Mike Esmond uses Planters award to pay overdue bills for hundreds in Gulf Breeze pnj.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from pnj.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Veteran Pays Off 114 Outstanding Utility Bills for Struggling Neighbors Ahead of Christmas
For the second holiday season in a row, a Vietnam veteran of Gulf Breeze, Florida, has extended a huge gesture of kindness to his community by paying off $7,600 worth of past due utility bills to ease the burden for local families ahead of Christmas.
Mike Esmond is a 74-year-old great-grandfather who runs Gulf Breeze Pools & Spas. His generosity ignited with one of the incidents from his past, as he himself once had his gas shut off while struggling financially in 1983, along with raising three young daughters. At that time, the loss of power was quite devastating.
Even if we didn t have the hurricane, I felt like the pandemic alone made it more critical for me to do something, Esmond said. Last year, I did something just to help people out. This year, it s more meaningful.
Esmond s second good deed totaled $7,615.40, according to Gulf Breeze Utility Billing Supervisor Joanne Oliver. He paid off about $4,600 worth of bills last year.
Financially, Esmond thrived in 2020. He said he s almost ashamed to admit how successful Gulf Breeze Pools and Spas was this year, as his company directly benefited from Sally and the pandemic. When people sat at home last spring with nothing to do, they bought swimming pools, Esmond said. When we had the hurricane, and so many places were damaged, that gives more work to roofers and contractors. And you know what, it brought in a lot of extra income for me with all the pools that were damaged and underwater. That s why it was more important this year to share with the people in our community.
Florida man pays off 114 outstanding utility bills for his neighbors before Christmas By Caitlin O Kane Man pays neighbors utility bills
Mike Esmond, a great-grandfather and business owner from Gulf Breeze, Florida, is like a guardian angel for his neighbors. Esmond recently paid off the outstanding utility bills for 114 families in his community, totaling $7,600.
He made a similar gift last year, when he paid off 36 bills worth $4,600. This year, however, Esmond felt the gift was more necessary than ever. When we had Hurricane Sally, that did a lot of damage to a lot of residents here, Esmond told CBS News. And the pandemic, I know, has a lot of people out of work. they ve closed up, they ve laid people off. So this year, I felt like I really needed to do something.