Joy Junction Managers Pay It Forward
By Jeremy Reynalds, Senior Correspondent, ASSIST News Service (jeremyreynalds@gmail.com )
ALBUQUERQUE, NM - (ANS -- June 10, 2016) -- You’ve almost certainly heard of the phrase "to pay it forward."
It’s typically taking a person’s kindness to you and “paying it forward” to someone else.
Sometimes,
when like our staff who work around the homeless all the time, it’s
helpful to broaden your horizons. That was what the objective of this
exercise. Take a little bit of the love and compassion shared inside Joy
Junction, and spread it around to a few different people around town.
Here are the heartwarming results. I hope they bless you as much as they did me.
Kitchen Manager Linus Carver looked for people needing to ride the city bus, where two dollars will buy a one all day pass.
Wanting people who didn’t have passes, but were nonetheless headed to the bus stop, Linus bought two of them passes.
One
person told Linus that the dollar he had left over after providing two
bus passes would get her to a Walmart so she could finally cash a small
check.
He said, “All three people were thrilled. It was nice to see smiles on everybody's faces.”
Linus
has made “”paying it forward” quite a habit in his life. He said he is
an avid reader, and always looking for new material.
He
buys books at the Joy Junction thrift store, other used book stores,
online from Amazon and has “even paid full retail at Walmart or
Walgreens for new paperbacks.”
“After
I am done reading them, I will put them in the multi so that anyone can
take them and enjoy,” Linus said. “Many of our residents enjoy reading
and the availability of free books
can enhance their quality of life.”
can enhance their quality of life.”
He
added, “Just the other day, I put a stack of books in the multi (about a
month’s worth of reading for me) that cost me around thirty dollars. I
hope the enjoyment it brings to others is priceless.”
Joy Junction Parking Lot Manager Brenda Martinez paid it forward soon after leaving the managers’ meeting.
While in line at the store, she was thinking about her assignment.
She
heard a guy say, “‘$1 on pump 4.’” I interrupted him and said, “‘Here's
$5 more for gas.’ He asked, “‘Are you sure?’” I replied, “‘Yes.’”
Breda
said, “Coming out the store, he came running towards my truck to thank
me and ask how he could repay me. I told him that maybe one day he can
return the favor to someone else in need.”
His
sign stated that he would “‘rather beg for money than steal to
survive,’” and posed for a pic! I handled him $5.00 and he thanked me
and smiled.”
Joy
Junction Transportation Manager Diana Peterson-Lane had her own unique
story. One assignment was to take some people to an area motel,
something necessary when potential guests have animals. Local
regulations do not allow us to accommodate those with pets.
Diana
quickly learned their story. She said this young couple was
experiencing a plight with which she was all too familiar: trusting the
wrong person. They told Diana they had known a woman for a few months,
and when she asked them to travel with her to California for a few days
to experience her daughters’s wedding, they thought, “why not?”
Things
didn’t work out and they ended up stranded with no clothes or phone, a
four month old puppy and $13.00 to their name. The woman was also four
months pregnant. They both wanted o get back home to Louisiana.
We couldn’t pay for that, but we could help them with a room for the night and just a bit more as well.
Diana said, “I began to feel a pull throughout my entire body screaming ‘This is your pay it forward.’”
She
added, “I told them names and numbers to call about trying to get home,
and gave them the $5.00 and told them that they could use it where they
decided they needed it most. I said a prayer for them, and will
everyday for a long while.”
Joy Junction Front Office Manager John Weisberger was wondering how he could make the best use of his $5.00.
Something came to mind that would allow him to help several people.
He
said, “It was something that I and many others take for granted on a
daily basis, but is in much demand by those in need out on the streets.”
John
stopped by Wal-Mart on the way home, and purchased a pack of bottled
water and a bag of ice. He got a small cooler from home, and added the
ice and water and then placed it in the passenger seat of his car so he
would have easy access to it as he drove around.
“I
then drove around my area of town and when I saw someone outside in the
heat at an intersection, bus stop, or elsewhere I offered them a bottle
of ice cold water. The temperatures have been in the high 90's the past
few days, so people were a bit surprised but grateful for the cold
water.”
John said relief from the “blazing heat of the New Mexico summer can be hard to come by.”
Thinking
abut the experience, John said, “The cold water was eagerly accepted
and appreciated . I found that even little things can help.”
Joy
Juntion Resident Services Manager Denis Billy said he and his wife
regularly enjoy paying it forward. For them it’s usually with a cup of
coffee or a free meal. This time they had an extra $5.00 to indulge
their passion.
While
picking up a few things at the grocery store, they encountered a single
mother with two small children. They approached her in line and handed
$25 dollars to be used for her groceries. They added $20, which is the
amount they usually give.
Denis
said, “She was very shy and didn't know how to respond. But, she
accepted our gift. We didn't spend too much time with her, because we
could tell that she was a bit uncomfortable.”
However, Denis and his wife did get a thank you and a hug.
Joy
Junction Thrift Store Manager Joanna Baca encountered a young woman
with a small child at the grocery store. Joanna said she seemed to be in
need of “something,” so Joanna asked her if she could help in any way.”
Joanna said she immediately responded that she was asking God to help her as she didn’t have anything to eat.
“She
was very surprised that I asked if she needed something. I asked her
what she needed and she said some cup of soups, milk and a box of
cereal. She said that would be better than McDonalds or some other fast
food. She said that the other food would last a couple of days. She was
so grateful.”
She
added, “I then realized how blessed my family and I really are and how
awesome God is. I'm really grateful for this experience.”
I think the experiment was a success for all concerned. What would you say?
Photo
captions: 1) Choosing not to look away. This young boy helps a homeless
man. 2) Homeless man with unique sign. 3) Elma and Jeremy Reynalds.
** You may republish this or any of our ANS stories with attribution to the ASSIST News Service (www.assistnews.net). Also, please tell your friends that they can receive a free subscription to ANS by signing up at the website.
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