When the COVID-19 pandemic shut Houston down, Angeline Latchley and her fiancé found themselves unemployed and bored, like so many of us. Not ones for idle hands, they started cooking for their friends and family.

When the COVID-19 pandemic forced the town to shut down, Scott Chittle decided that the community needed a safe place to come together, and something to spark some joy during the dreary winter months. And what is a better outdoor activity to get people outside in the cold than ice skating?

When icy temperatures this past winter froze Kodak, Tennessee, shutting power down and freezing pipes, Sean Patel, owner of the local Quality Inn, wanted to do something to help his neighbors: open his hotel to all comers, even if he ran out of rooms, and provide them food and warmth until the power came back on.