120 Thanksgiving Workers Given Care Packages

Last year, we did our first act of kindness to Thanksgiving workers and blessed 50 people with thank you cards containing 2-dollar bills. For this year's Thanksgiving outreach to workers, we increased our goal to 150 people and included the card/2-dollar bill in a decorated care package that also contained candy and baked goods. As much as we wanted to pass out all 150 Thanksgiving care packages, we were only able to giveaway 120, which by all accounts, isn't too shabby.

One practical lesson here is that, for our method of simply driving around and seeing what's open, 120 is the maximum number of gifts that a team of two can distribute in a four hour time period. If we had planned our route more in advance, or had a second team, then we might have been able to accomplish our goal of 150. Regardless, 120 acts of kindness in one evening is something to be proud of, and as a bonus, the thirty extra bags of goodies and money won't go to waste because we plan on going out and doing this again in the near future, and we can use the unused Thanksgiving cards for next year.

Onto this year's Thanksgiving act of kindness adventure. After a delicious meal with friends and family, we added the final touches to the care packages by; adding chocolates and baked goods to the bags, putting money into the thank you cards, and then loading all 150 bags into the car. It was a pretty involved process that made cleaning up after Thanksgiving dinner look easy. Even though it took awhile to bag up everything, we had fun and it looks like we've got ourselves a new post-Thanksgiving meal tradition.

With the backseat overflowing with care packages, me and my visiting mother put on Santa hats and headed down River St. to our first destination, Sears.

• Sears: It was 6:30 pm and we knew that Sears had just started their Thanksgiving sale. In their newly remodeled store, many workers were at a station in the middle of the store. We introduced ourselves to one of worker, gave her a care package, and because the other workers appeared busy, we asked her how many workers they had on staff that night. We then left her with the appropriate number of bags. While we were passing out the bags, the store manager came out and seemed appreciative of our efforts. This was a big sigh of relief because whenever we do outreaches like this, we halfway expect to get told to leave by store management. Over the course of the night, our fear was proven false by multiple managers. 
• Hampton Inn: This was a quick and easy stop and we blessed one night manager. 
• Stewart's: There were two employees working at Stewart's. One seemed touched by the AoK and the other remembered us from last year and shook my hand.
• Country Store: A young lady was working the counter. We put a big smile on her face.
• PC Pro Solution Inc: A multigenerational family was working the store with two small boys playing with toys on the showroom floor. We gave two bags to a man that appeared to be the grandfather and told him that the children would enjoy the candy.
• Hess Gas Station Main Street: We showed up during a shift change and were able to bless employees from both shifts.
• Dunkin Donuts Main Street: The two employees seemed very appreciative and the manager gave us both a cup of coffee.
• A O Fox Hospital Nursing Home: We followed a middle-aged couple into the nursing home, it turns out that they were visiting their daughter who had to work on Thanksgiving. The daughter oversaw the wing. She informed us that there were six workers on shift that night in her wing so we left her with six care packages.
• Holiday Inn: We gave two bags to a very friendly and appreciative lady at the front desk.
• Office Max: We first approached two employees outside on a smoke break. One knew me by name and was super excited that his bag had pictures of ducks on it. Inside the store, we met up with a manager that pointed us in the direction of all the employees. Additionally, we were able to giveaway care packages during an employee meeting. Before we left, we gave packages to employees at the cash registers, and one cashier said that she'd like to visit our church. Office Max was a very positive experience.
• JCPenny: One of the first people that we ran into was the store manager as he was passing out candy canes to customers. He seemed genuinely appreciative of what we were doing and he even remembered hearing about us passing out thank you cards in his store last year. He told us to make sure that every one of his employees gets a care package. We proceeded to follow his orders and track down workers from all corners of the store. As we were about to leave, a supervisor approached us and told us that, "The girls in jewelry want to see us" (we forgot about them). We paid them a visit and they smiled extra big when they saw the 2-dollar bills. 
• Dick's Sporting Goods: Dick's was yet another example of finding favor with store management. After giving care packages to a few employees, we encountered the store manager. We explained ourselves and had a nice chat. He also told us to give the gifts to his employees and to especially make sure that the seven cashiers up front are included because of how hard they're working. By the time we made it to the front, a manager was expecting us and helped us distribute the care packages.
• Southside Mall Cinema: Our friend Peter Elkund from Campus Ambassadors was working and we got to have a nice chat about ministry and bless him and his coworkers with care packages.
• Super 8 Motel: We got to bless a nice lady working the front desk that told us she had to work two jobs and seven days a week to make ends meet.
• Hess Gas Station Hwy. 23: The clerk on shift was trying to fix a coffee machine that had spilt coffee all over the floor. You can tell that he really needed an act of kindness and he told us that it really cheered him up and that he wants to visit our church.
• Denny's: At Denny's, we were greeted by another manager. We told him what we were doing and he seemed touched by it. He volunteered to pass out the bags to his staff and he even hooked us up with more coffee! 
• Cooperstown Medical Transport: We went across the street to another gas station and encountered two ambulance drivers heading back to their ride. I approached their vehicle and passed out a care package to them. They appreciated the gesture and shook my hand.
• Red Barrel Food Store: There were two lady's working at this gas station and they both had big smiles on their faces upon receiving the gift. There were some customers in line behind us that saw the exchange take place, and as we were leaving we overheard them comment to each other, "That's so cool."
• Courtyard Marriott: Here, two more hotel employees told us that this AoK made their night.
• NY State Trooper: We even saw a State Trooper parked on Hwy. 23 watching traffic. We pulled up alongside him and give him a care package. He thanked us and shook my hand.
• Walmart: This was the big one. We were putting off Walmart until the crowds died down, and by now it was 9:30 pm and the store was manageable to maneuver through. Walmart had extra staff on hand and they were easy to spot in their bright yellow vests. We began by approaching a group on their smoke break and they were appreciative. Next, we moved inside and passed out gifts to employees that we came across. Eventually, a manager saw us and told us that it would be better if we dropped off the care packages at customer service. As we waited in line at customer service, we assessed the situation. Seeing how busy they were, it seemed to us unreasonable to leave 50+ bags with $100 worth of cash to someone that we didn't know. We left the customer service rep. with five bags and moved on from Walmart. It's worth noting that several of the Walmart employees that we offered care packages to refused the offer because they thought it would get them in trouble. It was sad that we were unable to freely distribute the care packages to Walmart workers because there were so many of them. We could have easily passed out 100 bags and blessed a lot people. On a positive note, the half dozen Walmart workers that passed out care packages to were very appreciative of the AoK.
• McDonald's: Inside Walmart is a McDonald's. We gave their staff of three care packages. They seemed very thankful. There were also a few Walmart workers in McDonald's that just got off their shift. We made sure to give them some care packages too.
• Budget Inn: At this hotel we might have disturbed the guy who ran it/lived there, seeing at it was now past 10 pm. Still, he seemed thankful for the gift.
• Clarion Hotel: The employee running the front desk only had half an hour left until he got to go home. He seemed very thankful for the gift and told us that it made his night, and he shook my hand.
• Kwik Fill (Red Apple): There was one employee on shift and she said that the AoK really cheered her up. 
• Dunkin Donuts Chestnut Street: It was now close to 10:30 pm and we saw that Dunkin Donuts was open. We gave out two care packages and the guy working the register gave me a big thank you accompanied by a big handshake.                                 

At this point in the night, it was late and we couldn't think of a local place that was open that we hadn't already visited. We saw some plow trucks drive by and thought about the City Works department, but upon arriving at their facility, alas, nobody was there. Therefore, we called it a night and decided to save the 30 extra care packages for another outing.

And when I got home, I found myself tagged in this Facebook post :)

Oneonta Comes Together for Town & Gown Gala

On November 9th at Foothills Performing Arts and Civic Center, a very special community event took place that helped bring healing and unity to the City of Oneonta. The Town & Gown Gala  was organized to bring together Oneonta's student and resident population after a rough start to the semester. The gala also aimed to bring comfort to both students and residents after a SUNY Oneonta student was critically-injured in an altercation last September, and the city faced a tragedy of their own after losing a beloved mayor in October. For the few hundred people in attendance representing both the town and the gown, virtually everybody walked away feeling a stronger sense of community--making the TGG a success!

What Made the Town & Gown Gala So Special?

There were multiple aspects about TGG that made it special for our city. First off, few events in Oneonta are like the TGG, which was alcohol-free and designed for the expressed purpose of bringing the two groups together while raising money for a community member in need.

Second, events of this size and scope where 7 bands perform and both colleges and multiple community groups participate, typically take months of planning. In the case of the TGG, the event was organized in one month because it was determined that, in light of the divisions the city was experiencing and the need of the injured student, if something was to be done, then the sooner the better.

Thirdly, the funding of the event made it unique. Since no one had the time to solicit donations and sponsorships, the event was made possible thanks to people, organizations, and artists stepping up and helping out because they were passionate about such an event taking place.

Oneonta is a Caring Community

Oneonta is a compassionate community that was saddened to learn about a student becoming injured last September. Therefore, when people heard about the fundraising effort, they were quick to support it. The support that Oneonta showed for student Tyler Gianacola is heartwarming and impressive. Over $800 was raised to help Tyler's family, and when it came time for the candlelight ceremony to talk about both Tyler and Mayor Miller, more than 150 people gathered in front of Foothills. At the ceremony, it was announced that over $500 was raised for Tyler and the crowd cheered. By the end of the following rock concert, the crowd cheered again when the donations grew to $800.

A Fun and Educational Social Mixer

The first two hours of the event was a social mixer that sought to bring together the community with education and entertainment. Various groups from both the colleges and the community were represented at tables, and several of the tables provided carnival-style games for kids. The games used tickets that could be redeemed for prizes like candy and toys, and even live goldfish were given away by OnMark, the SUNY Oneonta marketing club, as well as face painting provided by the SUNY Oneonta Student Advisory Council. Additionally, there was a drawing for a new television. To enter the contest, all one had to do was get twelve initials from the various tables. And to encourage people to socialize, the itinerary contained suggested icebreaker questions for people to ask one another.

As people got to know each other, there was live music featuring artists from both the town and the gown. Folk duet KJ Carney and Sky Miritello kicked off the gala with their sweet harmonies, followed by a set of acoustic blues from Heaven's Back Door. Closing out the social mixer portion of the gala was the upbeat and contemporary sounds of the student band Summer Symphony.

In between the performances from the bands were speakers from organizations raising awareness for social issues relating to the recent tragedies experienced by the community. Rebbecca Harrington from the Know Violence committee of SUNY Oneonta spoke about how violence affects everyone. Julie Dostal from LEAF spoke about the value of doing alcohol-free activities like the gala, and Donna Lange from the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention educated the room about suicide.

The tone of the mixer was friendly and warm, and a big part of that was due to Abbey Koutnik in full clown apparel working the room with props and jokes. She even contributed wonderful balloon sculptures! 

A Warm Candlelight Ceremony 

The candlelight ceremony was the climax of the gala, with a large crowd showing up right before the candles were lit, almost doubling the crowd from the previous social mixer. The SUNY Oneonta Inter-Greek Council went above and beyond by organizing and running the fundraiser. Even though the wind and city code didn't allow for the use of paper lanterns like originally planned, they still managed to light enough candles during the ceremony to make it beautiful and memorable.

At the candlelight ceremony, Pastor Kaler Carpenter of The Redemption Movement spoke about how Tyler's injury personally impacted him and related the community's response to that of the Good Samaritan. SUNY Oneonta student and friend of Tyler, Nicole Jones, then read a prepared statement from Tyler's mother thanking the community for their support (Tyler was unable to attend the event due to his injuries).

Next up was Council Member Mike Lynch who reminded the crowd of both students and residents how much his friend Mayor Miller would have liked to have seen the community brought together like this. After a moment of silence was observed for Miller, Carpenter then invited everybody to file inside for a free rock show, and it wasn't long before the production room at Foothills was full of people waiting to hear the opening band Kardia.

The Foothills was Filled with Music

For the rock show, all of the bands played their hearts out and a sizable crowd stayed throughout the duration of the event. The room was full of positive energy as a crowd gathered around the front of the stage and clapped and cheered. During the music, people were having a good time as glow sticks were waived and people danced with balloon animal sculptures.  

Before Kardia played, G Winnard got the crowd warmed up with an upbeat selection of electronic music mixed with some sweet dance moves. Kardia then took the stage, opening their set with an intense drum-corps-style performance that teased the crowd with what they were about to experience.

Post by Kardia.

With the exception a cool Journey cover, Kardia played original songs that synched to an impressive light show.

There were three bands after Kardia, and two of them were student bands from SUNY Oneonta representing Red Dragon Records--Bray and Living Proof. Both bands were full of energy and had a harder sound that the audience responded well to. For Living Proof, the night was extra special; it was their first show and the message from lead singer Danny Cohen about not allowing substances to control one's life fit perfectly with the night's theme.

Post by Living.Proof.

In between the two Red Dragon bands was El Dred, a guitar and drum rock duo made up of Walton natives Ryan Eldred and Ben Ray. For El Dred's set, the crowd smiled got into it as Ryan's upbeat and catchy tunes commanded the attention of the room and got people dancing.

When the rock show was finished and the lights were flipped on, many from the crowd stayed afterwards to help with clean up, including students from the SUNY Oneonta service club Alpha Phi Omega who stayed until everything was put away. Overall, the gala was truly a remarkable event that was made possible because so many people were involved and helped out.


Click here to see Living Proof's First Set at TGG!      

TGG was a Turning Point for The Redemption Movement

For The Redemption Movement, the Town & Gown Gala was the biggest of many community events organized in the organization's brief history. An event like TGG was a natural progression of what a movement of kindness looks like. Pastor Kaler's approach to RM's outreaches has always been, "See a need, meet a need;" and after seeing the alcohol-fueled problems and risks associated with the city's downtown party scene, the strain that these problems were causing on community relations, and seeing tragedies like what happened with Tyler and Mayor Miller, stepping up to the microphone and attempting to meet such daunting community needs by organizing an event like TGG is a natural course of action for a church experienced in kindness and rock n' roll.

During Kardia's performance, guitar player Justin Wisner mentioned that this was the second time the Pittsfield-based band played Oneonta. Their first time was last December at The Redemption Movement to a much smaller crowd of 7 people. Throughout the evening, other artists shared similar stories about playing at the Ol' Storefront on River St. and working with Kaler to put on all-ages community rock shows. Many of these shows weren't well attended, and many community outreach efforts by RM have been done on a very small scale. Albeit, with each small show and small AoK, artists and people from the community walked away feeling loved and like they participated in something special. Therefore, when these artists, students, and community members who were reached with kindness by RM in the past were called upon to participate in a large-scale event like TGG, they did so without hesitation. In turn, hundreds of people were touched, which will lead to hundreds more being blessed--this is what a movement looks like.

Thank You

Raising $800 for Tyler is worth celebrating. It was cool to see Bray play to a large crowd after watching them grow as musicians and gel as band at small rock shows on River Street, and it was equally special to be able to provide Living Proof with such a special first show. KJ and Sky played one of the first shows at our church while it was still under construction and they're forever welcome at RM. Ryan and Ben are always such a joy to work with, and it was wonderful to make connections with new artists like Summer Symphony and Heaven's Back Door. I'm sure that we'll do more events together with our new friends in the future. 

A big thank you is in order to Bill, Sue, and Geoffrey at The Foothills Performing Arts and Civic Center for donating the space, to Council Member Mike Lynch for taking a chance on a young church planter, to Steve Perry, Vice President of Student Development at SUCO for his valuable input, to the SUNY Oneonta and Hartwick student senates and the City of Oneonta Commission on Human Rights and Community Relations for supporting and attending the event. Thanks to Chris at EveningWith Designs for his amazing graphic work, to OnMark for their above and beyond promotional efforts, Libby and Ian from AllOtsego.com for the excellent write up. Thanks to all the community groups that participated with a table, and last but certainly not least, thank you to the helpers from the Redemption Movement (Laura, Michael, Keith, Jeremy, Greg, Angel, Katy, and Garland), who's help made the entire event possible.

Because of the efforts of everyone mentioned in this blog article, along with others that didn't get mentioned (you know who you are), it truly feels like Onoenta is a stronger and more united community.

"Cheers to the Town & Gown Gala on Nov. 9. The event, which included activities and entertainment, aimed to help improve relationships between the city resident sand college students ....While the Gala won’t solve all the town-gown issues, we applaud the effort in trying to bring residents and college students together and encourage more opportunities like that." --The Daily Star, 11-18-14

More pics from TGG!

Post by The Redemption Movement.

Act of Kindness, Black Friday Edition

Last Thanksgiving, we blessed 50 Black Friday workers by passing out handmade thank you cards with a $2 bill tucked inside. This year, we're tripling our effort and hoping to increase the giving. For this year's Black Friday workers, we've got 150 personalized care packages and thank you cards ready to pass out and we're asking for your help to fill them with even more holiday cheer.

Last year's Black Friday gift.

If we can raise $150, then every worker will get $1. If we can raise $300, then we can do the $2 bill again. If this AoK goes viral and we get thousands of dollars donated, then it will be evenly spread out across the 150 care packages and we'll be able to make a huge difference in the lives of retailer workers having to sacrifice time with their family to work on a holiday.

150  personalized care packages ready to go!

We're also accepting other goodies and treats to put into the care packages to go along with the candy and cookies that we've already got set aside. You can drop off treats at The Redemption Movement, 148 River St., Oneonta, NY. This is the same address to send a check to. If you do send a check, please email rm.gigs@gmail.com and let us know about your gift so that we can set aside the appropriate funds and keep a running total (which we will keep a tally of on our blog). If you wish to give electronically, then send us an email or Facebook message to receive further instructions. All gifts are tax deductible.

Loving on Wal-Mart.

The RM Kindness Team will go from store-to-store on Thanksgiving and Black Friday passing out the care packages. We'll document the outreach and post it for your enjoyment. What are you thankful for this holiday season? If it's spending time with your family or getting rock-bottom deals, then be sure to spread that cheer to those behind the scenes that make it all possible.

Together, let's shine some light on Black Friday!

Update 11-25

Good news! We just received a generous $300 donation for this outreach, which means that we can pass out 2-dollar bills to 150 workers as part of our Thanksgiving/Black Friday care package!

We're still accepting donations for cash and treats. Any additional money that comes in will mean that we can bless workers with even more. Perhaps two 2-dollar bills, an Abe Lincoln, or even more? It's fun to dream big when your giving kindness.