大侠行天下日记 我见我闻我思 12/15

小人物大慈善家——-向麦金维尔致敬

现年七十岁的傢俱行老闆麦金维尔是位传奇的大慈善家，他对社会仁慈和关怌代表了许多善心人士在支持着社区之救灾行动。

这位出生在密西西比州斯达威镇的企业家， 从高中时代就移居德州 ，他以「為你省钱」之广告词為他的傢俱店做了扭转业务之重要转捩点 ，故事应该从四十多年前说起， 当他在创业时已经面临山穷水尽只剩下一万美金， 他决心投放在电视广告上， 当他在观看电视台制作时， 对於台词和播音员之表现很不満意， 最后只有自己上阵， 他就是以「為你省钱」这句话打开了他事业的辉煌时代。

当他的傢俱连锁店遍布在休斯敦的各角落时， 他对社区之慈善义举从未中断， 二O一七年哈威颶风， 二〇一九年依美达大淹水以及二O二一年德州大停电， 他打开大门将所有人在店裡过夜， 包括流浪汉在内并提供热食和咖啡， 这一幕幕令人感动落泪的场面， 绝非一般人能做到的善事。

这位大慈善家曾经写过一本书名叫《永远要筑大梦》。

今天我有幸和麦金维尔同台， 向上週被五十个龙捲风侵袭的肯塔基等六大州之灾民们伸出援手， 把玩具、 食品、 饮水、 帐蓬和衣物送到灾民手中。

麦金维尔在休斯敦北边的傢俱店， 大卡车队正在整装待发， 开向灾区。

我们也要呼吁华亚裔社区人士伸出援手， 可以把你们的捐赠品送到美南新闻广㘯， 我们一起加入救灾行动。

We Salute Mattress Mack

We went to Gallery Furniture and met Mr. Jim McIngvale and delivered some toys so that his truck could send them to Mayfield, Kentucky. I am so honored to be a part of his mission to help people when they really need it.

Mr. McIngvale, also known as “Mattress Mack”, was born in Starkville, Mississippi, and moved to Texas where he played football at Denton, Texas’s University of North Texas.

In the early years when he opened his Gallery Furniture store, he invested his remaining $10,000 in a television station in Houston. But he was not satisfied with the TV station production, so he created his own slogan, “Save You Money!” He is best known for his energetic and fast-paced sales pitches.

Today he owns one of the largest furniture stores in Texas. In 2002, Jim McIngvale co-authored the book, “Always Think Big” with Thomas Duening and John Ivancevich and talked about ups and downs of his business.

In August 2017, he opened his store to people affected by Hurricane Harvey and when Storm Imelda flooded Houston in 2019, he once again opened his door to storm victims and provided them with free meals.

During the 2021 Texas power crisis and winter storms, McIngvale allowed people to shelter from the cold and spend the night in the Gallery Furniture showrooms. When Hurricane Ida hit the Gulf Coast, particularly in Louisiana, he again opened his door to shelter Louisiana residents at his furniture store and again provided warm meals to them.

Today our communities are facing more challenges than ever. When we look at the disaster that just happened in our neighboring states, we need to help those people like Mr. McIngvale is doing.

We want to urge our community to take action now. Southern News Group has also set up a tent to accept donations from all of you. Let’s all follow Mattress Mack’s example, our hero, to send our love to all those people who are still suffering.