When a celebrity becomes famous, the fame often goes to their heads, and they forget about all the people in the world who could desperately use their help and resources. It’s easy to fall into the trappings of fame and fortune but for some celebrities who have reached success, they know that giving back is a way of giving thanks for their own blessings.

Country music star Brad Paisley is a great example of that generous and charitable spirit. The singer and his wife, Kimberly Williams-Paisley announced plans to open a free grocery store so that they could give back to their community.

Brad and Kim have teamed up with the singer’s alma mater Belmont University to open The Store.

“At Belmont, we believe that the greatest privilege that anyone can ever have is to be in a position to help and serve another person,” Belmont University President Dr. Bob Fisher said. “Brad and Kim are living out that mission in an extraordinary fashion in every aspect of their lives, particularly through the creation of The Store. We are proud to partner with them on this initiative, and I’m excited to watch as our current students pour their gifts and abilities into supporting the needs of The Store’s patrons.”

They’ve enlisted the help of organizations like Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee to offer both fresh and nonperishable groceries to those in need for one year.

“This is a grocery store with dignity for people who have fallen on hard times,” said Brad. “All of us are one unforeseen disaster away from rock bottom. It’s nice to think about a place where when that happens to someone, they can use it to get back on their feet.”

The goal of The Store is to help 3,000 people per year, who will be referred to by nonprofit and government agencies. The Paisleys were inspired to start The Store after they took their sons Huck, 11, and Jasper, 9, to volunteer at the Unity Shoppe last Thanksgiving to help them understand how fortunate they are.

“It was inspiring because these people have dignity,” said Brad. “It’s not a scene from Oliver Twist. These people are able to sit there and feel very, very normal in the eyes of their kids. I remember … thinking, ‘Why isn’t this everywhere?’ Essentially, we got this idea that it could be a very effective thing in Nashville.”

Kim explained that The Store will have similar values to the Unity Shoppe, which “encourages self-sufficiency and independence by providing education and the necessities of life to families, children, seniors and persons with disabilities,” and is intended to be a “temporary Band-Aid on the road to self-sufficiency.’

“So many people are making great choices in their lives,” she continued. “It’s not like they’ve made major mistakes, they just need a little extra help and we want to be a resource for those people.”

Find out more about this wonderful project in the video below!