If you eat at McDonald's, you've likely encountered the company's Monopoly game. It's a promotion that's been running for years, and offers customers the chance to win all kinds of things.
For those who are unfamiliar, the meal's packaging comes with a peel-off sticker. On the underside, it's revealed what you've won. Usually, it's a free food item, although some lucky winners have gotten cash prizes and even cars and jewelry.
But Australian photographer Matt Lawson actually prefers getting the food prizes.
Why would you hope for a chicken burger over a Corvette? Well, for Lawson, it's an opportunity to do some good in his community.
He saves the peel-off vouchers instead of cashing them in right away, and distributes them to needy folks in his area.
The vouchers are good for a period of time, and so don't have to be used immediately. This way, he explains, he can help someone get a meal without any additional cost to him or to the franchise, since they were going to give away the food for free anyway, just like KFC puts the food that would be otherwise thrown out in the hands of the needy, too.
Lawson is also trying to encourage others around the world to start doing this in their communities and make a difference.
[H/T: Distractify]
McDonald's has been periodically running its Monopoly game for years. People purchase a meal, and have the chance to win free food, or sometimes large prizes.
The promotion was happening when photographer Matt Lawson and his finacee stopped in one morning.
Peeling off his Monopoly sticker, Lawson saw that he'd won a chicken burger.
It wasn't something he especially wanted in the morning, but then he saw a man who he described as looking "down on his luck."
He handed the voucher to the man, and that's when the idea struck.
He took to Facebook with his idea.
"If you win free food, why not put your tokens in a jar and take them to an area where you know people are less fortunate than yourself?" he wrote.
"I did it today and if all of us do it together, we can be part of a small change."
After posting it, hundreds of people started sharing his idea and thanking him for the inspiration. Schools and homeless shelters have also joined the movement.
"It's been a really positive response," Lawson says, "which has been great."
While it's a small, simple thing, something like a free burger or fries can make a huge difference to someone who has literally nothing, and doesn't know where their next meal is coming from.
Lawson knows it's a small thing, but an act of kindness is never too small, really. He also says that it's a great way to get involved without spending too much of your own money.
Check out his interview with a local news station below, in which Lawson discusses his inspiration and the way the movement has taken off.
Check out what people are saying on Facebook, and take a look at some of Lawson's great photos on his website.
If you play the McDonald's Monopoly game, consider saving your vouchers the way Lawson has done, and help someone in your community get a bite to eat.
SHARE this great idea for helping someone out with everyone you know!
