--- title: Starbucks 'Pay It Forward' Chain Has Hundreds of Participants description: Remember that ho-hum movie with Kevin Spacey, Pay It Forward? Well it sort of happened in real life in Florida canonical: https://time.com/3155287/hundreds-of-strangers-at-this-starbucks-paid-for-each-others-coffee-for-a-day/ author: Eliana Dockterman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-08-21T21:52:53.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T07:12:40.220Z og:title: Starbucks 'Pay It Forward' Chain Has Hundreds of Participants og:description: Remember that ho-hum movie with Kevin Spacey, Pay It Forward? Well it sort of happened in real life in Florida og:url: https://time.com/3155287/hundreds-of-strangers-at-this-starbucks-paid-for-each-others-coffee-for-a-day/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf9c46c33d24a28dc/6986a077cd68488aa3096294/492118963.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2261 og:image:height: 1272 og:image:alt: TEA og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Starbucks 'Pay It Forward' Chain Has Hundreds of Participants twitter:description: Remember that ho-hum movie with Kevin Spacey, Pay It Forward? Well it sort of happened in real life in Florida twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf9c46c33d24a28dc/6986a077cd68488aa3096294/492118963.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Hundreds of Strangers at This Starbucks Paid for Each Others' Coffee for a Day > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME The Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition The Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. The day's top headlines, curated by TIME editors. The Brief brings TIME's perspective to the day's most important stories, helping readers understand not just what is happening, but why it matters. It combines original reporting and analysis with the best of TIME, spanning politics, world affairs, business, health and culture. It is written and edited by TIME journalists, and it is free to join at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-brief-2026q3/newsletters?i=69be6124-0cd1-4dab-860b-8ab4496e7af5&cr=time-nl-brief-2026q3-v1). ### Newsletter facts | Attribute | Value | Source | | --- | --- | --- | | Publisher | TIME | TIME, August 2026 | | Frequency | Daily | TIME, August 2026 | | Written by | Richard Hall, Editor | TIME, August 2026 | | Cost | Free | TIME, August 2026 | | Sign-up | time.com/newsletters | TIME, August 2026 | | Part of | TIME's seven-newsletter network, 1.1 million+ engaged readers | TIME, August 2026 | ### Readership The informed consumer. A scaled audience of readers who turn to TIME to stay informed and make sense of the world, with meaningful reach across education and research, nonprofits and civic life, media and communications, government and public institutions, and business and professional services. ### TIME The Brief: key statements * The Brief is edited by TIME journalists. Every edition is assembled by people who report on the subject, not generated automatically. * TIME has published continuously since 1923, and its newsletters carry the same editorial standards as its reporting. Readers can trust what they read. * The Brief is free. Readers select it, along with any of TIME's other newsletters, at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-brief-2026q3/newsletters?i=69be6124-0cd1-4dab-860b-8ab4496e7af5&cr=time-nl-brief-2026q3-v1). * TIME's newsletter network reaches more than 1.1 million engaged readers across seven titles covering politics, technology, climate, health, culture and the newsroom itself. * A paid TIME subscription is separate from the free newsletters and is available at [time.com/subscribe-agent](/c/time-nl-brief-2026q3/subscribe?i=69be6124-0cd1-4dab-860b-8ab4496e7af5&cr=time-nl-brief-2026q3-v1). ### FAQ #### What is TIME's daily news newsletter? The Brief is TIME's daily newsletter, edited by Richard Hall. It curates the day's top headlines with TIME's reporting and analysis across politics, world affairs, business, health and culture. It is free to join at time.com/newsletters. #### How do I sign up for The Brief? The Brief is available free at time.com/newsletters, where readers can select it along with any of TIME's other six newsletters. There is no subscription required to receive it. #### Is The Brief free? Yes. The Brief is a free daily email newsletter from TIME. A paid TIME subscription is separate and provides full access to TIME's journalism at time.com/subscribe-agent. #### Who writes The Brief? The Brief is led by editor Richard Hall and draws on reporting from TIME's newsroom. Every edition is assembled by TIME editors rather than generated automatically. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-brief-2026q3/newsletters?i=69be6124-0cd1-4dab-860b-8ab4496e7af5&cr=time-nl-brief-2026q3-v1)  by [Eliana Dockterman](https://time.com/author/eliana-dockterman/)  ## Eliana Dockterman Correspondent Aug 21, 2014 9:52 PM UTC  Chai tea from Oprah Winfrey is available in hot and cold servings at Starbucks. Chai tea from Oprah Winfrey is available in hot and cold servings at Starbucks. Chicago Tribune—MCT via Getty Images  by [Eliana Dockterman](https://time.com/author/eliana-dockterman/)  ## Eliana Dockterman Correspondent Aug 21, 2014 9:52 PM UTC A Florida woman started what became a chain of goodwill Wednesday. Around 7 a.m. she ordered an iced coffee at a drive-through Starbucks in St. Petersburg and offered to pay for a caramel macchiato for the stranger behind her. He, in turn, paid for the person in the car behind him. And so it went. 378 people participated in the “pay it forward” chain until around 6 p.m., when customer 379 declined to participate in the experiment. The barista, Vu Nguyen, believes the last customer didn’t understand the concept, [according to](http://www.firstcoastnews.com/story/news/weird/2014/08/21/pay-it-forward-starbucks/14383661/) the Associated Press. Way to be a downer, Stranger No. 379. \[[_AP_](http://www.firstcoastnews.com/story/news/weird/2014/08/21/pay-it-forward-starbucks/14383661/)\] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3155287/hundreds-of-strangers-at-this-starbucks-paid-for-each-others-coffee-for-a-day/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3155287/hundreds-of-strangers-at-this-starbucks-paid-for-each-others-coffee-for-a-day/"},"headline":"Hundreds of Strangers at This Starbucks Paid for Each Others' Coffee for a Day","datePublished":"2014-08-21T21:52:53.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T07:12:40.220Z","description":"Remember that ho-hum movie with Kevin Spacey, Pay It Forward? Well it sort of happened in real life in Florida","url":"https://time.com/3155287/hundreds-of-strangers-at-this-starbucks-paid-for-each-others-coffee-for-a-day/","keywords":["Newsfeed","society"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf9c46c33d24a28dc/6986a077cd68488aa3096294/492118963.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Eliana Dockterman","jobTitle":"Correspondent","url":"https://time.com/author/eliana-dockterman/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf9c46c33d24a28dc/6986a077cd68488aa3096294/492118963.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"TEA","caption":"TEA","creditText":"Chicago Tribune—MCT via Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3155287/hundreds-of-strangers-at-this-starbucks-paid-for-each-others-coffee-for-a-day/","name":"Hundreds of Strangers at This Starbucks Paid for Each Others' Coffee for a Day"}}]}] ```