Harry Arsi and Casey Parrish, owners of Greekin' Out Food Truck in Charleston, South Carolina, have created a unique way to keep their business delivering- literally. Usually in the food truck business, they set up their 25 foot trailer in brewery parking lots and business parks and customers come to them. This is where they acquire 80% of their business. With the strike of COVID-19 bringing a halt to their usual routine, Mr. Arsi is now bringing the food to their customers.

Mr. Arsi has been working with community HOA authorities to create times and locations for the Greekin' Out Food Truck to set up and make fresh bag lunches. "Whereas we had 5-6 communities (before COVID-19), now we have over 25. Because the festivals died, the communities are stepping up to fill in a little bit of that void," he said. 

Mr. Arsi works diligently to keep their small counter spaces spotless, including additional sanitization efforts under the circumstances. "That's the positive message in all of this- people are coming together to support the food truck business," he said. ​The HOA books the food truck. Then through the Street Food Finder App, people can view the schedule online and place their order and payment. The order immediately notifies Mr. Arsi who then preps all the fresh ingredients in a timely manner. Once complete, he puts the food in a bag with the customer's name and leaves it on the community's designated table for pick-up. There is not any person-to-person contact this way. "This app has been very helpful in adapting to this pandemic-way of food truck ordering and eating," he said.

Mr. Arsi was living day to day, like many small business owners in our nation. "You can't really prep for a pandemic. You don't know when it starts, how long it lasts, or anything. I am thankful for at least being able to pay my bills," he said.

There are no employees working for the food truck at this time, other than Ms. Parrish's mother who helps out occasionally. "I have a friend who owns restaurants in multiple states who recently had to lay off 2,800 employees company-wide," Mr. Arsi said. 

Support this family owned and operated Greek Food Truck!
​Greekin' Out's full schedule can be found here.

Towards the end of March, Ms. Blaine and her dedicated team of yoga instructors knew that change was coming as the State of Tennessee grew closer to implementing a stay-at-home order. "One of my lower moments was the week before close- The reality is that as a yoga studio owner, I am being asked to make a decision (whether to stay open or close) that could determine someone's life or death. I don't want to put my students or staff in danger or their health at risk," she said. The business began receiving a few messages of concern "here and there" asking if classes would continue. "It started getting more and more real, then one day we had all of our equipment locked up. That's when the reality hit," she said.

The studio's Front Desk Manager from Spain approached Ms. Blaine with an idea. She offered to help convert the business onto a streaming platform to allow their staff of instructors to teach from home. "Over the course of a week, we put a plan together and began testing staff's internet for online streaming," Ms. Blaine said.

Ms. Blaine is making an effort to keep a positive outlook on this unprecedented event. "The process is not fun, but there's gotta be something good on the other side," she said. The small business owner anticipates the continuation of yoga streaming services to be availble in the ongoing future to help share her passion with the public.

The Downtown Yoga Center staff is now streaming live yoga classes daily. They have adjusted classes to an online special of $10 per class, plus the added benefit of not leaving the house. You can see the full class schedule here and reserve your spot.

Help support this small business by taking a class, donating here, or buying a gift certificate with no expiration date towards present or future classes.

I saw this picture today, and the feeling struck.
 To say that I miss the mountains right now is a major understatement. 

And while the current state of affairs is much more important than a Blockbuster Marvel movie, the theme is quite similar with an essence of eerie, Doomsday vibes.

I have been trying to take neighborhood jogs daily to keep up with my mental and physical health. The absolute truth is, I miss my mountains. I miss the fresh air, impeccable scenery, and silence that one can only find deep within the woods. I miss the uncanny burn that presents itself in your thighs when you force yourself to climb hundreds of feet, even thousands, to gain elevation for stellar layered mountain views. I miss the trees and the sound of wind bustling through their cluttered branches.

But there is a certain satisfaction that comes from the simple joys of life that involve being present and content with exactly where you are, doing whatever it is you are doing. It involves only the resources you have available within your immediate environment.

Amidst the chaos, I find resilience in my photo bank. I am able to reflect on memories in the mountains and draw forth a near-feeling of being lost in the woods. I wonder if anyone out there can relate. It almost feels that we, as a society, have forgotten how to truly relax and take meaningful deep breaths, or maybe we never learned how from the start. And even under a Global Pandemic, there is a feeling of guilt present for sitting in one spot for too long.

I feel a restless sense of urgency to help combat this pandemic.

​Thank you to everyone out their on the frontlines, showing brevity that many of us cannot. Thank you to those working food retail, so that the rest of us have food on the table. Thank you for our service station men and women who allow us the luxury to pump gas. Thank you to our military men and women who are called out on a dime to leave their families and attend to the needs of the people.

And to those of us at home, doing our best not to take any unnecessary trips- what can we collectively do to help the rest of the world during these trying times? Staying home is certainly the biggest way we can help combat the spread of the disease, but there must be more that can be done.

Please share your thoughts below about how you, a friend or family member, small business, or compassionate brand is making the world a better place during these times.

​Let's show them some love.