basic necessities.
“Providing toiletry bags filled with essential hygiene items helps our clients transition back into the community with greater dignity, stability and confidence,” said Alane Ertel, director of ACE. “These hygiene supplies help address immediate needs, promote personal health and wellness, support successful community reintegration and reduce barriers that can interfere with accessing medical care, housing, employment and other supportive services.”
While the group was shopping, the Walmart manager, Jim, noticed their matching blue “Do Good” t-shirts, and asked what they were shopping for. When he learned that they were purchasing supplies to create toiletry bags for LSS clients, he wanted to help, too.
He donated a $50 Walmart gift card, allowing the volunteers to purchase even more supplies, to help even more clients. What started as a volunteer shopping trip became an unexpected chain of generosity!
For the ACE clients who receive these toiletry bags, that generosity will become something tangible: the basic supplies they need as they take the next steps toward stability and rebuilding their lives.
Good really is everywhere. Sometimes, it’s in the people who show up to serve. Sometimes, it’s in the person who simply notices. And sometimes, it’s in what happens when the two come together.
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