From left to right: Byron, Eric, Van, Casey, Sam
2013 has been an amazing year for all of us at Wright Brothers, Inc. Our team has grown, we moved into a gorgeous new office, our company has never been more profitable, and we’ve never had more fun doing what we’re doing.
Most importantly, the success we are experiencing as a team has radiated to every team member’s personal lives. Two of us were engaged this year (congrats Corey and Sam), Van got an awesome new dog (shout out to Lenny) , Corey moves into his new house next week (Super Bowl party?), and I ate three steak dinners in one sitting last week (dream come true). Needless to say, our cups runneth over.
Getting what you want is fun. But, as anyone who has been blessed as much as we have can tell you, it’s empty if you don’t find ways to give back. Today, we took our first step as a company towards being a more grateful company; today was our first “Thankful Thursday.” Thankful Thursday is a simple idea. Basically, we take one Thursday a month, get out of the office, and get into the community to give back in some way.
For our first outing, we were privileged to have the guidance of two of San Diego’s most experienced community organizers. Eric Lovett and Byron Ross of Urban Street Angels provide homeless youth with basic necessities, such as food, sleeping bags, and hygiene kits (toothbrushes, deodorant, etc.).
If you order enough food at In-N-Out, they wheel it to your car
Eric informed us that homeless people rarely get warm meals, especially during midweek afternoons. From there, it was a short leap to deciding that the best warm meal anyone could ever get is an In-N-Out Double Double and french fries. We proceeded to pick up 50 of each (big thanks to In-N-Out for happily accommodating us during the lunch rush). Next, we hauled our delicious payload over to Ocean Beach and handed out burgers, fries, and sodas to exactly 50 people. It was a small miracle that we had the exact right amount for everyone present.
When I was planning the event with Eric, he said something to me that seemed curious at the time, but makes perfect sense to me now. He said, “you and your team will get more out of this than they (the homeless) will.” He was absolutely right. Yes, we made some people blissfully happy, and they were tremendously, almost overwhelmingly grateful. But, at the end of the outing, it was clear that we had received so much more than we had given. None of us wanted to leave. We were having too much fun. And, on the way back we were all still buzzing, feeling truly present, alive, and happy.
When you hand out free food, you meet some very cool people!
Thankful Thursday will be a regular tradition for us, and not just because we believe in giving back, but because we believe in the restorative power gratitude has on the human soul—our human souls. With than in mind, I hope this is the beginning of something bigger. I hope other San Diego businesses and individuals will join us. Our next outing is planned for January 16th. We’re not quite sure what we’re doing yet, but I hope you will be a part of it. I promise that you will get more out of it than the people you help.
Categorized in: Runway Blog
