Eyes that see the good in things: March 30, 2020

As we watch the novel coronavirus continue its spread across the United States, there are many grim and scary facts that we have come face to face with on a daily basis. We try to balance these thoughts with stress reduction practices and reminding ourselves to take things one day at a time. But even at this time when the news is so full of illness and people are afraid, it is heartening that it is quite easy to find stories where people have seen the good.

I am one of those people who has been enjoying the posts on A World of Hearts. I still need to decorate my window (which no one will see) and I will probably add some hearts to my mailbox that someone might see. Tomorrow, I plan to start sewing masks. My niece is a nurse at a facility that has requested volunteers to sew masks. Thankfully, my organization skills have not yet hit my fabric stash that I was going to donate, so I will have plenty of fabric to make masks.

These stories that hit my heart this week were from the floral industry as events like weddings, corporate parties, conventions and religious ceremonies are all being postponed or canceled to practice safe social distancing. During this time, members of the floral community are refusing to let darkness win.

With the social events being canceled, florists across the country are left with a surplus of fresh flowers that were ordered for these canceled events. As we all know, those flowers have a short life span. Some floral businesses lamented the fact that they had so many flowers that were going to go to waste and they got creative.

Some florists repurposed the flowers just to spread a little joy and positivity in their communities. Some business owners handed out flowers and bouquets to people driving by in the vehicles. Events companies gave away trucks full of flowers.

Florists have created enormous floral displays in parks. One business owner, Katie Robinson of DFW Event Design told “People Magazine” that she was inspired to create a huge display in Philadelphia after seeing a video of a flower market in the Netherlands who were forced to dispose of their unneeded flowers in a parking lot.

“Having coolers full of flowers and greenery myself, I knew I couldn’t throw them out and I needed to make sure they were still used to bring joy and smiles to people’s faces. We all need that right about now,” Robinson says, noting that she has had around 20-25 special events canceled or postponed due to the coronavirus outbreak.

The public response has been amazing, according to Robinson, who said, “The tears, emotions, smiles and pure joy we brought to people was unimaginable.” During this time when the whole world is going through the same thing right now, it seems to be a way to calm anxiety and touch people across the world.

That same day, Sweet Root Village, a floral design company in Alexandria, Va., was also using their excess blooms to spread smiles. In this case, the co-founders, Lauren Anderson and Rachel Bridgwood, made the decision to host a fundraiser after many cancellations left them with thousands of extra flowers. They set up a drive-thru flower shop, where cars could line up and receive the bouquet of their choice— with all the money going to charity.

“We knew we wanted to (safely) get our flowers into the hands of those that could enjoy them, and we were also feeling the tug to help those who are struggling with all of the immediate job loss that has been cascading around us,” Anderson and Bridgwood told “People” of the logic behind the drive-thru.

Their team delivered hundreds of bouquets and displays of flowers to a line of waiting cars, from a safe social distance as they put displays in trunks and through car windows with gloved hands. The payment method was zero touch through the online cash app, Venmo.

They hoped to raise $1,500 to donate to the DC Dream Center, an organization that provides food and supplies to those who’ve come by hard times due to the virus. The first day, they raised $7,000. With the help of other wholesalers, they held a second day fundraiser and raised another $6,000, for a grand total of $13,000.

“We were so encouraged by all of the smiling faces that came out to support the drive-thru— some even came two or three times,” said Anderson and Bridgwood. “Many people bought several arrangements to place on neighbors’ doorsteps. It goes to show how flowers truly bring joy to others, especially in times like these.”

New Orleans floral businesses say that brides are telling them they are living their worst nightmare, having to cancel their wedding without knowing when they would be safe to reschedule. It’s scary for the business owner, as well, because they don’t know what is going to happen either.

Most small businesses are hurting now but in the floral business, spring is one of the busiest times of the year. Now, everything has been postponed or canceled indefinitely. One business owner said that the amount of revenue and the lives that this is affecting is so deep that there are no words for it.

They had received delivery for the $50,000 worth of flowers that were scheduled to go out to events that were no longer happening. So, they decided to take a bad situation and make it a little bit better. Rather than wasting the flowers, their clients were gracious enough to donate them to a floral fundraiser. They arranged bouquets and repurposed all the flowers into arrangements to sell them and donate the funds to the hospitality industry.

While they were pleased to lift people’s spirits and raise money for the hospitality industry, they said they know that the event and flower industry as a whole, like so many other areas of our economy, has taken a huge hit with events cancelling and flower orders halting. Their last comments were that, “We grieve for the many businesses facing extreme hardship and are hopeful for a quick and strong return of our beloved community.