Share a Cup & a Story With Folgers this coming Veterans Day! #veteransday

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of The Folger Coffee Company. The opinions and text are all mine.

The Share a Cup & a Story program with Folgers and Walmart offers a unique way to go beyond saying “Thank You” to Veterans this upcoming holiday. Share a cup, and a story. While we all have given gratitude and thanks, sometimes it’s what we do beyond the simple words that mean the most. What better way to share our thanks than to lend a friendly ear, and everyone enjoys a nice hot cup of coffee.  What better way to enjoy a cup then right along with a story and a friend? Folgers makes wonderful varieties of flavors and roasts which are all carried at Walmart  making it the place to stop and choose your favor cup of the day! 

Plenty of single serve varieties as well!

So many flavors to choose from! Hard to pick one, so I had to really decide over medium roasts or dark- which I love!

I recently enjoyed a cup of Folgers coffee right along a Veteran who always seems to have wonderful stories to share. Through all the hard times, she always seems to find a way to pull through whether with supporting family or finding a small positive in her life that keeps her focus on where she wants to be in life. A lot of her positive thoughts and views had been through the experiences of her years in service that she is never shy to speak about.

This special gourmet flavor of Folgers tastes like coffee ~ Win!

Judy came from a large family, with five brothers and two sisters so you can imagine the adventure and chaos throughout the house, not to mention the work it took to run the family.  Being from a large family myself there were always things happening and I know how hard it was on my parents to make things work. Whether it was money, or having everyone get along and work together, it was not an easy task to take on. Through a lot of work, the end result is endless joys and lasting memories for a lifetime.

She loves biking!

Being the eldest of her siblings Judy took on a lot of responsibility at a young age,  including working to help her parents out whenever she could. When things got real tough with money and the option for further schooling looked dim for her Judy, was discouraged. All the hard work didn’t seem to be doing much of anything, and she had her hopes set on school. One day she’d been walking home from an after school job and saw an ad for the Marines which she hadn’t been able to forget. With things at home not getting any better, Judy took the option of military services to help out and get more of an education all at once. It hadn’t ever been a thought or dream to join the Marines, but once she did Judy never regretted the decision she’d made , and while it had started out to be a choice to help her family out, in the end it had helped her out more than she ever thought it would.

I picked up a dark roast of Folgers at Walmart to enjoy, and share with you about the Share a Cup & a Story program! 

Despite the initial thoughts of it being a quick solution for her and the family, Judy found herself in a career with endless possibilities. She learned a whole new way of life and was able to slowly help her family out each month while she learned a new trade in the service. As the months went on, they turned into years and Judy grew stronger as an individual. Visiting family wasn’t always easy, and while she missed them dearly, Judy said she’d never overlook the new family she’d become a part of in the Marines. It was not just a way of life, but a network of friends that were always there for her.  Along with meeting new friends that she considers family, still to this day, Judy said she has learned quite a lot from the experience and wouldn’t have been able to be where she is today without her years in the service. Raising her own family now while working at a family counseling center she helps families deal with troubling times. Though she learned a great deal from her parents and her upbringing, it was during the years of service that Judy realized how well she was able to find ways to successfully deal and cope with stressful situations. Working under pressure isn’t always easy for some of us and Judy spends a great deal of time helping to teach families to work together to find positives ways to deal and move forward in life. She is thankful for the time she served her country and enjoys her work each day being able to give back what she’d learned throughout the years, hoping that her own life experiences will help another and that person will spread the positive changes in their life to another.

Gratitude changes everything…

Gratitude goes a long way, much more than anyone really seems to realize . One smile, one kind word, one Thank You, can make another person’s day. Simply sharing a cup of coffee over a story can brightened another person’s somewhat cloudy day. With Veterans Day coming up, why not look up local Veterans, share more than just a Thank You for their services, more than a cup of coffee. Lend an ear and hear their story , you may just learn something and brighten their day .

Want to hear more about the program? Check out Walmart’s Folgers Share a Cup & a Story page right here www.walmart.com/sharefolgers  #sharefolgers #veteransday

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