A Good Samaritan! Hotel Waiter Arun Shetty Shares Part Earnings with Poor

A Good Samaritan! Hotel Waiter Arun Shetty Shares Part Earnings with Poor

“The best way to not feel hopeless is to get up and do something. Don’t wait for good things to happen to you. If you go out and make some good things happen, you will fill the world with hope, you will fill yourself with hope.” ― Former US President Barack Obama

“Love is not patronizing and charity isn’t about pity, it is about love. Charity and love are the same — with charity you give love, so don’t just give money but reach out your hand instead.”― St. Mother Teresa

Mangaluru: This man is not super rich but just an ordinary common person working as a waiter at Hotel Swagath, near DC Office (State Bank) owned by Harikrishna Punaroor, the former President of Karnataka Kannada Sahitya Parishath, -but has a generous and golden heart where he shares part of his earnings with the poor and less-privileged. Meet Arun Shetty, aged 35, an employee of this hotel for the last 17 years, where he not only works as a waiter but acts as a good Samaritan every day. He is a person of compassion, helping-others, inspirational, personal-responsibility and committed in helping the needy/poor. Prior to moving to Mangaluru, he worked at a hotel in BC Road for five years, to support his family who had faced severe hardship.

Narrating his story to Team Mangalorean, Arun Shetty said, ” I would been in a better position now, but since I had to quit my schooling after 8th Standard since my dad fell ill. My mother had to support our family comprising of my three sisters and my younger brother by rolling beedies- and this is when I realized that I too have to support my family-so I joined a hotel in B C Road as a cleaner/waiter. I worked there for five years, and later moved to Mangaluru and joined Hotel Swagath, and been there for the last 17 years. My employer Harikrishna Punaroor is a gem of a person who has been treating me very well ever since I joined his hotel”.

“I realized the hardships people bear when they have to pay for their medical bills and other expenses, after my brother fell ill. This made me to save Rs 50 each day from my paltry wages to help those in need. My aim was always to help the poor, and I am still trying my best to help whatever I can. I realized how hard it is to pay medical bills when my brother was hospitalized, and hospital expenses amounted to few lakhs. Luckily God and generous people came to our rescue that we were able to settle the hospital bills. This inspired me to save money, which could help those in need” added Arun.

He further said, “Daily I save Rs 50 in the Pigmy savings, of which I split Rs 20 for the needy patients, Rs 20 for the poor, and Rs 10 for my poor relatives education. I also buy a cup of tea for a poor man, who comes to Hotel Swagath daily between 6pm-7pm.  I also give Rs 150/- to my co-worker every month. Helping the poor has been my nature for many years, and I want to continue it no matter what hardship I may face.” Being a President of Navajyothi Friends Club near Polali in the outskirts of Mangaluru, every year Arun hands over the saved money to the poor. Last year he helped a cancer patient, and also another person who had been bedridden for many years. Arun Shetty is still a bachelor while all his three sisters are married, and his younger brother who is differently-able is employed at a Co-operative Bank in Gurpur.

In conclusion, there is nothing more beautiful than someone who goes out of their way to make life beautiful for others. The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well. No one has ever become poor by giving. The best way to not feel hopeless is to get up and do something. Let’s not live in the kind of world where we don’t look out for each other. Not just the people that are close to us, but anybody who needs a helping hand. We can’t change the way anybody else thinks, or what they choose to do, but we can do our bit, just like Arun Shetty. And since Arun is still looking for donations from generous people to help the poor, you can call him at 9844825125, and contribute part of your wealth/earnings.