Westmoreland County pizza shop debuts "pay it forward" board

SCOTTDALE, Pa. (KDKA) — At JJ's Pizza , the employees are not only about making good pizza, hoagies and macaroni bowls.

They are also about making sure anyone who needs help purchasing their food gets it.

Recently, JJ's started a "pay it forward" board at its restaurant. In a recent Facebook post, JJ's said, "This board is for anyone in need or who has fallen on hard times, no questions asked."

Owner Heather Wishart said that she got the idea from a coffee shop in Maryland.

"I was at a coffee shop in Deep Creek, Maryland," said Wishart. "And they had a board that was just full of them. Teachers, moms of little girls, moms of little boys, they were buying coffees for anybody. And they would hang it up there and just pay it forward."

The board consists of red and pink paper hearts that say everything from "$5 off your bill" to a "free large cheese pizza." If someone needs one of these coupons, they only need take it off the board and present it to the register while paying their bill and the savings will be added.

The amazing thing, Wishart said, is just how the board has begun to fill up with people wanting to help.

"It just makes you proud because we have such a good small town and that it just spreads," she said. "I actually had a couple of people in line do it because they saw the first person do it, and it just takes off from there."

If you live near Scottdale and want to contribute to the board, simply stop by. No donations will be turned away, just as Wishart hopes no patron will go hungry.

"It's amazing to be nice. It really is," said Wishart. "It's not hard at all. At the end of the day, as long as you're a good person and are doing the right thing, that's what you should do."