I Dressed Like George Washington... and Something Unexpected Happened.

by Ben Beaver at J&J on July 10, 2026

Last week, a few days before the Fourth of July, we were out in West Akron filming our goofy "$250 Off for the Month of July" video.

Somehow, I was the one who ended up dressed as George Washington.

On paper, it sounded hilarious.

In 90-degree weather... it felt more like a hostage situation.

I don't know how our founding fathers pulled this off, but I'm convinced the Declaration of Independence would've been signed a lot faster if someone had invented air conditioning first.

My marketing teammate, Andy, was behind the camera trying to make me look dignified - which is nearly impossible when your powdered wig is slowly sliding off your head.

Then there's Alexey, one of our apprentices, who volunteered to wear the Jay mascot.

I thought I had it bad.

Then I looked over at the guy wearing a giant head in July and realized... nope. Alexey won (or lost) that competition.

As we filmed, people driving by kept smiling, waving, honking, and laughing. Honestly, that's my favorite part about these crazy ideas. If we can make someone's commute a little less boring, I'll gladly sweat through another historical costume.

Then the day got even better.

A wonderful gentleman named William and his caregiver walked over and asked if they could get a picture with George Washington and Jay.

Absolutely.

While we were talking, they smiled and said, "We already know who Jay is."

I don't know why, but that one sentence stuck with me.

Because underneath all the costumes and goofy videos, this is what I actually love.

I love meeting people.

I love hearing their stories.

I love putting faces to the neighborhoods we serve every day.

The videos are fun, but they're really just an excuse to get out into the community and connect with people. If we can make someone laugh today, maybe they'll remember us months from now when they need help with an air conditioner, a plumbing emergency, or an electrical problem.

Not because of a commercial.

Because they met real people.

William, thanks for making our day. We were supposed to be out there making a funny video, but you ended up giving us the best moment of the afternoon.

(And next year... somebody else can be George Washington.)