A growing restaurant trend is fighting hunger in Oklahoma as more and more places begin to offer “receipt walls.”
Receipt walls allow customers to purchase a meal for the hungry and hang the receipt on the wall. Someone can then come in a take a receipt up to the counter and use it to receive a free hot meal.
One cafe that’s leading the trend is the Hi-Way Cafe in Vinita, Oklahoma and they’ve served over 100 people! They shared a post of their reciept wall on Facebook, saying, “The Hi-Way Cafe’s Giving Wall just served its 100th person! Thank you to everyone that has shared our page and wall information and/or contributed to keep the wall going. It has been such a blessing for everyone involved.”
The sign on their wall explains, “If you are hungry or know someone who is…These tickets have been paid for in advance by previous customers. Please grab a ticket and eat!”
News On 6 journalist Sawyer Buccy also shared about the cafe on Facebook and said, “. If a family in need of food comes into the cafe, they are treated just like any other paying customer and then the family will eat a meal paid for by a complete stranger.” How sweet is that?
While “paying it forward” walls, or receipt walls, are nothing new, the power of social media has really helped them touch more people, especially during such trying times as a global pandemic. More and more customers are in support of them and some people even had the idea to start a unique “Veterans Wall.”
Zak’s Cafe in Miami, Oklahoma has a receipt wall that’s open to anyone in need, but they took things a step further by creating a second wall specifically for veterans.
They shared on Facebook, “when you come in to zacks you may see two different walls now! We had two awesome customers want to start a Veterans Wall. In need or not! Take a ticket.”
The world could use more businesses that encourage customers to pay it forward!