PLANT CITY, Fla. — It doesn’t take much to spread kindness in your community, but People Magazine recently named some of the kindest people in the country, including a pair of brothers from the Tampa Bay area.
Many people might describe brothers Nate and Aaron Davis as hardworking and humble.
“We’re the kind of people that if you see someone broke down on the side of the road, we’re probably the folks that are going to pull over for you,” said Nate.
The two were born and raised outside Plant City, learning the importance of hard work and discipline while on their childhood hobby farm.
The brothers never missed an opportunity to lend a helping hand. After Hurricane Irma, Nate noticed the first responders and linemen working long shifts to get people back on their feet.
“I thought to myself, you know, could you imagine being that guy coming home, or that girl coming home every day after a long shift, and your property is still not taken care of?” said Nate. “It’s because you’re helping everybody else.”
He gave back by helping clean up their own properties for them.
A few years later, his brother, Aaron, was dubbed the “Tampa Chainsaw Man” after jumping into action by delivering chainsaws to crews and helping efforts after a snowstorm in Texas.
Fast-forward to Hurricane Ian, Nate again helped the first responders clean up their homes, and then the Davis brothers bought 30 chainsaws and distributed them to the Florida Baptist Convention Disaster Relief Unit.
“If it encourages someone to just change their mindset to say, you know what, I don’t have to fix the world,” said Nate. “I don’t have to go clean up the entire hurricane. I don’t have to go clean up all the streets, but maybe I could clean up this sidewalk, or maybe I can help this one organization, just any little thing.”
For all their work, the pair were named among People Magazine’s “Kindest People in America.”
“I jokingly say I don’t know if I’m the kindest man on my street,” said Nate. “We’ve been called a lot worse, I’ll say that right. It was very humbling to hear that, but at the end of the day, if we’re being honest, there’s people out there that just commit their entire lives serving in ways that we couldn’t possibly ever come close to.”
Nate emphasized they’re not looking for the spotlight but instead hoping to shine a light on other organizations doing good work that might even inspire people in the community to do the same.
“It doesn’t require disaster. It doesn’t require a massive need, but just, you know, do for other people,” said Nate. “When you do, what you’ll find is you’re helping people out, but it will touch your heart more than it’d probably even help them out.”
To learn more about Aaron and Nate Davis' story, click here.
