Wife Continues Husband's Legacy of Kindness

A New Jersey wife decided to continue her deceased husband's tradition of kindness by putting out their coolers so workers could drink and cool down hot summer months.

It is not hard to believe why Charlie Poveromo was such a beloved and respected person in his community. People who knew him and those he worked with only had good things to say about him.

Perhaps, he best demonstrated his kindness several years ago when New Jersey was in the middle of an intense heatwave. His wife, Velvet, recalled that it was five years or so ago when Charlie saw a garbage truck pullup, and the men in it were looking overheated and pale. Thus, he ran back to the house and grabbed some plastic cups and a big jug of water, making sure that everyone gets to drink as much as he wanted.

Charlie's coolers became a yearly tradition

Charlie then took the time to go to the local convenience store to get some bottled water and bags of ice. Then the next morning and with only a few hours of sleep, he filled the coolers. He then told the men that from that time on, the coolers would be filled with refreshments, so they have something to drink all summer long.

Without the couple knowing it, word had started spreading out, and they would begin seeing not just sanitation workers but construction workers, DPW employees, police offices, and firefighters stopping by to get some cold drinks and cool down in the shade of their trees. Years later, Charlie would add Gatorade and orange juice to his "menu." To which, Velvet added breakfast foods such as pound cake and coffee cake.

Continuing Charlie's legacy

Now that Charlie has passed on, Velvet thought that the best way she could honor her husband is by continuing his annual tradition. And so she went to the store to grabbed some ice and water and started filling the coolers once she got home. After that, she left some prayer cards from Charlie's services and a note.

In the note, she wrote, "In case you were unaware, my husband Charlie passed away suddenly at age 57 on March 10th. I will do my best to continue to provide bottled water." She recalled running back to the house filled with tears but feeling happy.

One day, she started seeing some men stepping out of the truck one after another, and in a straight line, they stood and saluted her and their home. It was then that tears began to flow, and she trembled as one by one, the men came up to her, grasped her hand, hugged her, and expressed their sympathy and appreciation to the thoughtfulness shown to them by Charlie.

As people began paying it forward, Charlie's Coolers soon began popping up in other locations, including Norwood, Ramsey, Paramus, Wyoming, and upstate New York. She said that "it has taken a life of its own," and she acknowledged that it was the community's way of paying tribute to her husband.

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