Tommy Warner and his wife Stella were ill-prepared for the cold Chicago weather during game four of the World Series, having only sweatshirts for warmth – until someone gave them a fleece blanket to keep warm. It turns out the credit doesn’t go to a single Naperville couple, but to multiple people whose hearts went out to the octogenarians sitting in the rooftop bleachers.
John and Diane Pettinger, of Naperville, were among the crowd sitting in the rooftop bleachers that night. The Pettingers were seated next to the Warners and struck up a conversation with the Texas couple. Calling the Warners a “darling couple,” Diane Pettinger said everyone around the Warners wanted to help them enjoy their World Series experience.
“They were just so nice and cute. We spent the whole evening talking to them and wanted to do what we could to help them,” Pettinger said.
The Pettingers brought hot coffee up from the service area and saved the Warners’ seats when they got up to get food – and likely a chance to warm themselves near the kitchen area. Pettinger said she also helped Stella Warner take photos of Wrigley Field with her phone.
Seeing the discomfort the Warners were feeling because of the temperature, Pettinger said she took it upon herself to find the manager of the rooftop bleachers to see if there were coats or blankets in the lost-and-found that could be provided to the Texas couple. But it was another woman sitting near them, one whose name Pettinger didn’t know, who went to the ground level of the building and made her way outside to a souvenir stand to buy the blanket. Although security was tight and they were told there was no re-entry, Pettinger said the woman flagged down a Chicago police officer and explained the situation to him. He helped her get the blanket, which was then given to the Warners.
“It wasn’t us, it was just a group of people doing really nice things to help this darling couple out,” Pettinger said. “It was a collaboration of really nice people who took care of them.”
The Warners, of Austin, Texas, were surprised with a trip to Chicago and game four of the World Series by their son and daughter-in-law. The couple and their son’s family came to Chicago for the game, but only Tommy and Stella had tickets for the rooftop bleachers – a surprise for Tommy, a loyal Cubs fan who promised his wife a trip to the World Series whenever the Cubs finally made it.
While Warner was surprised by the tickets, in a previous interview he said he was even more surprised by how kind the Pettingers and others in the rooftop bleachers were in ensuring they didn’t get too cold that night.
Once the Warners were warmed by the blanket, Pettinger said she wanted to make sure the Warners would be able to get back to their hotel safely.
“He told us his granddaughter was going to meet them at the bottom and make sure they safely got back to the hotel,” Pettinger said.
Although the Cubs failed to win the game that night, Pettinger said the real win was in seeing how strong Midwestern values were in showing kindness to others.
Alex Keown is a freelance reporter for the Naperville Sun.