NORWICH – The City of Norwich was in full bloom on Wednesday as Pires Flower Basket held its first Petal It Forward Event, handing out 500 free bouquets of flowers in less than 50 minutes.

Starting at 11:30 a.m., the Pires team took to the streets and began offering 2 bouquets to passing cars and pedestrians, letting them know to keep one as a gift and to give one away to someone that needed a smile. Many recipients stated they themselves needed a smile and were surprised to receive something special for seemingly no reason.