By Jessica Albert • Originally published on NBC News 4
Volunteers also assembled mental health resource kits for George Mason University students.
We’ve all heard the saying “six degrees from Kevin Bacon.”
The A-list actor stepped on to the campus of George Mason University Sunday to volunteer with his nonprofit, appropriately called “SixDegrees.Org”
“It’s important to remember that things that we do in our communities affect people down the block but also affect people around the world,” Bacon told News4.
About 100 volunteers packed about 35,000 meal kits that will be distributed in Fairfax County.
“It touches lives with every project we do, and it’s a reward,” said Stacey Costanzo, a volunteer. “We leave here feeling like, oh my gosh, everybody matters, and we’ve helped.”
SixDegrees.Org was founded in 2007. Next year, the nonprofit will celebrate 20 years of service.
“We believe that disconnection is this silent force that is eroding our societies, and we believe that grassroots nonprofits are like this connective tissue that are filling gaps across our communities all around our country,” said SixDegrees.Org CEO Stacy Huston.
The organization is headquartered in Fairfax County.
“In just Fairfax County alone, about 25% of all families experienced food insecurity last year. Twenty-eight percent are actually just children and youth,” Huston said.
SixDegrees.org volunteers also assembled 500 mental health resource kits that will be handed out to students at George Mason.
Bacon kicked off his Sunday shoes and packed a few.
“There’s the six degrees of Kevin Bacon, which is a silly game that was started in, I think, the 90s,” he said. “[…] When you take me out of it and just think about the connections that we all have, it’s really kind of a beautiful idea because we are connected — especially during this time when things are just so divisive.”
