Cleveland acts of kindness bring warmth in cold times
[Feb. 21, 2021: Andrew Horansky]
While many of us were bundling up this week, trying to stay warm, there were incredible acts of kindness across the country and here in Northeast Ohio.
They targeted the homeless and others in need.
On Cleveland’s west side, there is now a new Wall of Love near a grocery store.
On Saturday, volunteers stocked it with scarves, hats, and gloves.
“At one in time in my life, I was homeless, so this used to be my life,” Walls of Love founder, Holly Jackson, said.
She is now a little more than two years in with her non-profit.
“We have done 810 walls as of today, helped about 185,000 people so far,” said Jackson, adding their work makes a difference.
“We get thank you emails. I’ve had at some sites, people have actually wrote on our signs and said, ‘Thank you,’ that they’re appreciative,” said Jackson.
As much of the country was gripped in ice and snow recently, people offered warmth through good deeds.
In hard-hit Texas, a teacher used his stimulus check to help a homeless man buy new clothes, get a fresh haircut, and even find a hotel room.
“Imagine just having nowhere to sleep, like just being outside all day and being very limited with what food you can eat, not being able to shower or groom yourself, things we just take for granted,” said Ivan Loza, who gave up his check.
He even filmed the encounter to not tap himself on the back, but rather, to tap others on the shoulder.
“I am challenging them right now to go out there and do something similar in their own way,” said Loza.
In Virginia, Jordie DiFernando is the founder of the non-profit “Compassion Cards.”
Volunteers there connect the world through handwritten messages of hope.
“In the past we’ve sent messages to foster kids, the LGBTQ+ community, people who are struggling with food insecurity, unhoused people,” said DiFirnando.
From her letters of love, to Loza’s acts of love, to Jackson’s walls of love, the world cannot get enough.
Jackson says she currently has about 1700 requests for walls and needs help getting to them.
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