“One small act of kindness” – Man mows elderly folks’ lawns for free, inspires 1,500 kids to do the same

Rodney helping an elderly neighbour mow the lawn. Photo credit: Facebook (Raising Men Lawn Care Service).

Do you remember the days when neighbours used to be like a family? You could pop next door and have a chat, borrow sugar and even count on them for emergencies. Many people feel that things are different now, but that doesn’t mean all hope is lost in today’s world.

070516_Light_Mow_Lawn_elderly4 — Rodney (left) helps elderly people in his community to mow their lawns for free. Photo credit: Facebook (Raising Men Lawn Care Service).

This is Rodney Smith Jr. and he is setting an example not only to his peers but also to his entire community.

While most college kids prefer to hang out with friends or work part-time between classes, Rodney who studies at the Alabama Agricultural and Mechanical University chooses to mow the lawn for the elderly – for free.

“One day, I saw an elderly man cutting grass and he looked like he was struggling,” said Rodney.

“So it came to me, I should do something about it.

“And that’s when I decided to cut lawns for the elderly, disabled, single-parent mothers for free.

“I’m capable of cutting grass because I’m young. I’m able. A lot of elderly people are not able,” he said.

070516_Light_mow_lawn_raising_men — Rodney teaches a volunteer how to mow the lawn. When volunteers start, they get a white T-shirt like this. Photo credit: Facebook (Raising Men Lawn Care Service).

What started as a random act of kindness has transformed into a meaningful movement. Rodney went on to establish the Raising Men Lawn Care Service where volunteers join his in mowing lawns for free. When volunteers mow their first lawn, they’re given the white shirt and by the time they reach 50 lawns, they get the coveted black tee.

Well done, Rodney! Watch his inspiring story…

Do you miss those times when neighbours used to be more than people who live next door? Do you wish we had something like this here?

The following post was sent to us to share

On my way home from a 12 hour day of cutting lawns, I seen this gentleman, I have no clue who he is to this day. But I said no way was I gonna let this guy tackle this on his own. So I turned around and went back and unloaded my mower and drove across the street and ask the gentleman if I could help. His eyes lit up and I took that as a yes. I ran down, jumped on my mower and went to work. As I’m cutting the lawn I look over and see the gentleman hunched over his wife, resting his head on her shoulder. So I get it knocked out in no time. I give them a thumbs up and proceeded to load my mower up. The wife makes her way over before I could leave. She was so thankful! Their riding mower broke down and her husband has been mowing their big lawn with a push mower. It only took 15 mins of my time. I changed their life, for a small moment. I hope someone reads this and feels like doing something good for someone tomorrow. I’m grateful to be where I’m at and I’m thankful for the people that help me get here.

Credit: J&J Lawn Service