Holding Doors: What Wawa Can Teach Us About Inclusivity

It happened again. I was walking up to a Wawa, and before I could reach for the door, someone else opened it. They waited, smiled, and held it open for me. It wasn’t just politeness, it felt like something more, like part of the Wawa experience. This was not a one-time occurrence, holding the door at Wawa is something I have experienced many times before. This simple act made me wonder, what if our world operated more like this? What if we embraced a broader commitment to holding the door, both literally and in a bigger sense, for others in our everyday lives?

Holding the door for someone might seem like a small action, but it’s packed with meaning. It’s a quiet way of acknowledging that someone else is there and saying, “I’ll make space for you.” It’s an invitation to be part of a shared moment and to feel noticed. At its heart, door holding is about inclusion—a glimpse of a kinder, more respectful world.

This small act can be a metaphor for the type of world we should be working towards. A world where we recognize and make room for others. It echoes what poet Audre Lorde once said, “It is not our differences that divide us. It is our inability to recognize, accept, and celebrate those differences.” In that moment at Wawa, holding the door is a way of recognizing another person. It’s a chance to acknowledge someone’s presence and humanity, even if just for a second.

Imagine if this practice extended beyond holding physical doors. What if we "held the door" by making our workplaces more inclusive, opening up conversations for voices that are often left out, and creating opportunities for people who’ve been overlooked? This idea of door holding should apply not just to the entrances of buildings, but to the doors of opportunity, access, and understanding.

When we think about big issues like systemic racism and inequality, the idea of holding the door takes on even more meaning. bell hooks once said, “There can be no love without justice.” Holding the door for someone can be seen as an act of justice, acknowledging that everyone deserves space, dignity, and respect. When we hold doors for others, we take part in a culture of kindness and fairness, breaking down barriers that might otherwise keep people out.

Wawa often feels more like a community space where interactions are a little warmer, less rushed. The door-holding phenomenon at Wawa might be a reflection of that community feeling, almost an unspoken agreement that we’re all in this together, and we can make things better by showing kindness.

Maya Angelou once said, “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” Holding the door for someone, even during a quick stop at Wawa, creates a positive feeling that goes beyond that moment. It’s a reminder that people matter, and small acts of kindness can have a lasting impact.

So, what does it mean to hold the door for someone, not just at Wawa, but in life? It means we’re willing to make space for others. It means recognizing the worth of every person we meet and giving them room to thrive. It means building a society where kindness, respect, and inclusion aren’t rare, they are part of how we live every day.

And let’s not forget, as James Baldwin once said, “Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.” Holding doors, whether literal or symbolic, gives us a chance to face the gaps in our society in places where inequity, exclusion, or indifference exist, and make a real change.

The next time someone holds the door for you at Wawa, or anywhere else, think of it as more than just a polite gesture. It’s a small, powerful reminder that we all have the ability to hold space for others, and in doing so, we might just help build a kinder, more inclusive world.