Christmas Love

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Anybody remember rock 'n roll icon Bo Diddley? Bo Diddley shot to fame back in the 50's and 60's with his iconic blues-based rock, and was a heavy influence on dozens of other famous musicians over the years. Although Bo Diddley continued playing music until the day he died, he pretty much retired from the music business back in the late 80's, and took up permanent residence in a small town just outside of Gainesville, Florida. Back in those days, I was a manager at the local Wal-Mart store in Gainesville. Every year, just after Thanksgiving, Bo Diddley would contact our store to make arrangements for a private shopping experience (back then, Wal-Mart wasn't open 24 hours a day like they are now). We would make arrangements with Mr. Diddley to come in early in the morning about 2-3 hours before the store opened, and he would have free reign of the store to shop. But this wasn't about Bo Diddley satisfying his personal shopping needs. Mr. Diddley wasn't buying for himself, but instead was shopping for the needy. Although the amounts changed from year to year, Mr. Diddley would easily buy $10,000 worth of clothes, toys, and other gifts on his shopping spree each year. The purpose? He would anonymously give all the gifts to the needy at Christmas time. He would work with all the local social service agencies to identify families in need, and then he would make sure they had a special Christmas. Although I was only at that Wal-Mart store for 7 years, he came every year that I worked there. I'm pretty positive he did it every year since he retired to the Gainesville area, and probably did it all the way up to the day he died. The amazing thing is, Bo Diddley was not a wealthy man by any means. As a black musician who rose to prominence in the area of racial segregation and injustice, he was often cheated out of millions of dollars from the music business. Although he received enough royalty checks to ensure he was comfortable, he lived a very modest lifestyle. So I can imagine coming in and buying $10,000 worth of gifts for needy families wasn't just a drop in the bucket to Mr. Diddley. I'm sure it set him back a big chunk financially every year, but he did it without fail, and with a big smile on his face. The man had a heart of gold! Although Bo Diddley passed away 7 years ago, there are hundreds of families who probably have a better life now because of his generosity. And he did it all anonymously, so those families never knew who to thank. But to him it didn't matter. Bo Diddley was spreading the Christmas love!