From Hidden Brain Media, I'm Shankar Vedantam. This is my unsung hero, stories where one person reached

out to help another in a time of need.

Hello, I would like to thank my unsung hero.

He invited me to come over for Christmas because we're both...

I just want to say thank you.

Today's story comes from Nick Eppley.

Nick is a psychologist who studies... Today's story comes from Nick Eppley.

Nick is a psychologist who studies gratitude.

He often has people reach out to him about his research.

A few years ago, the owner of a fast food restaurant in his area did just that. Nick did not know their

exchange would greatly impact his entire family.

In the end of March in 2023 my wife daughter daughter, and I were in Lurie's Children's Hospital in downtown Chicago.

Our daughter had been diagnosed with cancer.

And I had remembered just a couple months earlier I had some lovely email exchanges

with the owner of a chick-falaise store not far from the hospital,

Lauren Silich, is her name, and Lauren is my unsung hero.

During that exchange, Lauren had said,

if you or your colleagues ever need some chicken,

reach out to me.

And so in this time, when we were not far away in the hospital, I did. And she said, I'm so glad that you reach out to me, we can do something amazing for your daughter.

She said over email, well-fed nurses are happy nurses, so let's start by feeding your entire floor.

And I thought to myself the entire floor, are you kidding me?

...