My favorite Chicago columnist Neil Steinberg followed Kraft Foods' CEO Irene Rosenfeld to a couple of charities on "Kraft Cares Day," which sends almost 2,000 Kraft employees out of their cozy offices.

Today Steinberg writes in the Sun-Times about his day with Rosenfeld:

"As much as I try to be cynical—a Kraft photographer must have snapped 300 photos, and Rosenfeld feeding little Hayley Edwards with her pink bows will look great in the company's annual report—it's hard to be. The truth is that Kraft not only gives away $83 million a year, but does so in a smart fashion. Rather than following the herd with a pro forma Christmastime effort to prod employees into donating to the trouble-wracked United Way, Kraft gives its employees a voice in deciding where their money should go. They picked Erie House, which has received $215,000 from Kraft since 2000.

"And Rosenfeld is impressive—her focus, the way she takes command of 17 [poor Hispanic] preschoolers at Erie House, learning their names, even the shy girl at the back, and reading a story while peppering them with questions and listening to their sometimes protracted replies, all without a flicker of inattention.

"'You've done this before,' I say later, and she admits to having been, once upon a time, a counselor at Tyler Hill Camp in the Poconos.

"Rosenfeld also has learned the secret of those who actually volunteer—that doing so helps them more than it does their supposed beneficiaries.

"'I can't make a dent today, but we can better understand who we're serving,' Rosenfeld says. 'Coming out to places like this motivates employees. It reminds us of some of the challenges out there, and puts things in perspective. It reinforces our mission: We have an obligation to give back.'

"She doesn't check a BlackBerry in the three hours I'm with her. What if there were a crisis? 'I have a very, very talented group of employees,' Rosenfeld says. 'There are still a few more to spare back at the ranch.'"