All right, welcome to the Kindness Chronicles, where we hope to inject the world with a dose of the Minnesota nice that it desperately needs. We got the whole team in studio today, which is shocking. Steve Brown. Hey everybody. Johnny Clueless fame and other stuff. Kevin Gorg from, uh, what are you Fox sports or where are you now? Bally's. We're nobody knows where. Multiple outlets, including the steam team out at Canterbury, which we'll get to later.
And, uh, I'm John Schweitz and we're doing this via zoom for the first time. And we have with us a couple of very special guests. We've got EJ and Nicole McNulty, and I was gonna try and give you a nice introduction, but because it's on my phone and we're doing this Zoom thing, I don't know how to do that. So, EJ He has no script! I got no script! What am I gonna do?
So, would you guys mind introducing yourself and telling us a little bit about who you are and what your organization is all about? Yeah, no, we'd love to. Um, honestly, I think it's great. We're from a kind of, um, um, to actually, um, phones for, and Michael, um, 15 year old. Um, there was, um, and, um, and so we had an amazing amount of outpouring from the, our community and we live in the Minnetonka area. Um, Michael and his twin brother, Colin, who are 15 year olds.
It'll be sophomores on that next year. Um, and so we've been involved in sports. We've been involved in, boy, just just tried to be involved in the community. Um, and we sort of, like I said, we have a tremendous amount of outpouring and we felt I, a wave of love and warmth and embrace, um, that, you know, I don't think you could actually ever really, truly understand, um, you know, until the community, you know, entire community wraps themselves around you.
And when we had that, we knew that it was two things. Was one, that we had to pay that love forward. Um, that, um, we felt the power of it. We felt the power of kindness. We felt the power of forgiveness. Complete strangers taking time to tell us what Michael meant to them. Um, the, the kindness that he spread, the love that he gave them, they found ways to get to us to tell us that. And then the second thing, um, is that, you know, the, not everybody has all of, you know, has a great community.
Not everybody is fortunate to have some of the means that we have to be able to get through. Terrible moments, like everybody has, you know, their stuff, if you will. Um, and so when we built that, we knew we had to pay it forward. And the second thing is that we really wanted to figure out, you know, how do you, how do you take this, this amazing life that was cut short and 15, you know, well lived years and as parents and as a larger family, how do we.
How do we keep on walking with Michael, keep on living our lives, um, with our child, um, who, you know, which is an unthinkable, we, you know, it's just unthinkable to lose your child at 15. So, we are.
We spend our time, um, and that's kind of our, part of our healing process, I guess, sort of our, our way of, of actually, um, parenting and dealing with, you know, Michael's a teenager, sometimes he frustrates just till sometimes he makes us smile, um, but it is through the, the smiles and the hopes and the, and, and the messages that we get back from people, um, when we do good with Michael's life, which is, um, Um, it's giving, uh, it's supporting people who spread kindness with scholarships,
charity, or just when our candles, um, and a kindness coat when people see, um, Um, all that, uh, you know, even the candle, um, and the message that comes along with it. Um, and, and Nick, like, good. Tell people that we're, we're kind on a bunch of different levels when we talk about the candle. Yeah, I mean, how I look at it is slightly different than you. I mean, yes, that was the instance for all of this, but a lot of folks talked to us about how kind Michael was and what a light he was.
We really started to reflect on, like, why was that happening? Like, we were just so shocked by how many people we knew and how many lives we touched. Like you said, in the 15 well lived years, right? So, when we thought about, like, what does that all mean, right? Like, what is kindness, right? And he was empathetic. Uh, he had an emotional IQ beyond that of a 15 year old. Um, he was persistent, so he was confident, um, he liked to have fun, um, and he was super brave.
He was bold, brave, and kind. And that's what we kind of started to land on for the mission of A Kindness Goal, if you will. To kind of spread, spread those connections through, I'm struggling for the right words here, but like through those different, um, character traits that someone might have, right? And so the, the candles are really about, you know, sharing and spreading that. And that really transcends Michael. And that's why we have a kind of go from Michael's light.
Like all of these things, you know, we live in a real devices world, right? Oh, we do. And recently, uh, yeah, so we, we just, we really want to celebrate those, you know, those traits and people. I mean, you want people to. You know, no, they're not alone, right? We want them to feel like they belong, right? So, like, each candle has a meaning to it, as you probably saw in the ones we sent you. You know, so there's a, there's a reason you give it to somebody, right?
You know, you give pow pow to somebody because it comes with such bravery. Um, if you have known that, if somebody says it comes with curiosity, you know, maybe it's wonder, and you know, no judgements, if you will, right? So, I don't know, we feel like we just kind of So either you're getting emails, or I'm getting emails. Ha ha ha ha! I think that's the other thing, sorry.
No, well, I had a, I just had an ESPN announcement, uh, that came through, so This is going to be a real fun one to, uh, to edit. But I just want to first, uh, thank you for being on with us. Thank you very much for the candles that you sent to us. We've got one burning here. And it's the best our little basement studio has smelled in a long time. Um, clearly you guys, beyond the fact that you're compassionate, kind, thoughtful people, you're creative people.
And what I have been so impressed with is, and this is very, it's crazy, but the packaging, Of the product is it's clearly it's done with care and there is a purpose behind the packaging. And here's my story. My wife opened up the package and she opened it, opened it up and she's like, Oh my God, what are these? These cute candles. And she opens it up. And she pulled out the little story that you have about Michael.
And she read it, and she didn't read it out loud, and she turns around and she's got tears rolling down her face. And she said, Who, what is this? And I said, These are our guests on Monday for the, uh, for the podcast. And she said, Oh, we gotta, we gotta get behind this. This is absolutely beautiful. And what's really interesting, and I just, I'm going to go there. You mentioned that we're living in a divisive world this weekend.
We, uh, we witnessed a rather divisive moment where a young man, uh, took a shot at, uh, at, uh, the former president. And all I could think about was if that kid would have had somebody like a that would sit by them. In the lunchroom, that might be the difference between that guy being in a morgue somewhere and living his life. And it's just, we have talked about this many times, my greatest Like, fear for young people is the loneliness that they experience in a lunchroom.
Your individuality is more exposed in a high school lunchroom than anywhere. It's a laboratory. It's a lab, and if you don't have anybody, your loneliness is just so exposed. And, um, we're involved, uh, with a couple of organizations and one of them does these kindness scholarships. And I always am so moved by the stories about the people that go through the lunchroom and look for that person that's sitting alone. And, you know, as terrible as what this young man did.
You got to feel compassion and sorry for the guy because he clearly, he didn't have a social media footprint, which tells me that he wasn't going to have, there were no friends for him to connect with on social media. It's just heartbreaking. And that's when I think, you know, the butterfly effect, and I, again, you're, you're, I don't know what the term is. You're an ad guy, aren't you, EJ? Yeah, some people call me an advertising guy. So you're like a marketing guy. Very creative, yeah.
Very well put together packaging and thought. Very good thoughtful and beautiful thought behind all of it. Oh God. Which makes it even better. But the concept of the butterfly. Tell us a little bit about the butterfly. Well, I mean, that's it. You, you, you said it's the butterfly effect, right? And, you know, this, this, this poor tragedy we just had, as you said, like, it only takes one person in one kind act to actually change the trajectory of an entire life.
And, and that could be an entire nation, you know, uh, trajectory. Um, and we saw that, um, and, and so that's what it is. And, you know, that's when, when it comes to candle, or if it's just, Opening the door or saying hello to somebody you walk past somebody every day on the street and you don't know how much it means when you just look somebody in the eye and say, hello, or have a great day. And it's just a little bit of kindness. It takes nothing from you, but that brightens somebody's day.
It changes their step. It changes how they think about the day. Who knows what else you're going to encounter. And so the butterfly effect is real. We've seen it. And, and then there was a very cute story of, of Michael and you know, at the Minnesota state fair, they've got that butterfly. Um, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. That nightmare, that nightmare cage where they're flying and landing on you. Nikki would never go in there because she was petrified. I'm with you, Nikki.
I would go in and it was, uh, with the birds. The birds, they were just all over Michael. Um, and uh, so, that picture always stuck with me, um, when we were creating A Kindness Co. And um, so yeah, it's, it's, it's the butterfly effect, but. I, I have to be, I, I always wondered if the butterfly, or if the uh, the birds on that old lady is because of the scent that she was giving off. You had to go there. You had to go there. I, I just felt necessary to bring that.
Was, uh, was Michael wearing a special cologne that day, maybe? Uh, no, but he was a sweaty little boy. So he probably had a little bit of that too. Yeah, or probably, yeah. So, So the, uh, the reason why we're talking to you is because I found you, I found a post you posted on LinkedIn. And as soon as I saw the company name, I like I clicked on it and I listened to the story about Michael and I was very moved as well and I was like This these people have to talk to us.
We'd love to talk to them hear about what their stories is So you're here, um because of linkedin basically and and I really appreciate what you posted out there we saw the news story and you've obviously told your story before but how cool is that we get to to hear about as well and actually get to You know Get the scent of the candles. Have you ever heard of the podcast called wooden sticks? Why do you guys always have to do the wooden sticks? Why do you always have to go there?
Well, since you asked, I'm kidding. I'm going ahead. Why don't you tell us about talk north and all the great hockey talk available at wooden sticks. We're here to spread kindness. But please do stop by sometime. It's a promotional piece of our show. So the day we actually go ahead. I'm sorry, EJ. No, I was just going to say we have to Kevin. He stinks. He needs them. You know, it was a bit of a bit, you know, it's, it is really fun just to sit and talk and then to hear.
You know, how people react to the story, um, and to be able to, um, because it's, again, it's, it's, for us, it's just, you know, it's less about the candles, or, you know, the more, you know, just a little bit, um, you know, that's, that's the mission, that's, you know, what you guys are doing, and what we're, it's got less to do with, just be just that much kind, the world would be a very, Can I just, let's talk about the candle for a second, the candles, for starters, the, the, the packaging,
I'm a sucker for great packaging, like, when you get a, you know, A new Apple device. The care that goes into packaging is just off the charts. That matters for sure. It really does. But, I think there's something unique and special about candles in the sense that it's very sensorial. Yeah. You know, I don't like these bright lights that Steve makes us put on. I like it nice and dim.
But the combination of the light, and you can hear the little flicker every once in a while, and the smell that they give off. Right. And from now on, whenever I fire up one of your candles, I will think of Michael and I will think there, there's something about that that you just connect with. And again, I think that from a, a great gifting perspective. this isn't just a candle. It's a candle that has a story, it's got a purpose. I love this.
Well, what's cool, what's cool about their candles is they're not just buying a candle and putting their sticker on it. They're making the candle. Yeah, tell us about that. How did you become candle makers? So a couple of reasons. This here was the ingredients, if you will, to make them. Each one seems to it, right? It's tied together. So I researched the scents to understand, like, which scents are invigorating, which ones are calming for anxiety, you know. Those types of things.
And then I married the scent to like, the theme of the candle, right? So like, nomad, it's a little more mysterious, the wandering type scent. So I really mixed two opposite scents together. Um, pow pow is about bravery, so like, it's invigorating. It's got eucalyptus and that fresh, outdoorsy scent, you know, for you to go out and, you know, grab the day, if you will. Um, so each one, each one's that vibing, you know, it's got all the citrus scents to make you happy, if you will.
So they're known to do that. So everything's tied together and we tie the color and the image. We actually write a creative brief. I've learned how to do that a little bit. So. Would you describe, would you describe the goat for me? Because the idea of a candle that smells like The goat gives me a little pause for concern, but I did buy a bunch of them. Tell me about the goat.
Well, I think that there's, um, there's, there's kind of two big profiles and sense, you know, there's florals, there's more of the florals and then there's more earthy. Um, and so you've got pow pow in the, in the studio today, that's going to have a more of an earthy, uh, scent to it. Um, and the goat has, um, earthiness to it as well.
Um, and, but it's got, um, The road is Oakmoss, Amber, and Lavender, and I really wanted Nick to put Nicky, that's like, Gender neutral scent so that it's for everybody, right? So, and, you know, it's just unleashing your greatest, so it's kind of like, um, it builds, if you will, that scent does, as you light it and it keeps, um It inspires. It inspires. Yeah. A gender neutral scent is perfect for Steve Brown. So let's just throw that one. What the heck? You wear red pants from time to time.
You know what I'm talking about. Okay. Yeah, but if it's the goats or, you know, any of the, any of the scents, Nick said that there's almost a backstory that we create on every one of the scents and like, what does this mean? Who is this for?
Um, and, and then when we bring it over to the packaging, like every single thing is, every flap, every element is thought through as to be, you know, your experience starts there because when you give somebody a candle, you know, you really want them to see, like, I see you.
You know, and I know what you're going through and you've got it and they're all, all of a sudden come with an inspirational message and, you know, but from, you know, when you pull off the sleeve and it says, You know, uh, you good? It's about to hit different. That's, our son, Michael, would have said that to us every day. You know, good dad, you good?
And, you know, that's, he was, but that's also, like, that thing that you want to tell somebody, you know, and to open up and say, like, we can talk. You know, if it's, if it's big, if it's hurting you, if it's, what have you, you know, like, I'm here to talk to you about it. And then that, it's about to hit different is, it's Like, it's gonna change, it's gonna be better, um, and then, obviously, that's the scent. Um, and then be big, you know, be, be bold, brave, and kind.
Um, that's why the, the graphics are as bold as they are. Um, you know, to be kind and quiet is kind of easy. Um, but be kind and do it loud, and now you're telling the whole world, like, you're, you're amplifying it. Um, and so that's why that bold, brave, and kind. Well, it's funny. The guys that have listened to this podcast in the, in the past are familiar with this new program that we're starting at my organization called civility school.
And we talk about the fact that kindness Requires some level of bravery, I'm going to go back to my my lunchroom Did I have nightmares in my lunchroom when I was in high school must have something but you know to To go over and invite somebody to sit with you. There's some bravery that's involved with that So I love the idea of being bold and you know It requires some level of boldness to be to be kind like that KG, I know you're a, you're a big candle guy. I love candles.
Tell us about your love for candles. Cause it's actually, it's quite funny. Cause Guerrero is a big candle. He is. And so for yours, I would, I would, um, try to find Yankee candles, right? They have all these unbelievable different scents. And if it was winter time and I was missing warm weather, I'd get, uh, there was a, It smelled like the beach. It was sun and sand, right? Just like Kramer's, Kramer's. Yeah, there it is. Kramer's, uh, perfume, perfume, the beach, the beach.
And, um, and I've always loved the smell of fresh linen since I was a little kid. My mom would be doing the laundry, right? I would love the way the house would, would take over that. That aroma. And so when I'm working on my placards for hockey or when I'm coloring up my racing papers for Canterbury, I like to burn a candle. He really does. Oh, I do. And it calms me down. Like it, it puts me in a good place.
And so I've got the light above my, you know, the work that I'm doing and I've got the rest of the room dimmed and I've got the candle going, but you're right. The sound. The smell and the one we've got going here is unbelievable. Yeah. So I'm super excited that you maybe have one upstairs. We've got some upstairs pumped about that. So yeah, there is something I think that as, as humans, we connect with. Having that candle burning. I think it's, it's, it's spectacular.
It's something I've done for, for a couple of decades. So we're with, uh, EJ and Nicole McNulty and they're with a kindness co, uh, and it's Michael's light. Is that the, the name of the nonprofit and, uh, tell us where do we get your candles? How do we get your candles? If we want to buy some, Oh, cool. Starting to get around a little bit. Minnesota. Oh, I knew that was coming. I knew that was coming. You had to get it. I grew up in Shoreview my basically whole life.
I was a Mountain View high school grad. Go Mustangs! You know, Kevin was a coach there. I coached at Moundsview back in the 90s with the boys high school program. Really? It was probably Ziggy Calls and whatnot? Yeah. Yes. Well, I graduated in the 90s. We won't say which 90s. Once again. Oh, good for you. Yeah, we're happy you're a lot younger than us. What year, I just have to ask and I can edit this out, but what year did you graduate from Moundsview? 91. 91. Sir, did you know, Andrea Farrell.
Yes. That name, sound. Yeah. Yeah, I think, think Kyle Kgu. Do you know the name Kyle Kgu? Yeah, I think he's also a year older than me. Yeah, I do know them. Yeah. Yeah, they're dear friends of ours. Uh oh, that's awesome. Yeah, they are awesome. Um, and ej, where are you from? Um, I'm, I, I graduated from Buffalo, uh, that Oh, yeah, Buffalo. I spent a, I spent a week, week in, uh, the Wright County Jail. No, I'm not gonna, no, you did not. My mother was a jailer. She locked you up. Oh boy.
Wow. Anyway, we won't talk about my time at Wright County. Um, I don't know the story. I'll tell you at dinner. I'll tell you at dinner. Um, Steve, you have any questions? I just think I want to thank you for joining us. And I think, uh, your son, Michael, sound like he was a great kid and what a, what an amazing way to continue with his, his memory. Um, and I just a personal note. Um, so.
I can't imagine going through this as a, as a parent, I have young adults and, and losing them at that age would be, uh, you know, unthinkable, but I lost some friends at 15 year old. Um, my two good buddies, um, Sean Lyons, no, well, Sean Lyons, when he was a year before that, but my good, my bandmates, when we were 15 and 16, got in a car accident here in Monomia and they died a horrible accident. But what my question is, um, how is your son, your other son doing?
How's he, how's he doing with this? Cause I know that's such a, that's a difficult times, difficult age and everything's changing and it's a twin brother, like how's he doing? Yeah, a lot of therapy. We have been through a mountain of therapy and, um, shout out to the Grease Club of Minnesota who has helped us for, uh, several years through that journey. Um, Collin's got really good friends that have been by his side. He's got some rocks. Um, he has found a passion in working out.
He's a lifetime gym rat. And that's a place where he, um, You know, he was a little bit, um, and he's actually headed off. He just graduated from Minnesota this summer or spring, and he's headed out to the university of Duluth in the fall and he's so excited for any beginning. So, um, you know, he carries Michael with him every day, you know, he's a teenager. So he's, you know, doesn't talk as much as we'd love him to talk about Michael.
Hmm. But I think that'll come with time I think I think by creating this company and and by doing this I bet it's helping him see that the You know to build from this and have something great come out of it. Uh, something terrible. So I i'm I i'm I wish him nothing but luck.
That's i'm glad he's well, and thank you so much for asking him we get We get a lot of people who have on power who is, I think a lot of, you know, people who run into our adults or parents and they can identify more with the parents. But I think the siblings often get lost. Yeah, you bet. I just want to hear a little bit more about Michael.
What, What he was into, what he loved to do, uh, was he a movie guy, did he watch sports, did he play a bunch of sports, I'd just like to hear a little bit more about yourself. A little bit of everything. Yeah, Michael was in everything. He was in theater, he was in Chinese immersion, he was in football, soccer, baseball, he absolutely loved snowboarding, that was his passion. Yeah, he was his happy place at Highland Park.
I, the best way to describe Michael though, um, is like a precarious, uh, a very precarious or precocious bubble bee. Um, he can go, um, group to group, to group, to group and pollinate. Um, and that was, he was, you know, he wants, uh, maybe a little, maybe Or, you know, uh, we lost Michael. We sat down and talked to him and he's like, dad, I don't know if I've got like any, like, I don't know if I have a best friend.
I said, Michael, you've got 20 of them, you know, and you just don't know it, but they think you're their best friend. Oh man, that's so cool. Um, and so he was, again, it was sports. It was academics. There were just. Anyplace there was people, he would just light up. Um, and I think one word that we haven't mentioned, um, that is core to what we really want to do, and was really Michael's superpower, was he was a connector to people.
And when people are connected to things, and to positive things, that's when, you know, we really need. You are best and most fulfilled. And that's that's really what Michael did. And, um, friendships that he created still exist. Like, as an example, he introduced one of his really good friends to his cousin, and they now hang out together and, um, You know, there's, there's a lot of stories like that of people that never hung out before, but now do because of him.
And God, the world, the world needs connectors like that. I just want to let you know that this Zoom thing might shut down on us in the next couple minutes, so we may have to call you back on the phone if we don't conclude. But I love the, the, the idea of Michael being Like a pollinator and that he was this bee for the and I mean have you thought about the fact that you know What do you make candles from wax, you know bees wax? We all touch bees wax. Bees wax is really hard to work with.
Mine are also easier to work with. I'll look into it. The other thing about Michael and that kindness One quick little story is we were on a family Uh, trip to New York And Michael could speak Chinese Uh, Mandarin pretty well. What? Holy cow. Yeah. Yeah. He was, uh, he was an immersion, um, from with his brother from kindergarten on. Um, and he was, you know, as blonde and blue eyes as a little boy could be from the Midwest. And we were in this little noodles place.
And, uh, the, the, the, the waitress server could speak Japanese or English, and the people who sat down right next to us could only speak Chinese. Um, and it was a family, um, they could only speak Chinese, and they were, Michael could tell that they were perplexed on how to order something. Oh my god. And, um, and Michael, Michael was maybe 14, 13, 14 at the time.
And, um, he leans over to the mother, um, who he's sitting right next to on the, in the banquette, and starts talking to her, and Michael talks to the entire family and translates them to, so that they can order their meal. Um, and, you know, again, it, Maybe it's a little bit of Mike being a showboat. Totally! But it was also him wanting to make sure that they had a good time. Oh my god, I love this kid.
And, and, you know, what's funny is, is, I could watch those YouTube videos of the little white guy going into Chinatown. I don't know if you've ever seen it. They've shown up on my algorithms, and there's this guy that speaks just as fluent Mandarin, and he goes into these Chinese restaurants, And the people are looking at him, and they get such a kick out of it. And I always think, and you said it, What a show off. And God, I love it. Right up your alley. It's right up my alley.
It's so right up your alley. Well, I just want to say, um, I, uh, I did spend a little time creeping on you guys on Facebook. I didn't feel quite like I, I, I could hit the ad friend thing. So we started with LinkedIn. We started with LinkedIn. Now we can go. I did look at some of the videos and there's a great video of Michael, uh, uh, snowboarding and it looks like he was a baseball player both your boys are baseball players for is that Big Willow? Were they Big Willow people?
Uh, Big Willow and the Minnesota Baseball Association. Okay. My, uh, my boys are are baseball players in fact they're playing tonight at CHS. They're, uh, cool. Their town ball team. They play for a team called air freight state champions. Thank you very much. But yeah, okay, I guess steve's giving me the wrap up sign But it's been a pleasure meeting you guys thank you so we're going to become friends on facebook Yes, i'm going to be buying candles for the rest of my days.
I love them and uh God bless you guys, man. Seriously wonderful work Yeah, thank you for so much for the candle support too. But again, like You Not about the candles. We really just want the kindness and the connection and all of that to spread. That's really our mission. We're excited to sell candles to make that happen. It's kind of the vehicle to make it happen. And I saw that you were at Fashion Fest. You go to the Masonic Children's Hospital event. I'm a big fan.
I'm a big fan of the Masonic Children's Hospital. We are the number one, uh, market donator two years running there. So when you're at fashion fest, stop by because we sell more merch than anybody else. Well, next year, um, I want to have you guys, uh, be our guest at the, uh, at the wine fest, which is. It's usually in May, and it's the biggest fundraiser that the Masonic Children's Hospital does. Oh, wow. And, uh, would love to have you there. It's super fun, and great people watching.
It's a, it's a big, big fun time. But I, uh, look forward to connecting with you guys. I, uh, I, I love what you're doing. Thank you so much. And thank you for reaching out. And honestly, um, you know, I, I don't know if this is for you guys, maybe for the podcast, but like, um, this is probably these are the types of things when Nick and I get to sit and talk and share our story. Um, they're probably, Some of the best things for a couple parents who've been through a tough, tough go.
Uh, so we really, really appreciate the opportunity and getting to meet good people like yourself. Well, it's, it's very obvious where Michael got his, uh, his loving way an honor to be with you tonight, even though you're from Buffalo. I mean, who knew? That was a lovely, short hand. I didn't want to get into a long hand. Okay. All right. Thank you guys. Thank you. Have a good night. And off we go.