During her typical workday, Cassandra Garcia would be sitting at her desk at Pfizer. Instead, she and her colleagues showed up Thursday to Union Station to pack thousands of meals to be distributed to food pantries across Cook County.

“It’s good for the soul,” said Garcia, 43, of the event, which was organized in remembrance of 9/11 and for people experiencing food insecurity.

The nonprofit 9/11 Day organizes similar packing events across 24 cities, offering thousands of residents the chance to volunteer and assemble meals. The event comes during Hunger Action Month, which is observed in September. Roughly 1,800 Chicagoans took part in Thursday’s effort, including another Pfizer employee, Linda Tooley.

“I just wanted to be surrounded by the positive,” said Tooley, 38. “Positive people,

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