Bears tight end Kmet surprises childhood mentor in Barrington with team swag
A Barrington Catholic school teacher got a nice surprise from one of his famous, former students - Chicago Bears rookie tight end Cole Kmet - who had some Bears swag delivered to one of his early mentors.
Kmet, a Lake Barrington native and Saint Anne Parish School alumnus, had team mascot Staley Da Bear deliver a wagon full of autographed memorabilia and tailgate items to teacher Robert Olsen during a recent surprise ceremony outside the school.
That included a signed helmet, football, jersey and hat, along with a crockpot and soup thanks to sponsors Campbell's Chunky Soup and Jewel-Osco.
Kmet said he wanted to find some way to honor Olsen, who has always been a big sports fan and regularly reached out to him throughout his journey to the NFL.
"He was just a fun spirit to have throughout grade school," Kmet said in a video posted to the Bears' website. "He was a great guy to be around and just a great mentor to me."
Olsen said the gifts were a wonderful surprise, and he's proud of the job Kmet is doing for the Bears.
"It's wonderful when our students go out to the world and share everything that we try to teach and instill in you," Olsen said in a video message back to Kmet. "And it just makes our job so worthwhile to see people grow up and do wonderful things like you're doing."