NC Florist Surprises 800 Widows With Valentine’s Flowers

Photo: Getty Images

A florist in North Carolina surprises hundreds of widows with flowers for Valentine’s Day. We told you last year about Ashley Manning, the Charlotte mom of four who started a successful florist business at the start of the pandemic and paid her good fortune forward by giving flowers to widows on Valentine’s Day. In 2021, Manning learned that her child’s teacher had lost her husband, so she gave her some flowers and the teacher was so appreciative, it inspired Manning to do even more.

She enlisted a team of volunteers and got donations from local businesses and that first year, she gave away 120 bouquets to local widows who were nominated by people in the community. In 2022, the number grew to 400 and this Valentine’s Day, Manning oversaw more than 800 deliveries.

The last year has had lots of ups and downs for Manning. She suffered a detached retina and ended up permanently losing sight in one eye, but despite that, she has seen her community project go nation-wide. She was recently approached by Facebook’s parent company, Meta, about making her initiative into a national community outreach program. That fits nicely into Manning’s vision for her project. "My dream is that one day we can support and care for widows on Valentine's Day in every city," she says.

Source: Today


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