Commuters at Glencoe’s Metra station were able to catch a little more than a train on Valentine’s Day morning. A few got a breakfast bar in a gesture of kindness.
For the second consecutive year, Family Service of Glencoe, the village’s social service agency, participated in the National Random Acts of Kindness Week in an effort deemed the “Kindness Challenge.”
“The Kindness Challenge is something we created last year,” FSG Executive Director Bill Hansen said as he handed out the goodies. “We want to raise the awareness of treating each other well.”
“We were looking for places where the community was gathering and bring the kindness to them. It would be a launching point so they would pass on the kindness as well,” FSG spokeswoman Sarah Scherdt said.
About a half-dozen people handed out the bars, which included dark chocolate, caramel and pumpkin and peanut butter flavors. However, Jeannie Lewis was touched by the embrace she got from FSG board member Lisa Cardonick, who happens to live just a couple of houses away from Lewis.
“It meant more to get a hug from my neighbor, but it was an unexpected treat,” Lewis said of the breakfast bar.
Northbrook’s David Mauer hadn’t had anything to eat yet when one of Cardonick’s sons, Brett, handed him the bite-size bars.
“It will hit the spot, hopefully,” Mauer said. “I’m usually in a hurry in the morning, and it is hard to catch breakfast.”
Lia Imhoff of Glencoe was heading southbound and also was a recipient of the largesse.
“At first I thought they were selling (the bars,”) Imhoff said. “But then I understood what they were doing and I thought it was so sweet, considering it is Valentine’s Day.”
The breakfast bar giveaway is just one of a series of events that FSG, in coordination with other local organizations and businesses, are having this week as part of the Kindness Challenge. All this week, people can pick up blue heart-shaped stickers at selected places around town and give them away when they see people performing a “kind” act.
The Kindness Challenge is an effort, officials say, to ease concerns of some people feeling left out in Glencoe. Officials point to a 2014 FSG survey that showed 30 percent of Glencoe residents do not believe they have a strong enough social support network, and 36 percent feel lonely.
“Social interactions help us grow as individuals and develop a supportive social network to help us in life’s challenges,” Cardonick said in a statement. “The kindness challenge is one step in acknowledging, affirming and supporting those around us.”
Among those appreciative of the gesture was Joe Friedman of Deerfield, who was catching a train into the city.
“It’s awesome,” Friedman said. “I wish more people would do it. I think in these days, we need more to smile about and show people we care.”
Daniel I. Dorfman is a freelancer for Pioneer Press.
