LONGVIEW — In Cowlitz County, you can’t mention kindness without thinking of Bill Ammons.
For the past 30-some years, Ammons has regularly spearheaded coat, bike, shoe and school supply drives for both local kids and adults.
Now, the 78-year-old lifetime giver is back in the spotlight to revive a local staple: A Day of Kindness.
Last year, Ammons paused the tradition, which has been going strong since at least 2013.
On Monday, locals can take a break from worrying about the global pandemic and divisive politics, and make someone’s day brighter. Do your best Ammons impersonation: Smile at your neighbor, help a stranger and think of others before yourself.
“People are so depressed,” Ammons said. “They don’t know if they’re going to get the (COVID-19) vaccine; they don’t know if they’re going to get the virus. A couple acts of kindness could make a difference in someone’s life.”
Recently, the former owner of Pacific Barber Shop in Kelso said he handed out $150 worth of gift cards to a stranger, bought coats for a restaurant worker’s children, and ordered lunch for a helpful Home Depot employee and The Daily News’ Nancy Edwards.
“Every day is a day of kindness for me,” Ammons said.
On Monday, Ammons, who lives in Castle Rock, suggested people throughout Southwest Washington call someone they haven’t spoken to in a while, help an elderly person carry their groceries or just ask someone how they are doing.
“It doesn’t have to cost money, you can just say hello,” he said.
Even businesses, such as Country Village Nutrition Shoppe in Longview, are joining. At the nutrition store, sign up for free to win a gift basket filled with up to $200 worth of immunity builders.
Gayle Acker, the shop’s manager, said staff always try to go the extra mile for customers, including delivering goods and handing out free samples to those low on cash.
Acker grew up in the area and said she’s heard of Ammons, and what she called his “heart for the people,” her whole life. She’s helped with his other events, too.
“This is our community, and we love to give back,” Acker said.
It was Ammons’ father, he said, who fueled his community volunteerism as a youngster growing up in Kelso. In 1932, his dad, Bert, opened Pacific Barber Shop, after growing up in poverty with an alcoholic father and helping to raise his eight siblings.
Bert Ammons wanted to be a surgeon, but he couldn’t afford the education. He understood what it was like to go without, so he offered free haircuts at the shop and helped organize sack lunches for the needy.
Bill Ammons continued his father’s free haircuts, as well as the regular haircut price of $4, until he retired a few years ago.
Giving is euphoric, Ammons said; give it a try, you might just like it.
“When you do something good, you always feel good about it,” he said.
