Acts of Kindness and Goodwill During Tough Times

It’s no surprise in this time of isolation and crisis that many companies and individuals are stepping up and doing some amazing things, using their resources to spread acts of kindness all around us. While we small business owners all deal with feelings of fear, loneliness and financial stress it’s good to read some positive news.

Since so many of us are self-employed business owners, with the onslaught of cancellations with client work, networking events and professional conferences, our resources and opportunities are being tested.

Whether you have kids in college or are working from home trying to juggle online school with little ones, every little bit of relief with all things related to our profitability is incredibly helpful right now.

Here’s our roundup of people and companies doing good deeds and acts of kindness, and helping people feel less stressed about finances.

From Rita N.:

I’d like to give a shout out to Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo, they refunded spring quarter room & board. You might think that should automatically happen but they did not close campus. Anyone who needs to stay has that option to stay in campus housing. No consolidating to one building. They are doing what is right for the students versus what is convenient for them.

One of my friends gave up her salary as a VP of a start-up company so the other employees could be paid. They had to shut down their operations, but as a VP she was still getting paid. Now that money is going to the staff so that they will be taken care of. Talk about selfless and generous — a true act of kindness!

High five to Arcimoto where my son had a paid internship scheduled to start March 30th. It is currently delayed at a minimum of 4 weeks. In spite of the delay, they are giving him a stipend to cover living expenses. These companies are taking care of these kids (other companies are doing this too) and they aren’t even employees.

From Lori K.:

My daughter works for Marriott. Her property has already furloughed most of the staff, but she has been told that she has a job for the foreseeable future. Sad to think that even though her property is only running at 7%-9% occupancy, they are still functioning. The CEO, Arne Sorenson, has announced he will not take his salary for the rest of 2020. 

Jasper’s Italian restaurant opened in 1954 and is one of our local gems. *I actually know Jasper, or JJ (Jasper Jr.) and his wife Lisa.  Because restaurants have been ordered to stop sit-down service, many have added a curbside pickup to their carry out service. Yet, most have had to lay off their staff. Jasper included. But he has promised his employees’ free meals. 

From Lisa K.:

Life is certainly different today than it was two weeks ago. Funny how things can change so quickly. Thanks so much for focusing on positive actions that inspire us and remind us of the goodness of people and businesses. I keep telling my kids to pay attention to the human interest stories — of people doing good — rather than the negative news, etc. It’s easy to get discouraged by people and businesses who take advantage of people at this time. Business owners who see an opportunity to profit rather than do what’s right and good.

I could go on and on about different local companies stepping up. But this one particular story in our local area really made me smile. A woman in our community cooks homemade meals for the week to deliver to the elderly and seniors in our neighborhood every Friday. She gets food donations from locals and volunteer drivers then she packs up each bag with a note and a roll of toilet paper.

From Sue S.:

Grateful that our NAPO annual conference is refunding all registrations. It’s a hard time for everyone. It’s my favorite time to see colleagues, but I know this is necessary for our health and welfare.

From Marci B.:

Local farmer’s markets are still open! While FM food is more $$ than Trader Joe’s (where we usually shop) it’s important to support these farmers. We’ve been buying select seasonal products and produce from our local markets for decades. But we are really focusing on buying as much as we can from them now. And the farmers have streamlined the food-getting process to make sure everyone can get what they need, not have us touch any food and still manage to smile and thank everyone. I’m grateful they are still open to give some semblance of normalcy to our routines in the weeks and months ahead.

From Sherra H.:

I loved seeing that Airbnb has extended a no charge cancellation policy during this time. It’s so hard to put deposits down for a special trip and think you can’t get that money back right now when you need it most!

I have some good friends who are craft beer raving fans. They thought this was the year they would start a business with their expertise. They registered for this conference (there’s a conference for everything these days!) and the conference actually changed their cancellation policy and is refunding all attendees and exhibitors.  

The local restaurants are getting creative in delivering no contact meals as they struggle to generate income. I loved this one that is adding a roll of toilet paper to all orders over $25. 🙂

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Let’s stay united and strong during this time – technology is a gift so we can stay connected online!

Big or small – these acts of kindness and goodwill give us hope in this uncertain time. As Mister Rogers’ mother would say to him, “Look for the helpers.”  What can you do to be a helper and spread acts of kindness in your corner of the world?

Share in the comments below a company that has impressed you with their kindness.