Just before Thanksgiving, customers of the Atlanta Kroger store received a huge surprise and walked away in shock. Turns out, a few Georgia entrepreneurs decided to give back to the community – they paid for $40 thousand worth of groceries.
Lucky Kroger Customers
Customers filmed countless videos on their phones for a reason at this grocery store trip. “One hundred and seventy eight dollars in groceries,” said one of them, stating how much money the mysterious group of guys got to pay for their items that day. Many more people showed their thankfulness to the entrepreneurs that paid it forward, knowing how much it means for the community and people surrounding them. “We have Thanksgiving food and we got tissue. God is good today, thank you,” another lucky customer in Kroger said loudly. “We had women literally crying saying thank you so we know how much it means,” Jason Lobdell said. He’s one of the entrepreneurs from the group that came to help the Kroger on Wesley Chapel in Decatur.
The other people that came to help out those who can’t afford groceries were his best friends. Alix Burton, Marcus Barney, Neo Davis, and Jonathan Gooch – all local entrepreneurs – made an Instagram live to let others know of their good deeds. “We’re doing a full shutdown, we’re spending about 30 grand to take care of the entire market,” they said. At first, they wanted to hand out gift cards bought for the money, but their plans quickly changed. The group of friends realized that it’ll take way too much time and create a mess at the exit. Then, they incorporated plan B – paying for the groceries at the checkout.
On Cloud Nine
“We literally took up every register at the grocery store and family after family would go through. We took over all 12 aisles for two hours,” Lobdell said. They then captured the aftermath of all the payments – all of them were covered in long receipts, some even around their neck like necklaces and over their heads. “We were roughly around $40,000,” he added. He and his friends didn’t mind the loss as they gained more positivity and love from the huge move for their neighborhood.
“I’m still floating on cloud nine after seeing those faces and getting all those hugs from the grannies and whipping those tears. It was just a good feeling. A lot of us come from those situations and that type of background. So we understand the true meaning of giving back and pouring back into our community,” Lobdell said. The friend group happily gave interviews and filmed videos on their Instagram accounts, inspiring people to give back if they can. But these guys didn’t end on $40K. They went further, also paying for gas for a dozen people at QuikTrip locations.
Moreover, Lobdell decided to bless the citizens’ Thanksgiving. Starting from 1 p.m., he was giving out boxes of food for those in need. The boxes he prepared at The Loft 1122 Old Chattahoochee Ave, Atlanta, Ga. suite E. included full meals and even turkeys!