We don’t often expect an individual who is busy with a professional to take the time to spend with homeless individuals. If that is your perception, it is about to change. A man by the name of Greg Smith is the founder of Hybrid Athletics. His company is a professional fitness training organization.
His businesses is located in Orlando, Florida. Like many business owners, he frequents the downtown area and runs across homeless people who are either asking for food or cash. Since Greg typically goes downtown wearing a suit, he is often stopped by the homeless as an “easy mark.”
On this particular day, he walked by a homeless woman. He was likely expecting her to ask for money but she simply smiled at Greg and said “Good morning , sir. Have a great day. God Bless.”
The reaction of this homeless woman completely took Greg by surprise. He took time to stop and have a conversation with her. In fact, they hit it off so well that he took her to lunch and now it has become a weekly habit. Every Tuesday, they go to lunch together.
Although that may be a remarkable thing for a professional to do, it is not why this story is going viral. Read on to find out what they do during their lunch dates.
Meet “Amy Joe”.
For the last few weeks each Tuesday, Amy Joe and I meet at the corner of Pine street and S. Orange ave in downtown Orlando (I work downtown and am always moving around the city). Each day for about a week I saw Amy Joe at this corner and she never asked for money…she simply said “Good morning Sir, have a great day. God Bless!!” and smiled.
I wear a suit to work everyday so I get asked a lot for money quite often downtown…but never once from Amy Joe. Every Tuesday Amy Joe and I now have Lunch together. For 30 min to an hour I get to hear how positive she is even though she really has nothing. Last week Amy Joe kind of dropped a bomb on me…she cannot read. Amy Joe does not smoke, drink, have a drug addiction, or anything to that nature. She simply just has never had anyone teach her how to read. She told me how hard it was for her to find work not being able to read. She began to tell me any money that she can collect she uses to check out library books that help with learning to read instead of buying FOOD.
This crushed me!!! She would rather learn to read to maybe find a job then eat!!!
I have been blessed with two amazing parents and a family that has always had resources to provide me with anything I wanted to do. Amy Joe has not. So now not only do Amy Joe and I sit and have lunch, I’m teaching her to read. I rent one library book a week and we read it together Tuesday and she practices on her own throughout the rest of the week.
This post is in no way to make anyone feel sorry for Amy Joe or brag about me doing something for someone less fortunate. I wanted to share this because maybe this can lead to someone helping another person. There are a lot of people out there like Amy Joe, not all are hungry, homeless, or hurt. Some could be your family or friends. Helping someone could be as easy as saying hello and smiling. I have been fortunate enough in my finances that I can take care of Amy Joe, so that’s what I’m going to do.
If this is something that hit home with you, Like & Share it…if not, that’s okay too. But you never know what you can do for someone until you try. Who is your Amy Joe?!?!?
It’s lovely to see people who go above and beyond to help people who need it. What Greg is doing for Amy Joe is inspiring.
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