Congratulations to Hannah Benton, one of our 2017 Wonder Women.
They say no act of kindness, regardless of its size, is ever wasted. For one Plant City native, this became
a life motto, a lesson she hopes to pass on to every individual she meets.
Hannah Benton, owner of RAOK Boutique, based her entire career on bringing random acts of kindness to the residents of Plant City. She worked for the USF Foundation for some time but knew that it wasn’t necessarily what she was passionate about doing for the rest of her life. One day she looked at her mother, Brigitte Hodge, and told her she wanted to open a store together.
“It took a while but finally she agreed,” Benton said. “I had put in a resignation at USF without knowing what to do and with a lot of prayer. I knew God had a different path for us.”
RAOK, or Random Acts of Kindness Boutique, will turn three years old in December and Benton said she can’t imagine doing anything else now. Working with her mother everyday and adding “a little bit of light” to the community makes all of the stress of owning a business worth it, Benton said.
The employees at the boutique work hard to live up to its name.
“We had a customer once who’s husband had passed away and her house was robbed,” Benton said. “They stole a lot of her jewelry, including many pieces her husband had bought her. We knew we couldn’t replace those priceless memories but we had some Brighton pieces in the shop that were the exact same ones she used to have and we gave it to her to try to help ease the loss.”
Benton’s love of Plant City began as a child, watching her mom and those in the community help out strangers in need. When she and Hodge started RAOK, her mother’s reputation in town played a large part in the success of the business, Benton said.
“My mom has a heart of gold,” Benton said. “She’s such a doer. She will never do anything for herself but she’ll do everything for anyone else.”
The support and love of the community is the driving force behind RAOK, something Benton said she hopes to be able to add to.
She was involved with the Florida Strawberry Festival her entire life, showing steers, pigs and chickens and even had the honor of being crowned Strawberry Festival Queen. According to Benton, her reign launched much of her involvement in Plant City.
During this time Benton met Sandee Sytsma, who at that time was the volunteer coordinator of the Strawberry Festival beauty queens. Sytsma quickly became a second mother to Benton and throughout the following years continued to offer support and be an inspiration for Benton and her family.
While she always knew Plant City was full of loving and giving residents, it wasn’t until she began kickstarting RAOK, when she was suddenly the one in need of assistance, that the full extent of support from the community really sunk in.
For the first year and a half, RAOK was run entirely by Benton, her cousin and Hodge. Whenever there was a big event, friends and family would pour in to help. Sytsma pulled late nights with the girls and steamed clothes while others dedicated hours of their free time to help keep the business on track.
When Benton’s grandmother passed away right before the planned Spring launch of the store, a group of women came in and flipped the store for Benton and Hodge so they could mourn without having to worry about missing deadline.
The kindness shown to Benton solidified her desire to dedicate her life toward helping others. She continues to use her boutique as a resource for other charities and organizations in the area, like the United Food Bank of Plant City and St. Joseph’s Hospital. She’s also created a scholarship in her grandmother’s honor.
“RAOK is just as simple as buying somebody a Starbucks behind you,” Benton said. “It doesn’t have to be expensive … Honor the people you love in your life, smile at a stranger. It doesn’t have to be monetary, just show some kindness.”
