CULLMAN, Ala. – Dr. Ginger Holt, a surgeon in Nashville, often visits her hometown of Cullman and makes regular stops to treat herself at Rumors Deli. On a recent visit, though, she was the one doing the treating, presenting owner Annette Harris with a check for $7,500 to support the local business and to help Rumors provide meals to others around the area.
Harris said of Holt, “One day she texted me and just said she wanted to help and she wanted to give back to Cullman, and she wanted to help a small business- she wanted to help us- and what could she do. She wanted to start by giving a donation, and she wanted to leave it up to me to figure out who to help. But she did specify that she would like to help the elderly and people, maybe, that are not really getting help.”
Harris is calling the food giveaway the “Ginger Project” because “One: Ginger Holt, and two: both Ginger and I are ‘gingers!’”
Harris set about to find groups and organizations across the community. This week, she started delivering meals to workers at Comfort Care Hospice, Kindred Hospice and Econo-Med Pharmacy.
Said Harris, “I thought, ‘Well, you know, who thinks about hospice? Hospice, they are medical care, and people need to think about them, too.”
She added a commendation to the pharmacy for the care its staff takes in safely providing medications to the seniors in area nursing homes.
Upcoming plans include feeding weekday night shift workers at Cullman Regional.
Harris said, “(Holt) did mention Cullman Regional and some of the medical people there. And I thought, ‘Well, you know, while they certainly do deserve to get help, what groups are not getting help from there?’ is what I was thinking. I called and talked to Lindsay Dossey and Amanda Satterfield over there, and they told me that the weekly- through the week- night shift was not really being fed, so I thought, ‘Hey, I’ll see about that!’ So, Monday, Rumors is going to feed the entire night shift at Cullman Regional, thanks to Dr. Ginger Holt. So that’s one project.”
Harris also plans to distribute Rumors gift cards through Cullman’s Donald E. Green Active Adult Center, and wants to offer free meals for seniors 60 and older at the restaurant, once restrictions on in-house dining are lifted.
With help from C.H. Harris Contracting and the Cullman Area Chamber of Commerce, Rumors also recently fed officers of the Cullman Police Department. Additionally, the restaurant has been able to provide even more meals with the support of local financial institutions.
Harris is also seeking other opportunities to help, like offering gift cards to families who have lost income because of “non-essential worker” layoffs.
She commends high-profile essential personnel like law enforcement, emergency responders and others, but noted, “I want to give to somebody that is not always thought of, and that’s like, if somebody had thought of them, they’d be like, ‘Oh, I wish I’d thought of them!’”
Harris said of the experience of giving, “I almost feel a little guilty, because I feel so good by doing this. I’m getting something out of it, by taking these things. Even though my money itself is not donating- she’s letting me choose who gets it- and I get to pick who gets this, and I’m so excited because they are so happy and grateful to have it. I’ve been happy to do that.
“I thought that was pretty neat, that she trusted me with such a sizable donation to not only help the community, but to help me and my business. I’ve been really excited about it, and I just feel so good every time I take a box. I love to do it because it makes me feel good. It’s a positive, with all the negative you see, and there needs to be that.”
Harris took a moment at the conclusion of the interview to commend Rumors Deli’s loyal customers, telling The Tribune that the restaurant is seeing increased tipping, and that customers are even donating cleaning products to help the staff keep everything clean and healthy in the kitchen.
“We’ve had a lot of really good support from the community, just to help us. Customers have been tipping really big, a lot more than usual, for us to give, spread out among our customers and to help us with bills or whatever we needed. We’ve seen such a generous part of the community that you don’t think about it.”
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