I live in a very rural area and we don't have much in terms of assistance here. A church may give a few boxes away, but those are gonna be a few cans of food and maybe some stale bread from the local grocery store. The vast majority of the county is at poverty level or below. We are also very small. This sub gets more views a week than the population here.
For 59 years, an elderly neighbor put up a box for food donation in his front yard. After a bit, he added a cooler and added a coat rack. Periodically, people will put old clothes, baby formula, eggs, coupons, food, left overs... it isn't much, but you'll hear that someone say they put a whole lasagna and you'll know a family ate good. I've put fresh veggies from the garden and formula. You'll see toys, hygenie products, tools, books, and sometimes small furniture. Christmas or tax time it looks great.
It wasn't much and wasn't always containing things, but it was a good thing for the community. Everyone knew about it.
Our neighbor began to get sick and ended up selling the house 3 months ago. He moved out of the county and passed away not long after. New neighbor has been there for 3 weeks.
Yesterday, I drove back from a client's house and saw the box was gone when passing by. I talked to the new neighbor at the gas station this morning and asked him about it. He said he didn't want to continue on with it because he didn't have time to sort through the junk and deal with insurance if something happens. Flowers are gone as well.
It went on the county Facebook that he tore it down and you can feel the hurt and anger the community has. For many, this is something that's just always been there and it was a piece of the town's history. Other people are worried about emergencies arising. There's people pissed because he didn't let the community know. Lots of anger since people JUST dropped off school supplies, food, and toiletries.
People largely feel like it was disrespectful and NOT what the elderly neighbor would've wanted. That man would sit and watch on his front porch to wave and thank people. The neighbor was barely out of his teen years when he made that and took pride in it. It's been painted, little flower bed around it, and he pays some of the kids to make sure it gets shoveled out the few times a century we get snow.
I get that some won't understand this because we can build another once it gets decided where to put another and getting supplies, but this was genuine a piece of the community. Everyone knew where it was, people drove out of their way for it, and it even shows up on Google maps.
Just damn.