A Boys & Girls Club starts Kindness is Free campaign, hoping to spread goodwill
Right hand up – "I pledge to show respect to others, I pledge to treat everyone equally and I pledge to be considerate." Pretty simple, or so it seems. That's the official pledge of the Kindness is Free campaign.
The Boys & Girls Clubs of West San Gabriel Valley & Eastside came up with the kindness campaign in 2020, when the pandemic seemed to turn everything upside down and inside out. Jose Arias, the club's chief kindness officer, said it all started with a conversation among club leaders.
"(They) were having a conversation around all the heaviness that was going on in 2020, and what came out of that conversation was 'What this world really needs is more kindness,' and that's how the Kindness is Free program started," said Arias.
The club since then has developed a kindness curriculum for youth, teaching the importance of being kind and doing acts of service in the community, followed by the kindness pledge.
And with lofty goals to pledge students, community members and businesses across Los Angeles to the Kindness is Free campaign, they are "on tour" with pop-ups and a dedicated traveling kindness van.
The hope is to pledge 23,000 LAUSD students, 23,000 Angelinos, and 23 corporations or businesses throughout Southern California by December 2023.
"The Kindness is Free campaign is designed to empower our youth to be kind through their words, actions, and mindset," said JR Dzubak, CEO of Boys & Girls Clubs of W. San Gabriel Valley & Eastside. "It doesn't take much to brighten someone's day with a kind act and we want our young people to understand how a positive action can create a rippling impact through the community."
A Kindness Hotline (1-866-7BE-KIND) is available for individuals to call. Options on the hotline include the Kindness Tip of the Week (read by club kids), taking the Kindness Pledge, scheduling a Kindness Pop-Up, and leaving a voice message about the kind acts witnessed.
To learn more about the program, visit www.kindnessisfree.org.
