Meet Joe - H.U.G.S. origin story

In 2019, I was on a work trip that would change my mission forever. I met Joe on a freezing cold, rainy winter day. He was sitting outside a convenience store, tucked between an ice chest and a newspaper box, trying to find shelter from the icy rain. Just like that, a simple detour turned into a week of unexpected connection.

Over that week, I learned about Joe’s journey. He had lost his wife unexpectedly the year before, and his grief had led him down a difficult path. He began drinking to mask his grief. As a result of the drinking, he lost his job. Without income, he lost his home, and eventually his hope. Joe believed he deserved his circumstances, but I reminded him of something powerful: that God saw him, loved him, and had never forgotten him.

Before I left, Joe let me buy him a hat, a scarf, gloves, and socks. That simple act changed both of us. As I headed back home, I couldn’t stop thinking about Joe and began noticing others in need. I started providing food and handmade hats, feeling God’s gentle nudge to do more.

One day, while researching the most requested items in homeless shelters, (hats, underwear, gloves, and socks) and writing those only a list, my son noticed that they created the acronym of H.U.G.S. - and that’s how our nonprofit was born.