The Kindness Counts Challenge is a special initiative underway led by the Community Youth Team (CYT), a coalition of 36 youth-serving organizations who work together to promote and advocate for the health and well-being of kids and families in DuPage and Will counties.
Started in February and continuing through the entire month of March 2023, the CYT, supported by KidsMatter, is devoted to collecting 500 stories of random or intentional acts of kindness in our community. The CYT invites you to share stories of impact of a Random Act of Kindness or what kindness means to you. This proactive and positive initiative is open to anyone, anywhere. The Kindness Counts Challenge supports our community and increases the engagement of youth and adults in acts of kindness.
Below are a few highlights celebrating the impact of acts of kindness provided by the youth in our community.
“I was having a hard time trying to print something for class, and I was running late, so a classmate offered to print my assignment out and give it to me before class started. It saved me from being late that day.” —Leo
“One thing that I always remember is from when I was young and took public transportation. It had snowed a lot and me and my mom were waiting for the bus for close to an hour and I was cold even though I had a jacket. This guy I didn’t know took off his own jacket to give it to me until the bus came. Even though that was a long time ago, it’s stuck with me because it showed the kindness of people who will give to others even when they don’t have a lot for themselves.” —Nicole
“Someone offering to carry my backpack when I was on crutches, and I didn’t know who they were.” —Nicholas
“My old 7th grade teacher reached out to me and my friends this year to check in with how our lives are going. She offered to take us out to lunch after graduation and to talk about college and our futures.” —Meghan
Any individual, organization or school, any grade, any age may participate. Did you provide an act of kindness? Were you the recipient of an act of kindness? The CYT wants to hear about it. Visit kindnesscounts.us and share your story with the CYT via a brief survey. In addition to entering your story about kindness at kindnesscounts.us, you can also email the CYT team at KindnessCounts@kidsmatter2us.org.
To learn more and read more stories, visit kindnesscounts.us.
