Atlanta Entreprenuers Pay For $40K In Groceries Inspiring Others To Help Community

A group of local entrepreneurs in Atlanta paid for over $40,000 of groceries just before Thanksgiving. The group surprised shoppers at the Kroger on Wesley Chapel Road in Decatur on Tuesday. Video posted by entrepreneur Brad Giles’ Instagram pages shows customers dance for joy and tear up as they go through the checkout lanes — only to find their bills taken care of. The generous benefactors worked the registers and delighted customers with the news.

The social media post read “This is the season of giving and it’s more important than ever to give back to those in need! We had the Kroger at Wesley chapel in Atl on fire by giving out free groceries and paying for everyone for over 2 hours! Well over $40,000 of purchases given back to our community! I’m so proud to be a part of an incredible group of successful entrepreneurs that banded together to make this happen! Not only did we shut down the grocery store, we helped inspire the community by showing them that Entrepreneurs can give back to the community just as big as any celebrity and it was so much fun helping so many people this holiday season! “We literally took up all 12 registers for two hours at the grocery store and family after family would go through,” Jason Lobdell, one of the benefactors said.

As many still suffer from the economic fallout of the Covid-19 pandemic, spreading food insecurity across America, it is important for people to help others where they can. Millions are still without jobs due to the Covid-19 pandemic and according to Feeding America, the nation’s largest hunger-relief organization, more than 54 million more people in the country could soon face food insecurity. That is 17 million more than before the coronavirus outbreak.
Local churches across the country have been trying to keep up with communities’ food distribution and are experiencing record turnout with car lines miles long in some areas. Brad and Tronda Giles, along with several of their fellow entrepreneurs took notice and wanted to give back. “We’ve always had that love for giving back and helping individuals who have never had help before, and all the people we help in our work translates to who want to help in our communities,” Brad said.

The Giles’ said that after their group’s show of giving went viral, other entrepreneurs reached out to them to learn how they could give back. “Every little bit counts. Giving is something we all have to do as a community, and if we can all give to each other, it’s going to make everybody stronger,” said Giles.