Harris Co. Constable deputies surprise senior citizens with Walmart gift cards
HOUSTON - A group of Houston area senior citizens were in for a nice surprise.
They were shocked to receive a little "extra” for spending. They were lined up outside Walmart for the secure, senior only shopping hour from 6:00 am to 7:00 am, since COVID19 is more dangerous for that age group and all of a sudden cop cars started pulling into the parking lot. As it turns out, the deputies came bearing gifts.
“Look it’s my gift card,” Sherri Perkey held it up showing it off. The little piece of plastic is putting quite a smile on Perkey’s face and she isn’t the only one.
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“Oh very much. I was really happy to get it,” laughs 73-year-old Carolyn Day. You see, as the ladies we interviewed and other seniors showed up to shop at Walmart, Harris County Precinct 4 Constable Mark Herman and his deputies arrived armed with gift cards to give the seniors.
“It was super you know because as soon as I went in and did my shopping I used it and it was wonderful because it helped me pay for my groceries. Most of the seniors, we’re living on social security so anything like that really helps a lot,” Day adds.
“It is nice to have a little extra that you don’ have to spend on your normal weekly shopping. You can get a lot with $25,” says Perkey.
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"I just decided to spend some money and go out and give gift cards. We were able to meet and give out thousands of dollars for our seniors,” explains Constable Herman. While the value of the card is $25, the seniors tell me the joy it added to their day is priceless after weeks of being isolated and now having to wear protective gear in public to stay safe.
“It’s quite depressing, the news you hear everyday and going to the store at six o’clock in the morning is not a normal thing. So going up there and having someone give you a gift card to help you it’s just, it’s heartwarming,” Perkey says.
The gift comes even as the pandemic has hit Precinct 4 personally.
"We’ve got 12 employees in isolation right now with symptoms of COVID. I’ve got three that positively tested for COVID. They’re in quarantine right now,” the Constable explains.
Fortunately, those deputies are expected to recover and Constable Herman says he wanted to give the gift cards because as we all journey this road that has never been traveled, he says the only way to do it successfully is together.