First, I love being able to write this. This story has a personal side for me. It is intended to praise one of America’s large corporations whose reaction to a possible health crisis in our nation is both commendable and an ingenious publicity gain.

A few years ago, my wife went to work for a company called ‘CDS.’ Their principle client is Costco. When you shop at this “big box store” you encounter a number of mostly older women who invite you to sample some of the products sold at the establishment. They are kind but have a very specific set of rules to follow which include an effort to control the actions of the people they serve. It may appear to be a simple task but is much more involved.

Food safety is their primary concern. For example, if anyone touches more than one sample, all of their work must be destroyed and new samples prepared. The extreme measures taken are designed to protect the public from any illness related to their efforts to perform the tasks required of them.

When the coronavirus became a threat to the health of the world’s population, I wondered if these women would lose their jobs. In an effort to avoid panic, Costco made several decisions to protect their customers and the women who sampled mostly food items.

Management decided to suspend food sampling. This would end the employment of many employees of CDS. Someone employed by Costco suggested a program to protect the company’s customers and the employees of CDS. This solution should be an example for all corporations. The intelligence of the person or persons who created a plan which contained compassion combined with an opportunity to create good will and free advertising for their company is extraordinary. It combines capitalism with concern for the working men and women who needed a solution to possible financial difficulty.

Costco and CDS agreed to suspend demonstrations until the threat of the coronavirus ceased to exist. This was a decision I expected and believed to be reasonable. However, I was concerned about the women and men who desperately needed a supplement to their social security benefits. Costco had a solution.

They decided to create jobs within their organization to keep CDS employees engaged in activities which would offer them an income until the health crisis ended.

Today my wife went shopping. As two retired Americans who depend on social security for our income, one of her ‘stops’ included Costco. Several of her former team members employed by CDS were engaged in several duties intended to aid Costco in its efforts to prevent the spread of the coronavirus which included sanitizing the shopping carts of Costco members as they entered the store.

I recognize the benefit to Costco as a public relations and advertising win, but I also witness an effort to combine their benefit with a very American effort to aid disenfranchised women and men who would suffer from the situation. I have not witnessed a more American effort by a corporation in my lifetime.

I have many reasons to praise Costco, but today I am a more loyal customer than ever before. Although my wife and I cannot benefit from several of the store’s offerings, many of our needs can be served by this retail outlet.

This is what America means to me.

“The Truth Lives Here”

Op-ed by James Turnage

Image courtesy of Mike Mozart

My eight novels, including “Four More Years,” are exclusively available on Amazon; CLICK HERE; the Kindle app is a free download