DONELSON, Tenn. — Property at a Donelson, Tennessee, defaced earlier this month, was recently repaired by the same people who did the graffiti.
"It takes a lot of guts and bravery to come up here in a grown fashion, apologize and then offer to make it right," said Keith Schwartz, co-owner of Caliber Coffee Co.
A fence at Caliber Coffee Co. was spray-painted by a group of teenagers. Instead of pressing charges, the owners forgave them.
"You can't always be in control of what happens, but you can be in control of how you react to that," Keith Schwartz said.
The incident came on the heels of a theft of an outdoor plant, which the owners also posted about on Facebook.
"It's really easy to get upset or offended or take it personally, but to us, it's like you know what, we have great plants!" said Alaina Schwartz.
For three years, their mission has been to engage their community, one cup at a time.
"Our name, Caliber, it's the quality of a person's character. That's what we want to focus on. We always tell our children people first... people are the most important thing," Alaina Schwartz said.
After the graffiti incident, years of treating people well brought them some good karma.
"If we were to give people more second chances, if we were to ask for forgiveness and offer forgiveness more to people, we'd see our bonds as a community just strengthen. That's what we want," Alaina Schwartz said.
The vandalism also inspired the owners of the coffee shop to investigate adding a mural to an exterior wall of their business. Find out more here.
Hannah McDonald at WTVF first reported this story.
