Florida man pays off 36 neighbors’ utility bills for Christmas

Here’s a Florida man to be respected.

The Christmas spirit is alive and well with Michael Esmond, a pool installation company owner in Gulf Breeze, who was inspired to “take a little bit of stress out” of the season for his neighbors and secretly shelled out $4,600 to help 36 families pay their water and gas bills.

Esmond, 73, took the initiative after noticing the due date on his own bill was Dec. 26 and it came with a warning: that supplies may be cut if not paid by then. Remembering a winter when his own power was cut off, Esmond contacted the city of Gulf Breeze, and asked about helping any neighbors in his community of 6,000 whose payments were overdue.

“Back in the ’80s I actually lived that,” Esmond told Pensacola local station WEAR TV. “I experienced a time where I had trouble paying bills. And we actually had the gas disconnected. It happened to be one of the coldest winters in history.”

Esmond added, “I’m trying to set an example for other companies to give back. … The community has been good to me and I’m trying to give back to the community,”

The gesture “made me cry,” Joanne Oliver, Gulf Breeze’s utility billing supervisor, told the station, noting in 20 years at the utility company this “was a first.”

“For someone like him, a veteran to come in and do some grand gesture. It was heartfelt for me,” she said.

Instead of warnings, 36 shocked families received a note that read: “It is our honor and privilege to inform you that your past due utility bill has been paid by Gulf Breeze Pools & Spas. You can rest earlier this holiday season knowing you have one less bill to pay. On behalf of Gulf Breeze Pools & Spas we here at the City of Gulf Breeze would like to wish you and your family a happy holiday season.”