How We Got The Story: How a lost shoe sparked a social media sensation and a Daily Herald story
Man loses shoe in Schaumburg.
Ordinarily, that's not the kind of event that merits a newspaper story. Or so I thought.
Early last month, an editor asked me to follow up on a post on Everything Schaumburg, the Daily Herald's Facebook group, that was generating a lot of interest online.
The post was from a young man seeking help locating one of his shoes, which he lost a day or two earlier while walking from a Schaumburg nightspot back to his hotel. His post sparked something of a viral sensation, generating hundreds of mostly good-natured responses from readers eager to assist Lucas Duffy, a 23-year-old aircraft mechanic from Martinsburg, West Virginia, who was staying in Schaumburg while working a job at O'Hare International Airport.
I direct messaged Duffy who agreed to chat. He told me that after he and his colleagues finished work, they visited a couple of bars within walking distance of their hotel. Making their way back to the hotel about 1 a.m., Duffy - who admits his memory of the night is a bit fuzzy - recalled looking at his feet at one point and noticing one of his On Cloud running shoes was missing.
Packing the next morning for an early flight, he remembered the missing shoe but had no time to retrace his steps and search for it. After arriving home, he did the next best thing, he posted a query on social media asking for help locating the missing shoe.
It was done in the spirit of good fun and the response was swift and enthusiastic. Strangers offered suggestions and well wishes for the shoe's recovery. Some, including a Schaumburg woman and her dog, searched the detailed route Duffy provided. One suggested a meetup next year, to which Duffy agreed. Another offered him a place to stay when he returns. A Sycamore woman sent him her husband's barely used pair of On Cloud shoes. The posters I contacted were eager to talk about the genial young man with the unusual request.
As for Duffy, he responded graciously to everyone who reached out to him.
"They are the kindest humans," he said.
The most challenging part of writing the story was coming up with puns for missing footwear. The most rewarding part of reporting Duffy's tale was the good humor that animated this story.
I don't think Duffy ever recovered his shoe, but he surely lightened some people's day and made them smile. Not many newspaper articles accomplish that, especially these days. So, I guess man loses shoe in Schaumburg merits a story after all.