Country music star Brad Paisley, and his Wife have plans to open a free Nashville grocery store for those in need.
Brad Paisley and his wife, actress Kimberly Williams-Paisley, are partnering with Belmont University to open The Store. The Store will be a food pantry modeled as a grocery store.
Paisley, the president of The Store’s board of trustees, told The Tennessean that the purpose of the grocery store is to help those who’ve fallen on difficult times by treating them with kindness and dignity.
He told the paper, “This is a grocery store with dignity for people who have fallen on hard times. All of us are one unforeseen disaster away from rock bottom. It’s nice to think about a place where when that happens to someone, they can use it to get back on their feet.”
Partnering with Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee, The Store will offer fresh and non-perishable foods to those in need for one year. Non-profit organizations and government agencies will refer customers to The Store.
Paisley told The Tennessean that the couple got the idea for The Store after taking their kids to volunteer at Unity Shoppe in Santa Barbara, California around Thanksgiving. The Unity Shoppe offers free groceries, free school clothing and supplies, job training and other essentials.
During the holiday season, The Store will have a free toy aisle. The non-profit will accept donations for new, unopened toys. The Store will break ground in 2019.