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"Kindness is the light that dissolves all walls between souls, families, and nations." - Paramahansa Yogananda
Friday, February 10, Mayor Charles Worley will sign a proclamation declaring February 13 - 20 as Kindness Week in Asheville. This Kindness Week is being celebrated in more than 300 other communities nationwide. To kick things off, there will be a “Sounds of Kindness” concert at Jubilee on Sunday, February 13 at 3 PM with Richard Shulman and friends. The cost is $10 and $6 for seniors and children. In addition to Richard Shulman, performing will be Marina Raye, who is billed as “the feminine voice of the native flute,” Sherman Hoover, Daniel Barber, members of the Jubilee choir, and others. Come join us for this fun-filled afternoon.
At the start of the February 13th concert, there will be a presentation of the winning posters of the Kindness Poster Contest for school children. The artists will be recognized and their winning posters will be unveiled. This contest is open to grades 1-12; guidelines for entries can be found at www.weinholds.org/kindness.asp and www.kindnesscampaign.us. For the rest of Kindness Week, the posters will be displayed in prominent locations around town.
An Interfaith Celebration of Kindness will be held Tuesday, February 15 at 6 p.m. at St. Eugene’s Catholic Church with ten different faith groups each expressing the importance of kindness in their tradition, through song, story and dance. Representatives from the various faith traditions include Islamic, Jewish, Christian (Catholic and Protestant), Hindu, Bahai, Buddhist, Unitarian, Native American, Russian Orthodox and Earth-based Religion. This celebration is co-sponsored by the Kindness Campaign, the United Religions Initiative, Christians for a United Community and St. Eugene’s Catholic Church. The celebration will be followed by a potluck dinner. People are encouraged to bring food to share that represents their faith tradition. It is free and open to all faiths. Call 252-3054 if you have any questions.
On Wednesday, February 16 at 6 PM, will be a free showing the movie “Pay It Forward” at Lord Auditorium at the main Library downtown. The film, starring Kevin Spacey, Helen Hunt and Haley Joel Osment, will also be shown at people’s homes in various neighborhoods around the city the next evening, Thursday, February 17. Call 252-3054 for information on the location and times for these neighborhood presentations. This movie portrays a 7th grade boy setting out to change the world through acts of kindness, and succeeding far beyond his imagination.
The week concludes with a performance by the cast of Playback Theater on Saturday, February 19, 7:30 p.m. at the Reuter Center, UNCA. Playback Theatre, directed by Raphael Peter, will invite audience members to share kindness stories and then the actors will improvise a reenactment of the story, often highlighting new meanings and deeper understanding. The cost is $10 and $5 for seniors and children. Tickets for this performance and the February 13 musical concert are available a Malaprop’s, Mystic Journeys and Barnes & Noble, at the door or by calling 252-3054.
School groups will be invited to do service projects, and Kindness Circles will be forming—the members simply agree to do three acts of kindness a week, and meet once a month (or more) to share their stories. If you would like to start or join such a Circle, or to volunteer with the campaign, please contact Cathy Holt, volunteer coordinator: (828) 252-3054.
Kinder and Safer Schools
Jane Cole, a primary grades teacher at Evergreen School, has introduced the Kindness Campaign to her students. She began by giving a Kindness button to the first student she caught doing something kind. That child then passed the button on to another student who did a kind thing, and so forth. Sometimes, she says, that one button changes hands a dozen times in one day! The last student to receive the button passes it on the next day. The program is now spreading into other classrooms. Also adopting the Kindness Campaign’s Kind and Safe Schools Program are three fifth grade teachers from Isaac Dickson School, thanks to the initiative of Keena Proctor. The Asheville Catholic School is planning to begin a yearlong program using the Kindness Campaign’s curriculum starting in August 2005. Children from all three of these schools created holiday greeting cards that were given to residents of retirement centers on Christmas Day by a men’s group, led by Stephen Houpis and Stephen Levine. A group of 10 area residents visited these centers, sang Christmas carols, presented cards and gave gifts to the residents. Stephen H added, “We all agreed that this was a meaningful way to spread the spirit of kindness at Christmas time. We are thinking of doing this more often throughout the year.” School children will be making Valentine’s and taking them to retirement centers and nursing homes on February 14.
