INDIANAPOLIS — The holidays can be a tough time to be alone, so one local business opened their doors on Christmas Day offering free coffee, donuts and conversation.
It happened at Neidhammer Coffee on East Washington Street. Anyone who entered on Wednesday was greeted with a smile and surrounded by others, making it a little easier to handle for those feeling lonely.
"It's a lot of people you wouldn't think about that woke up Christmas morning and had nobody or anything to celebrate," John Hobelman, general manager, said.
College students, widows and widowers were just some of the people there. Volunteers also stopped by to act as a listening ear.
It's very good to be able to be around people, especially people who don't have family or someone to be around so they can still interact and be able to feel the joy," Breanna Reardon, a New Castle resident, said.
It's the kind of joy you can only get through meaningful conversation.
"Kinda made each others day," Edward Gordon, an Indianapolis resident, said. "It's pretty quiet out there, not much going on so it's great to meet new people."
Hobelman said it was about more that just free coffee and donuts on Christmas.
"Very few places just open their doors and allow people to come in and there is definitely a need for it," he said.
Last year they had about 150 people come in on Christmas. Hobelman said they expect the crowd to continue to grow each year.
"People that are alone, I'm probably going to get emotional, people are alone and they feel forgotten and this is just a way to let them know that people think about them and that they matter," Hobelman said.
