Manhattan resident buys snacks for her neighbors to brighten their day

Washington Heights resident Jen Duran, a 45-year-old campus recruiter for Ernst & Young, found a way to brighten up her neighbors’ day.

For the past 18 years, I’ve lived in a tight-knit five-floor building. People are hurting, so I ordered about $150 worth of snacks and goodies from Amazon and Target: Swedish Fish, pretzels, Gatorade, chocolate bars.

I set up a table in the entryway with a sign saying, “Grab a little sunshine before you head back to your apartment.”

It was only candy, chips and cookies, but I figured that those things could help to brighten someone’s day.

I was mindful of buying things that are individually packaged, and I wore gloves when handling everything. Plus I made sure there was hand sanitizer and tongs. And I set off the whole display with daisies and yellow roses.

They say happiness is contagious — better to pass along some smiles than a virus.

— As told to Doree Lewak

Read more stories about neighbors helping each other.