After every night of serving the Oneonta nightlife with the downtown Kindness Station and free rides home, we take time to collect the best stories and pictures and write a report about the experience. In keeping detailed records like this, we've accumulated a vast amount of stories that tell the exciting history #OneontaRides, going all the way back to 2013.
We post most of these reports to our donation page, as well as some on this blog. A chronological listing of the reports is provided below. Enjoy!
With SUNY Oneonta on spring break, this Kindness Station outing was all about showing the students of Hartwick College some love as 10 volunteers (mostly connected with Hartwick) made sure that 45 people (students primarily from Hartwick) made it home safe. A Rare Chance for the Kindness Team to Just Hang Out with Each Other Knowing ahead of time that downtown Oneonta wouldn’t be nearly as busy as a typical Friday night... Read More >>
On this cold and rainy February night, five guys from the Kindness Team worked together to provide the community with 65 safe rides home. There’s really not too much to report beyond that. I was actually feeling sick that night so I only assisted with setting up the Kindness Station. Once everything was assembled and good to go... Read More >>
In what may have been the manliest edition of the Kindness Station ever, 13 people volunteered with the Kindness Team and provided the community with 75 safe rides. BASICally, the Manliest Kindness Station Ever All but one of the volunteers were men, most of whom were participating in BASIC’s “Dude Night"... READ MORE >>
Last Friday was a big night of community service as 11 volunteers worked together to provide Oneonta with 66 safe rides home. Having a large and experienced team made for an overwhelmingly positive experience, despite encountering a few desperate moments along the way... Read More >>
Last Friday night saw weather reaching the single digits and a wind chill well below zero. As far as operating the Kindness Station goes, this is about as cold as it gets. Despite the weather, there were 5 volunteers that braved the cold and served their community. These “frozen chosen” managed to valiantly provide safe... Read More >>
The sisters of Pi Delta Chi returned for the sorority’s second time sponsoring the Kindness Station, a group effort that provided the local community with 57 safe rides. It was a busy night of community service... Read More >>
On the first Friday night of 2018 with both of Oneonta’s two colleges in session, 6 Kindness Team volunteers provided the community with 85 safe rides home. But numbers can be misleading; coverage for the night actually fluctuated between 3-5... Read More >>
On New Year’s Eve two Kindness Team volunteers, Pat and Garland, teamed up to provide 15 safe rides to the Oneonta community. There was no Kindness Station that night, no large team of volunteers to work with, and temperatures dipped below zero, but Pat and Garland made the most of it by driving around town and helping as many people as they could. And, seeing as NYE is known as one of the worst nights in the country for drunk driving, making sure that 15 people made it home safe... Read More >>
The last outing of the Fall 2017 semester saw a team of 12 volunteers work together on a snowy and cold December night to make sure that 67 people received a safe ride home. That night, a lot of what we did went right. Yet, the outing will forever be remembered by what was broken. Namely, an ankle and a tent. CRACK Goes Kaler’s Ankle The only power source near the Kindness Station comes from an outlet that sits atop a light pole. To plug in our extension cord, I used to bring a ladder for each outing. That is, until I discovered... Read More >>
Another milestone night of giving rides followed by another day of designated driving at a major bar-hopping event netted 9 Kindness Team volunteers 92 safe rides home, 66 on Friday night and another 26 on Saturday afternoon. On the weekend of our 6,000th ride, there were plenty of memories made that will be difficult to forget... Read More >>
“It’s dead Jim.” Sadly, we received word the day before Friday’s Kindness Station outing that our ‘95 Mercury Grand Marquis, AKA the original Kindness Car, wasn’t going to pass inspection and is too far gone to safely give rides anymore... Read More >>
For the first time, the Kindness Team had enough helpers that we were able to provide the community with the Kindness Station on both Friday AND Saturday nights. To pull off this feat, more than 30 people served at... Read More >>
You would think that winter weather would cause a shortage of people volunteering outdoors at the Kindness Station. Yet, for the first cold night of the semester, we found the opposite to be true as 16 people (and one dog) braved temperatures in the teens to serve their fellow man. This many helpers allowed for 101 safe rides to be given, and the bitter cold caused big crowds to seek refuge under our heated tent, all throughout the night... Read More >>
With only two day’s rest between Halloween’s outing and Friday’s outing, a strong team of 10 volunteers made for a strong showing by serving their community with 83 safe rides home. Side note: This is a testimony to how much #OneontaRides has grown. Especially... Read More >>
Even though Halloween itself falls on a Tuesday, costumed-themed celebrations actually begin the weekend before--a time known as “Halloweekend.” Volunteers from the Kindness Team served their community both the Friday before Halloween and Halloween, a two-outing... Read More >>
Last Friday, both colleges were back from Fall break, which made for a busy night. Thankfully, it was a smooth and enjoyable outing, with no trips to the E.R. and no fights taking place near the Kindness Station. 9 Kindness... Read More >>
The only thing scary on this Friday the 13th was the number of safe rides provided by 9 Kindness Team volunteers, 79 in all. Overall, it was a smooth night of service, punctuated by unseasonably warm weather, wind, rap... Read More >>
SUNY Oneonta was on Fall break last Friday and it made for a relatively easy and quiet night of service for the 9 Kindness Team volunteers. That is, until the very last ride, #58. Before I get into the drama at the end of the outing, I want to focus on... Read More >>
Last Friday, 8 Kindness Team volunteers provided 62 safe rides home to downtown Oneonta. It was yet another wild September night of community service, punctuated by seeing old friends and having uplifting... Read More >>
A meaningful night of service was had as more than 6 Kindness Team volunteers worked to make sure that 51 people made it home safe. This was a dip in numbers compared to previous weeks; but, what we lacked in... Read More >>
72 people were given safe rides home the night of September 15th. But for dozen or so Kindness Team members on hand, and even more who contributed behind the scenes, last Friday was all about celebrating the night’s first ride, #OneontaRides’ 5,000th! For past milestone rides (like 1K, 3K, & 4K), we celebrated by... Read More >>
Last Friday night felt like deja vu for the 9 volunteers of the Kindness Team. The team went above and beyond by providing 115 safe rides to the community, which put our all-time ride count at 4,999! It’s interesting how we found ourselves in this exact same situation last year when we ended an outing at 2,999 rides. As you may recall, we took full advantage of this by making preparations throughout the following week to celebrate our 3,000th ride. Rest assured, we’ll... Read More >>
Last Friday, all of Oneonta’s students from both colleges were back and 7 Kindness Team volunteers spent their night on Water Street serving their needs and getting 72 people home safe. All of our experience taught us that we were in for a crazy night... Read More >>
The 10th semester of #OneontaRides kicked off last Friday with a team of 6 volunteers getting 31 people safe rides home. It was the first night out on the town for many freshman of both SUNY Oneonta and Hartwick College. Plus, it was the first night giving rides with our new car, the 8-passenger Kindness Wagon!... Read More >>
It was borderline reckless everything we gave away to downtown Oneonta at the last Kindness Station of the 2016-17 school year. The list includes: 190 bottles of water 83 Capri Sun juice packs Almost 7 gallons of... Read More >>
On Cinco de Mayo more than 9 Kindness Team volunteers served the community by providing 70 safe rides home. It was a cool and rainy night, yet spirits were high as SUNY Oneonta students celebrated their last... Read More >>
Last Friday night’s warm weather meant big crowds and good vibes for downtown Oneonta. 11 volunteers worked the Kindness Station and made sure that 70 people from the community made it home safe. Highlights include: On the ride side of things, we were able to help a lot people in need, including at least 3 distraught females we came across walking the streets by themselves. By far, the star at the station was a new addition; a lovable pup named Bandit! All night long... Read More >>
For OH-fest weekend, the Kindness Team put in an extra night of service and provided rides to the community on both Friday and Saturday, which included an #OneontaRides fundraiser at Domino's Pizza... Read More >>
We knew that last weekend wouldn’t be super busy since many students would be home for Easter, yet downtown Oneonta was busy enough for 6 volunteers to run the Kindness Station and serve their community... Read More >>
Last Friday, 9 Kindness Team members (and 1 dog) made sure that 51 people from the community made it home safe. For the 3rd weekend in a row it was cold and rainy so we brought our big tent and propane heaters, but the rain didn’t... Read More >>
Downtown Oneonta experienced rain rain and more rain last Friday night, yet 6 volunteers from the Kindness Team stayed dry under a big tent and made sure that 40 people from the community made it... Read More >>
Last Friday, 8 Kindness Team members made sure that 42 people from the community made it home safe. We also provided downtown with a dry/warm place to hang out during the light rain by setting up a tent 2x the size of our normal Kindness Station. Overall, it was a very jovial night full of great... Read More >>
Saint Patrick’s Day in Oneonta lived up to its reputation for the 13 Kindness Team volunteers who served the community by providing 142 safe rides--a new #OneontaRides one-night ride record!... Read More >>
A big shout out to Olivia, Hope, and Summer who drove the #OneontaRides car around last night for like an hour and a half (when the bars closed) and took 11 people home! I'm sure those 11 people were super appreciative, especially seeing as it felt like -10 last night! One of the 11 people given a ride that night was a grandmother who happens to also be a Kindness Team member that’s volunteered with us in the past. It’s feels good to help out a friend like this. To be sure... Read More >>
With SUCO on break, last weekend was all about showing love to Hartwick students. Since downtown was far less busy than normal, and with temperatures being in the single digits, we decided to send out one... Read More >>
Despite it being February in upstate NY, temperatures were in the 60s last Friday night as 8 volunteers from the Kindness Team served downtown Oneonta with acts of kindness and made sure that 41 people made it... Read More >>
Last Friday night on Water Street, 7 volunteers ran the Kindness Station and made sure that 48 people made it home safe. It was a cold night and several great conversations took place around our 3 big outdoor heaters. We even gave away 7 coats to... Read More >>
Last Friday, 7 volunteers from the Kindness Team braved the cold weather and a snowstorm to run the Kindness Station on Water Street and help make sure that 47 people made it home safe. Highlights of the night... Read More >>
At roughly 3am on Saturday, February 4th, #OneontaRides celebrated the giving of our 4,000th ride with our new friend, Bobby. We waited until we got Bobby home before surprising him with the news, along with... Read More >>
Another Friday night of serving downtown Oneonta in the books! For our last outing, 9 volunteers helped make sure that 43 people made it home safe. It was a brisk January night with temperatures hovering in the twenties, but everybody... Read More >>
After a month-long break, the Kindness Team returned downtown last Friday with 7 volunteers to run the Kindness Station and provide 55 people with safe rides home! That night, many expressed their thanks and... Read More >>
#OneontaRides kicked off 2017 by making sure that 23 NYE revelers made it home safe! On a night known for being one of the worst in the nation for drunk driving, we put more miles than usual on our 2 cars by driving all over the county, going as far as Mt. Vision and West Davenport (a change from our usual pace of taking students just up the hill to campus). Even though we were on call for rides since 10pm, it wasn't until after midnight until we saw any demand. This was fine by myself and Garland, seeing as it gave us the chance to hang out at Foothills PAC... Read More >>
The last downtown Kindness Station of 2016 ended on a strong note as a team of 8 volunteers made sure that 68 people made it home safe--in a snowstorm! Highlights of the night include: There must have been extra... Read More >>
A crazy 24 hours last Friday-Saturday for #OneontaRides! Before setting up the downtown Kindness Station, we kicked off the evening at Bluefield’s Cafe for our monthly Kindness Team presentation... Read More >>
Last Friday was a great night of community service with #OneontaRides. 60 people were provided a free, safe, nonjudgmental ride home, and the snowfall made for a fun night of volunteering at the downtown Kindness Station. Highlights... Read More >>
Last Friday night, a team of 15 people volunteered at the downtown Kindness Station, making sure that 80 people made it home safe. The Kindness Team was represented by a diverse group; student volunteers from Hartwick and SUCO... Read More >>
Last Friday was a big night of community service from the Kindness Team. 60 safe rides were given and we operated the Kindness Station on Water Street with propane heaters during the brisk November night. Overall, it was a pretty tame night... Read More >>
42 safe rides given last Friday night! It was a unique night because many of our helpers were out of town so we improvised by giving rides without setting up the Kindness Station. Everything worked out great. We... Read More >>
Halloweekend, Night 1 For #OneontaRides Halloweekend 2016 Night 1 of 3, we broke our one-night ride record by taking 87 people home! Wow! Halloweekend, Night 2 Last night's #OneontaRides second... Read More >>
Despite the cold and the rain, 11 volunteers worked together at the Kindness Station on Water Street to make sure that 46 people got home safe. Knowing that we were in for a full night of rain, we brought our extra-large 10x20 tent... Read More >>
Last Friday was a special night of #OneontaRides. We helped 35 people make it home safe, and we had a large team of 11 volunteers serving at the Kindness Station. This gave us enough helpers to send out "street teams" with kindness baskets. Two of the volunteers were special guests, my in-laws from... Read More >>
Last Friday, despite the fact that SUNY Oneonta was on break, the Kindness Team went ahead and set up on Water Street and served downtown. With Hartwick College in session and the OPT buses to SUCO not running past midnight, we knew there would be a need for rides. I'm glad we did it. We took 28 people home, including one student who was so intoxicated that he couldn't stand on his own... Read More >>
On the night of September 30th, 2016 The Redemption Movement gave our 3,000th safe ride to the Oneonta community. In a similar fashion to how we celebrated our 1,000th ride, we celebrated the recent... Read More >>
2,999. That's the total number of safe rides given by #OneontaRides since 2013 after giving 51 rides last Friday. Just one ride shy of 3k! But hey, this means that we're guaranteed to hit the milestone this coming Friday. Last Friday was a busy night for downtown Oneonta, and we had a dozen Kindness Team volunteers up for the challenge Jeremy Jones drove the big church van and said, "It was an interesting night. We had a group with a boy puking... Read More >>
BIG impact made last Friday by the Kindness Team! At least 15 people volunteered time out of their night to serve their community, making it possible to take 44 people home. Highlights include (and the last one is pretty crazy): A confirmed... Read More >>
Kindness Team members and SUNY Oneonta students Russell, Kat, Emma, and Summer served the community by throwing downtown a big party last Friday night, with pizza provided by Domino’s... Read More >>
Last Friday, #OneontaRides got 63 people home safe, thanks to volunteers from Main Street Baptist Church, Anchor Oneonta, The Redemption Movement, SUNY Oneonta Random Acts of Kindness Club, and more. In fact, for the first time ever, both MSBC and Anchor... Read More >>
Amazing first night back for #OneontaRides! We only had one small Kia Sportage to work with, yet we still managed to get 35 people home safe! I thought it'd be a slow night since school hasn't officially started, but downtown... Read More >>
At the end of the annual Senior Bar Crawl, we wrapped up our 3rd season of #OneontaRides, bringing our ride total to 2,771--that's 1,741 safe rides given during the 2015-16 school year alone! What's even more amazing is... Read More >>
For the 3rd weekend in a row, we gave more than 70 safe rides home--giving 73 last Friday! A big volunteer effort from the Kindness Team made it possible, with help from Garland, Russell, Danny, Kat, Matt, James... Read More >>
71 safe rides given last night! For the first couple of hours, it looked like we were in for a slow night. Then, midnight hit and downtown exploded with people. So much so that we couldn’t keep up with demand for rides for the rest of the night... Read More >>
OH-Fest XI was a huge night for #OneontaRides, as experienced firsthand by Kindness Team members Marybeth, James, Matt, Katy, Kristian, Summer, and Garland (thank you team!). 72 safe rides given, we rented an... Read More >>
Last night was another great Friday of serving the community. We gave 43 safe rides home and the Kindness Station was open all night long on Water Street. What stuck out to me the most about last night wasn't anything too crazy that happened, but it was the fact that we had so much help from the Kindness... Read More >>
With a big team of 7 volunteers, we made a big impact last night and got 69 people home safe! A big thanks goes out to Garland, Kat, Matt, James, Doug, and Rakesh, who all stepped up and provided enough coverage so we could take... Read More >>
Another amazing, story-filled night of #OneontaRides serving the community! We only had enough helpers to take out 1 car, so I had to let more than a dozen phone calls for rides go to voicemail. But, we still made an impact by... Read More >>
Another wild night on Water Street! We gave 41 people safe rides home, thanks to the help of Russell, Kat, Matt (Hooray SUNY Oneonta Random Acts of Kindness Club!), Garland, and James. Highlights of the night include: Witnessing at least 3 different fights take place in front of The Sip & Sail Tavern. For one of... Read More >>
We had a big Saint Patrick’s Day weekend giving 63 safe rides home and serving downtown revelers with our Kindness Station, now located on Water Street in front of LEAF! For sure, Water Street is a much wilder spot than our previous location on Main Street, as evidenced by... Read More >>
37 safe rides given last Saturday. We took 24 people home from the Snommegang beer festival, and then 13 more people called us or flagged us down for a ride throughout the course of the night. Big thanks to Anne, James, Garland, and Dominick for lending a hand, and to St. James Church for allowing us to set up on their property. For me, the proudest ride of the day was when Garland took the young man home from Worcester that I told you about from the previous weekend... Read More >>
Doug and Garland took 14 people home last night, and we gave out more winter clothes as temperatures dropped down to the teens. Actually, I'm not 100% sure what happened that night because I was only there for setup... Read More >>
A wild night of serving downtown Oneonta made for our biggest night yet of giving safe rides as we got 82 people home safe! Highlights of the night include: Taking a 19-year old girl to... Read More >>
Last night was awesome! 63 safe rides given. We once again had just enough helpers to pull it off. Big thanks to Sonja, Doug, Kat, "Kat's BF" (Matt), James, and John. It was neat how we had enough overlapping coverage to do the... Read More >>
A Cold Friday Night 60+ safe rides given last night! There was so much demand for rides that I unfortunately had to pretty much ignore most of the phone calls for rides (we got 21 phone calls in all) in order to prioritize in people waiting for rides at the Kindness Station. As expected, many bar... Read More >>
Last night was a big night of giving 53 safe rides! Everything went very smoothly, thanks to the various ways that the Kindness Team lent their support. Garland, Chris, James, and Doug made it possible to have just... Read More >>
We gave 46 people safe rides home last night. It was just Garland and myself, and since we didn’t have enough helpers to do the Kindness Station, we got the chance to try out a new approach: spend the majority of our time... Read More >>
Despite it being the coldest night so far this Winter (15 degrees), we had our biggest night for volunteering and gave 55 safe rides! These frozen chosen deserve medals (or at least pizza): Garland, David, Lucy... Read More >>
Downtown was quiet without 100% of the SUCO students being back yet, and we fought some January rain during the last hour. Yet the team (thank you to Garland, Doug, Jen, and James) still had a great night of serving our... Read More >>
It’s well known that New Year’s Eve is the worst night of year for drunk driving. Therefore, we heavily promoted #OneontaRides in the days leading up to the holiday, which included... Read More >>
Another big night of giving rides while doing the Kindness Station is in the books. We only used one car, but still managed to give 38 rides. I'm happy to see that the station is a hit. Serving Hundreds of New People, and... Read More >>
One thing that makes running the Kindness Station and being on call for free rides so exhilarating is that you’re surrounded by so much need. Although, when putting yourself out there for every need you see, it quickly becomes obvious that you can only do so much. Helping a Woman With Her... Read More >>
Wow! 68 rides given! And here's a pic of a big crowd gathered at the Kindness Station. It was taken when I was trying to coordinate giving rides to a group of 8--while my phone was ringing off the hook from even more people needing a ride home. AND... Read More >>
The Excitement Builds While Shopping for Supplies. Guys, this kindness station is going to be a game changer for Oneonta's downtown scene. As I was shopping for it, I kept coming up with new ideas on things we can offer... Read More >>
An exciting night of getting 34 people home safe. It was too last minute to do our first Kindness Station, but Garland and I still made it out and did our thang. Thank you Tino's for taking care of our hungry volunteers with delicious... Read More >>
Downtown: on Halloween weekend. These are the voyages of the Starship Kindness. Its continuing mission: to meet strange new people, to seek out those in need of a helping hand, to boldly and... Read More >>
One local woman saw Garland and told us that she knew she could trust us for a ride because he was wearing hunter’s camo. A student outside of the bar approached us for a ride. He was ready to go home after cutting his finger pretty badly on a beer can. We provided him with paper... Read More >>
When most people retire, they tend to go to bed earlier. That is, unless your son is the guy who started #OneontaRides, then you include a night of designated driving when visiting from out of... Read More >>
Last Friday, we took 34 people home from Oneonta’s bars, and we ended up with three stories worth sharing. Standing Up To Stalking We typically begin our night by having volunteers meet at Tino’s Pizza. While waiting, 3 college girls... Read More >>
Oneonta, NY has a vibrant nightlife with more than 10 downtown bars serving two colleges. When the bars close, people have to find a way home. That’s where we come in, standing outside the bars with our car and... Read More >>
Due to the newness of the school the semester, September weekends in Oneonta are some of the busiest and most energetic of the year. This proved to be the case last Friday night when... Read More >>
Last Friday marks another milestone for the free ride service. Not in terms of the amount of rides given (30), but by the simple fact that we were able to send out a car while I (Kaler) was out of town. In the past, an... Read More >>
This was the first week with all of the students back from both Hartwick and SUNY Oneonta, and it showed, the downtown sidewalks were packed full of young people. This kept both of our cars.... Read More >>
After taking the summer off to get organized and fund raise, we were back on the road to help with the first weekend of Oneonta's students being back. We picked up right where we left off, getting 45 people home safe, and we’re positioned to make a bigger impact this semester--now that we have two cars! The advantage of having two cars was... Read More >>
Oneonta’s Senior Bar Crawl was a perfect occasion to give our 1,000th free ride. The SUNY Oneonta class of 2015 has played a big part in The Redemption Movement’s short history. Many of these seniors were... Read More >>
It was the last day of classes for SUNY Oneonta, which meant students were out in force and demand for rides was high. Dominick and I had a blast giving free rides, and we kept busy, getting 44 people home safely... Read More >>
Put us down for another night of giving 40 free rides, which marks the 7th time this semester we've given rides to 40 or more people in one night. Nights where we give this many rides keep us busy and provide us with... Read More >>
We knew that Oneonta’s 10th annual OH Fest would make things busy enough to maybe break our one-night ride record of 44 rides, but we weren't expecting the record to be obliterated!... Read More >>
The most striking thing about giving free rides last Saturday was just how late at night people were GOING to the bar, piling out of cars as late as 12:30. Dustin and I arrived at 10:30 to offer rides home FROM the bars... Read More >>
Springtime in Oneonta. Finally! It’s been five-and-a-half months since we last gave free rides on a night where it was above freezing. On April 11th, David and I got 25 people home safe, and the long-awaited warm weather made for a rather unique night... Read More >>
On this chilly March night we got 40 people home safe, making this is the 5th outing in a row that we’ve taken 40 or more people home! When we first started doing the free ride outreach, 20... Read More >>
We knew ahead of time that St. Oney’s Day would come with a big need for designated driving. On that “holiday,” we ended up giving 42 free rides, making it a busier night for us than the drinking holiday it’s... Read More >>
Saint Patrick’s Day 2015 marked 2 full years of operating the free ride service! Additional milestones for the evening include: And giving a two-vehicle total of 40 free rides home... Read More >>
A frigid, sub-zero night, along with the Snommegang after party led to a high demand for rides as Dustin and I got 42 Oneonta bar-goers home safe. When you take home that many carloads of... Read More >>
The colder it gets means the more demand there is for the free ride service. This was the case on a cold February night when temperatures dropped to -10°. We gave more rides that night (44) than any night over... Read More >>
When we give someone a free ride, we’re doing more than taking them home. We use those few precious minutes to get to know them. We compassionately listen and if a need is expressed that’s beyond the ride, we’re happy to oblige. This was the case with a down-and... Read More >>
Sure, it was a bitter-cold night to give free rides to downtown Oneonta (getting as low as 11 degrees), but we were so busy taking 35 people home that we actually spent more time inside the warm car than we did outside... Read More >>
Last night was a special designated driving outing because I was joined by my sister. She was visiting from Missouri and this was her first time in Oneonta. As a bonus, the car we used was driven by her back in... Read More >>
New Year’s Eve is known as one of the worst nights for drunk driving. Therefore, we made it a point to brave the 16 degree weather and ring in 2015 standing in front of Oneonta’s bars. Our act... Read More >>
24 people were given free rides last Friday night. Pictured here are 4/5 Asian students we shuttled from one side of SUNY Oneonta campus to the other. We met them after dropping off bar-going students at Hillside Commons... Read More >>
For last night’s designated driving outreach, we were in the right place at the right time to possibly save a life. At 1am, we were offering rides to bar goers outside The Red Jug Pub and a middle-aged woman stepped outside of a neighboring apartment... Read More >>
This Halloween, we had a great time serving our community with free rides while dressing up and outfitting the car with a Star Wars theme. Balance was restored to the force as we broke our one-night ride record and... Read More >>
Did you know that on a Saturday night, Tino's Pizza is so busy that the line goes out the door? This is why Tino's is one of our favorite places to park our car in front of for the designated driving outreach. We went out... Read More >>
Here are 3 kindness stories to share from giving 12 people free rides home last night. There was one student that was so inebriated that he couldn’t walk or understand where he was. We gave him a ride home and helped carry him inside his apartment... Read More >>
For last night's designated driving outreach, Peter Eklund from the college student group Campus Ambassadors joined us. We were done by 1am, so it was a shorter night than usual, but we still made a big impact by getting 12...Read More >>
After last Friday's church gathering, we went downtown and gave free rides as part of our designated driving service. That night, we achieved a personal best by making sure that 35 people made it home safely! That's 123 people so far this semester! Highlights of... Read More >>
A new school year meant a second Redemption Movement Welcome Week of service projects for students. In 2013, we planned 3 nights of designated driving for Welcome Week and were only able to complete 2 of the outings. For Welcome... Read More >>
With new signs made that are compliant with city law (now “Free Ride” instead of “Free Taxi”), we went out on Saturday night and gave free rides to Oneonta bar patrons as an act of kindness to show God’s love. And what a night of service it was! Read More >>
We went out last night using my personal car and gave over 30 people rides home in less than 3 hours, and we talked to as many people while hanging out in front of the bar. Everyone we interacted with complemented our efforts, and was told of God's unconditional love... Read More >>
We had a great time going out and giving free rides to downtown bar patrons after The Redemption Movement's Friday Evening Gathering! We were out from midnight-to-3am, and gave 12 people rides home, and we talked to as many people about the church and God's love while hanging out. We even got to pray with 2 young ladies that didn't feel like God loved them! Read More >>
Wowzers! Last Friday, Inspector Gadget was in the City of Oneonta helping The Redemption Movement give free rides to downtown bar patrons in his Gadgetmobile! Read More >>
The Redemption Movement again gave out free rides to downtown bar patrons as an act of kindness last Saturday night. It is cool that we have done this long enough that students who we have helped in the past see us and bring their intoxicated friends to our car because they know we will get them home safe. Read More >>
We gave out free rides as an act of kindness to downtown bar patrons after church on Friday night. We met a lot of great people, and with the help of SUNY Oneonta University Police, we helped one young woman make it back safely to her dorm after passing out... Read More >>
On Saturday night, we went out in the rain and gave free designated driving rides to students in front of Tino's Pizza on Main Street. We got several intoxicated people home safe, and shared God's love with a lot students as we stayed out as late as 2:30am. Read More >>
Last night we parked our car downtown and offered our services as designated drivers by providing free rides. It was a good night. We talked with several people, shared God's love, and helped keep the streets safe. Read More >>
For Day 18 of 30 Days of Kindness, we provided free designated driver transportation to people celebrating Saint Patrick's Day. St. Paddy's Day means heavy traffic at the bars for a Northeast college town like Oneonta, NY. We figured this holiday would be the perfect time to give the Designated Driver AoK our first try. Read More >>
Sunday Morning Worship Service: 10:30am at River Street Baptist Church, 133 River Street, Oneonta, NY
Sunday School, 9:30am
Connect
Contact usto learn about how you can connect with us. You can visit a worship gathering at River Street Baptist Church, check out an upcoming social activity, serve at the downtown Kindness Station, or grab a slice of pizza or cup of coffee and have a chat with Pastor Kaler about faith, life, church, or whatever.
We serve downtown Oneonta with an act of kindness station, which includes providingfree rides home. Open from Midnight-3am and operating on Fridays and special occasions throughout the school year. Contact us if you'd like to help!
Kaler and Laura married in 2006. They spent their lives in Missouri and met while attending Central Bible College, where they both earned bachelor degrees in ministry. In 2009 they moved to Oneonta, NY to church plant The Redemption Movement. The church launched on Good Friday, 2013. Since the launch, Kaler and Laura have become proud parents, welcoming two sons into the world.
Downtown: on Halloween weekend. These are the voyages of the Starship Kindness. Its continuing mission: to meet strange new people, to seek out those in need of a helping hand, to boldly and... Read More >>
When most people retire, they tend to go to bed earlier. That is, unless your son is the guy who started #OneontaRides, then you include a night of designated driving when visiting from out of... Read More >>
Due to the newness of the school the semester, September weekends in Oneonta are some of the busiest and most energetic of the year. This proved to be the case last Friday night when... Read More >>
This was the first week with all of the students back from both Hartwick and SUNY Oneonta, and it showed, the downtown sidewalks were packed full of young people. This kept both of our cars.... Read More >>
It was the last day of classes for SUNY Oneonta, which meant students were out in force and demand for rides was high. Dominick and I had a blast giving free rides, and we kept busy, getting 44 people home safely... Read More >>
Put us down for another night of giving 40 free rides, which marks the 7th time this semester we've given rides to 40 or more people in one night. Nights where we give this many rides keep us busy and provide us with... Read More >>
We knew that Oneonta’s 10th annual OH Fest would make things busy enough to maybe break our one-night ride record of 44 rides, but we weren't expecting the record to be obliterated!... Read More >>
The most striking thing about giving free rides last Saturday was just how late at night people were GOING to the bar, piling out of cars as late as 12:30. Dustin and I arrived at 10:30 to offer rides home FROM the bars... Read More >>
On this chilly March night we got 40 people home safe, making this is the 5th outing in a row that we’ve taken 40 or more people home! When we first started doing the free ride outreach, 20... Read More >>
We knew ahead of time that St. Oney’s Day would come with a big need for designated driving. On that “holiday,” we ended up giving 42 free rides, making it a busier night for us than the drinking holiday it’s... Read More >>
Saint Patrick’s Day 2015 marked 2 full years of operating the free ride service! Additional milestones for the evening include: And giving a two-vehicle total of 40 free rides home... Read More >>
A frigid, sub-zero night, along with the Snommegang after party led to a high demand for rides as Dustin and I got 42 Oneonta bar-goers home safe. When you take home that many carloads of... Read More >> 
The colder it gets means the more demand there is for the free ride service. This was the case on a cold February night when temperatures dropped to -10°. We gave more rides that night (44) than any night over... Read More >>
Last night was a special designated driving outing because I was joined by my sister. She was visiting from Missouri and this was her first time in Oneonta. As a bonus, the car we used was driven by her back in... Read More >>
New Year’s Eve is known as one of the worst nights for drunk driving. Therefore, we made it a point to brave the 16 degree weather and ring in 2015 standing in front of Oneonta’s bars. Our act... Read More >>
This Halloween, we had a great time serving our community with free rides while dressing up and outfitting the car with a Star Wars theme. Balance was restored to the force as we broke our one-night ride record and... Read More >> 
After last Friday's church gathering, we went downtown and gave free rides as part of our designated driving service. That night, we achieved a personal best by making sure that 35 people made it home safely! That's 123 people so far this semester! Highlights of... Read More >>
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