An Evening With Leigh Anne Tuohy

Leigh Anne Tuohy speaks at Fairfield High School

Leigh Anne Tuohy became famous after she and her family took in a 6’6”, 350 lb. black teenager they found wandering the street. That boy is Michael Oher, an NFL rookie who Tuohy says would have been dead by now if it weren’t for someone stepping in before he fell completely through the cracks. He was bound for gang life, where the mortality rate for a body guard is 21 years. Instead, he’s making millions and is loved by a family who took him in and made him one of their own. You know this story; Sandra Bullock won an Oscar playing Leigh Anne in the movie "The Blindside."

Leigh Anne encouraged everyone to get involved with their community in the spirit of “cheerful giving.” She said that we didn’t need to adopt someone into our homes to make a difference. All we had to do was make the world a better place for someone else. It wouldn’t take much more than a smile.

She shared a story about her son, SJ, and a day that he tried to make a small difference in someone’s life. SJ was at a gas station and went inside to pay for his gas since the credit card swiper was broken. Then man in front of him set a $5 bill on the counter and asked the cashier for $5 on pump number 8. With gas at $2.69/gallon, that wasn’t going to buy much, so SJ reached around him and laid another $20 on the counter, telling the cashier to make it $25 on pump 8.

“Why did you do that?” the guy asked.

“Five dollars won’t get you very far.”

“Yeah, but you could use that $20 for other stuff.”

SJ shrugged.

The man was incredulous. “No one’s ever done anything for me before.”

SJ told him to do something nice for someone else someday. Still flabbergasted, the man questioned SJ again and then went out to pump his gas.

The cashier looked at SJ with suspicion.

“Why’d you do that?”

“Just thought I’d do something nice.”

“Nobody’s ever done anything like that for me.”

“Well, that’s too bad,” SJ said as he went out to the pump to gas up his car.

The guy from inside and his friend were still at pump 8 and the friend came over to SJ.

“Did you really buy him $20 of gas? Why’d you do that?”

And on it went. SJ told his family about it at dinner and said that he’d gotten more than $20 worth of pleasure out of the experience and thought he’d do the same thing with three $20 bills the next week. Then he posted the story on his facebook page and got a string of responses, half of which asked “Why’d you do that?”

Leigh Anne encouraged us all to do something like that. She challenged us to volunteer, to help a neighbor, or give money to an organization that would make a difference. She ended by reminding us that no one ever goes poor by giving of themselves.