After Tim Owens was laid off, he felt compelled to give his last paycheck away.
Drivers in any city have likely seen it: a homeless person asking for money at a red light. Tim Owens had seen it many times before, including many drivers who didn’t stop to help. One day, he decided to change his perspective and be the person standing on the corner. But he was giving money away, $50 at a time.
Only one week before, Owens was laid off from his job. He had been in a director-level position for a major media company, with three children, a wife, a home, and a nest egg that they had been building. He looked at his final paycheck and realized that there were others who needed that money more than him. Owens says he felt compelled to give it away.
“I knew I had to do something crazy,” Owens says. “Not because of the theatrics of it, or not because of this self-fulfilling idea. It had to be a big and bold step in a way I would never forget it.”
Owens knew he couldn’t hand out money on a street corner dressed in a suit and tie. “What if we flipped this and showed people that things aren’t always what they seem?” said Owens. He dressed in disheveled clothing and held a sign saying, “It’s better to give than receive.”
Owens found himself talking people into taking the money. Many drivers rolled up their window, said no thanks, or waved him away. Owens kept repeating, “My needs are met, my needs are met,” when drivers would ask him if he was serious.
“We don’t know what the needy look like, we don’t know who is in need.”
“People didn’t know what to do. The perception that they saw, that they experienced, was not reality.”
One man in a truck thanked Owens, saying, “I just paid my bills and I came up short this week.”
Drivers were shocked to see a man giving away money on the street corner.
Owens had no idea how the day would go, but he didn’t anticipate his kindness to catch on so quickly. One man told Owens that his own needs were met for that day, and asked Owens to give it to the next person. And then another driver saw what Owens was doing and brought him a cold water from the nearby gas station.
Owens recorded the experience for himself, never intending to share it with the public. It happened almost three years ago. After years of telling the story of kindness to family and friends, he decided to share his experience after all. The response has been huge. Now Owens is trying to create more moments like his around the country.
Owens hopes people take away the lesson to give whatever you can, whatever that looks like. “We don’t know what the needy look like, we don’t know who is in need,” Owens says. “Putting yourself second and other people first, even if it’s just a moment.”
“We need to love each other and give where we can give and help where we can help and lift each other up.”
(Via: USA Today)
