Editorial: St. Charles company is model of kindness we all need

To some, this may not seem the most important social issue of the day. But it's high on the list.

It started for us with a cheeky clerk working a drive-up window in minus-25 degrees wind chill. Not a great day to be working behind a sliding window. The wind chill, however, was the same for the paying customer who ventured out.

The no-look, irreverent "Here you go" as the food was handed out wasn't the behavior outlined in the customer service handbook.

It's not just grumpy customer service people we encounter. While some still struggle financially and millions more have lost their jobs, interactions with people ­ ­- with whom you have no idea what they are dealing with - is a two-way street.

While it might seem customer service is dead based on a three-second snapshot, it isn't. It's usually a matter of how we treat and relate to each other. That goes not only for drive-through window attendants, but for everyone in everyday life.

No one said it better than Alex Trebek, the famous "Jeopardy!" host who died Nov. 8 at 80. During his final week on the air, he began one episode by saying: "We're trying to build a gentler, kinder society, and if we all pitch in just a little bit, we're going to get there."

We can all be nicer. It costs nothing to say, "Thank you" or "Have a nice day." You'll feel better for having said it. Everyone wins.

Just ask the people who run Random Acts Matter, a St. Charles nonprofit that has been a blessing for thousands.

Jim Di Ciaula founded the group in February 2017. His belief was 1 million small acts could change the world. It's tagline: No act of kindness is too small."

Since its inception, Random Acts has performed more than 300 acts of kindness benefiting nearly 2,000 recipients.

Last Sunday the group - which helps people year-round - wrapped up its annual Random Acts of Kindness Week. It collected and delivered food to veterans; baked treats and delivered them to community helpers and front-line workers; made cards and filled coffee mugs with candy and hot cocoa and brought them to senior citizens. And a whole lot more.

During the year Random Acts has donated money for medical needs bills, held coat drives, delivered a bike for a student whose bike was stolen, provided housecleaning, meals and other help for parents of a child with leukemia, and donated clothes and gift cards to families who lost everything in a house fire.

"We do this for someone who may need care and compassion," Di Ciaula said.

That, fellow citizens, might be the most important social issue of the year.