Is 2014 the year of overwhelming generosity and compassion for our fellow humans? We certainly can’t remember a time when the true spirit of Christmas shone through the rampant consumerism which usually overshadows the holiday season.
In addition to the so-called Layaway Angels paying off random strangers’ debts in the USA, social media has been full of heart-warming stories of generosity this Christmas. We’ve reported on how one woman repaid a homeless man’s kindness by raising £20,000 ($31,000) to get him a home, how a five year old girl crowdfunded enough money to buy Christmas meals for 69 homeless people, and how a homeless man used $100 to help other people in his position.
All month there have been stories of anonymous heroes buying food and toys for complete strangers; in one case in Britain a young mother was approached by a random man who handed her £200 and then walked away.
Here’s another touching show of holiday kindness. On Sunday, a pub in London opened its doors to the homeless, cooking full Christmas meals with all the trimmings for 183 hungry people in need.
The story began when head chef Adam Harnison tweeted that the William IV pub in Islington, north London, would be feeding the homeless this holiday season. His simple reason: #becausewecan. Adam’s tweet went viral and offers of help came flooding in. Staff at the bar were happy to give up their free time to serve without receiving any pay.
People donated food, cakes, pastries and turkey stock!
Here was the traditional menu, with no expenses spared and all the special trimmings included…
And here are some photos of the happy people who had a hot Christmas meal all thanks to the generosity of social media users and Adam Harnison. The chef described the overwhelming public reaction to his good deed as “amazing, but sad.” He said he realizes that sometimes people just fall on bad luck, adding that if it wasn’t for his mother he might have also been homeless at one point.
