KIRO 7
When one random person started paying-it-forward at a local Dairy Queen drive-thru, they started an incredible chain. Believe it or not, the kindness chain lasted for several days!
Pay-It-Forward In 2020
KIRO 7
No doubt, 2020 was a crazy year. From the coronavirus pandemic and wildfires to the election, everyone's looking for a little kindness now. Well, many found it at the Dairy Queen in Brainerd, Minnesota. There, one customer started a pay-it-forward chain at the drive-thru that lasted for over 900 cars! Incredibly, it all started when one man told the teller that he wanted to pay for two meals: his and the car behind him. It seems in these crazy times, this man just wanted to do something that would brighten another's day. Of course, he had no idea the miracle that he was starting...
While manager Tina Jensen had heard of pay-it-forward drive-thru chains before, nothing could prepare her for what happened next. Upon finding out their meal had been paid for, the next person pulled forward and paid for the person behind them. And it happened again and again and again. In the next two days, over 900 customers paid for another's meal, totaling over $10,000 in sales!
"There's all different types of ways to help people," Jensen said. "I think this touched a lot of people that we didn't even know it touched, deeper than we know. And you don't know what's going on in a person's life." Soon enough, the chain started to go viral, and Jensen kept people updated through the two days on the local fast food joint's official Facebook!
Faith In Humanity Restored, Thanks To Dairy Queen
KIRO 7
Customer Heidi Bruce was in the middle of the pay-it-forward chain and could not believe the kindness she saw in others. "During times like these it kinda restores your faith in humanity a little," she said. "The way the world is now you see a lot of anger, tension, and selfish behavior. What we witnessed was pure kindness and it was a breath of fresh air really."
The chain also meant quite a bit to those working at the Dairy Queen, which has been hard hit by the pandemic. It's been hard "with the lobby shutting down, being only open for take out, being able to open for half your capacity, different things like that," Jensen said. However, the kindness train certainly brought a smile to everyone's face! "No matter what's going on, take care of each other, be positive, be happy and don't focus on the negative, we'll get through it," the manager concluded.
