Starbucks Baristas Really Do Deliver
In August 2002, Griffin Baron delivered Jonathan Celner in the bathroom at the Starbucks in Wilmette, Illinois. On that day 18 years ago, Baron had sold Celner’s mother, Lisabeth Rohlck, a bottle of water before she went to use the restroom. He then heard high-pitched screams coming from the bathroom and yells to call 911. He recalls thinking, “I’m 21. I know nothing about delivering babies. All I knew was you get hot towels, because that’s what you see in movies.
When asked about the event he said, “I opened the bathroom door, and I see a customer huffing and puffing and a baby is coming out.” He sprung into action and did what he could to make Lisabeth comfortable and aided her in delivering her baby. Minutes after he helped deliver Jonathan, EMTs arrived and took Lisabeth and Jonathan to the hospital. Baron never saw either of them again. He did think about them, however. According to Baron, “I thought about him constantly…What type of person he turned out to be, if he was a funny little kid….
Recently, Baron searched for Lisabeth on social media and found out that she died of breast cancer in 2012. Further, he also saw that Jonathan’s father, Thomas Celner, died in 2020. On the family’s GoFundMe page, Baron left a comment that read, “I’m the barista that was there when Jonathan was born, and I would love to be able to talk to him.” Jonathan’s aunt reached out soon after.
On March 21, Jonathan and Griffin met for coffee at the store where Jonathan was born. Jonathan was happy to meet Griffin, especially because it reminded him of his mom who was “an amazing, tough person.” Starbucks takes customer service to a whole nother level and sometimes, as in Jonathan’s case, you really are a lifelong customer.
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