Kelley McCormick went above and beyond the call of duty when he drove a family that was stranded at Boston’s North Station back to its home, in Portland, Maine.
Kori Malenfant, 19, underwent brain surgery several days ago at New York City’s NewYork–Presbyterian Hospital. She and her family were traveling back home by train, but a late arrival to North Station on Saturday caused them to miss their connection to Maine.
Looking for a place to store their luggage, the Malenfants turned to officers at the Boston Police Department’s North Station office. Kori Malenfant’s mother, Wendi Malenfant, described her surprise as a police captain loaded the family’s belongings into his unmarked cruiser.
Capt. Kelly McCormick offered to take the family on a ride around Boston, but the trip turned out to be anything but quick.
“All of a sudden, I notice we are on the highway north and I said, ‘Um, where are you taking us?’” Wendy Malenfant said. “He said, ‘Well, I told you I was kidnapping you. I’m taking you to Portland. Isn’t that where your car is?’ And we were just floored.”
McCormick said he could tell the family had been through a lot.
“They burst into tears, and that was very emotional,” he said. “They were just very tired. I could see it, and I just felt like they (were) going to sit in North Station all night no matter what.”
McCormick said his personal experiences compelled him to drive the family the more than 100 miles to its home. He once donated a kidney to his wife and has seen firsthand how physically and emotionally draining a major operation and the post-op experience can be.
“Being in that moment is so exhausting,” he said. “If you just make a small difference, it must have had a great effect on them, which is great, but we like to do that every day. Every officer wants to do that every day.”
The Malenfants said they still can’t believe the kindness McCormick showed.
“We just didn’t have words,” Wendy Malenfant said. “We kept trying to thank him, and it just didn’t seem enough.”
