As seen in the Valley View (Feb. 13, 2013)
Mark your calendars for March 3, 2013 as the 7th annual Duvall Random Acts of Kindness (RAK) Week is on its way!
This week-long event not only has a successful record of spreading kindness throughout our community, it also has become the source for scattering kindheartedness in our neighboring towns and communities as well.
RAK Week founder, Connie Berg, explains, “With each year our RAK Week grows and touches more people, as more community members, students, groups, clubs, etc. join together in this inspiring effort of simply sharing kindness.”
Connie and her team of RAK supporters are already diligently planning for a week chock-full of Random Acts of Kindness this year, and it all begins on March 3rd.
Connie encourages everyone to check out the Duvall RAK website at: www.rakduvall.com for a list of inspiring RAK ideas. There is truly something for everyone. She shares, “It really doesn’t matter what you do when you spread kindness… just do something, as it all makes a lasting and meaningful difference within our community.”
This is the 4th year for the Duvall RAK Week effort to also include and inspire our neighboring cities of Carnation, Monroe and Woodinville.
An act of kindness can be something as simple as sharing a smile with someone on the street, picking up trash in your neighborhood, buying a coffee for the person behind you in line, or taking flowers to a neighbor or your child’s teacher/principal; even the smallest gesture of kindness has an on-going ripple effect…
This effect is explained by Dr. Jonathan Haidt, PhD Professor of Psychology at the University of Virginia, as he coined the term “elevation” to describe the emotion we feel when we encounter evidence of what he calls moral beauty.
He explains: “Seeing or even just reading about – others’ courage, compassion, or generosity can not only make us better people but increase the likelihood we’ll do good works of our own. Elevation truly seems to have this ripple effect, triggering cognitive, emotional and behavioral changes. It makes people more open, more loving, grateful, compassionate, and forgiving. In other words, Goodness is catching.”
Our community has witnessed first-hand how this “elevation” process works, as the Duvall RAK Week came to be only after Connie read about and was inspired by the Cedarcrest High School RAK Club students.
This club has spent many years spreading compassion and kindness through their programs and initiatives, and their efforts encouraged Connie to step up/step out, and create RAK Duvall, which has become a significant and enduring community event.
Fast forward seven years – Connie and her growing number of dedicated RAK volunteers are now partnering with the CHS RAK students and their advisor, Peggy Filer, to help mentor and create RAK Clubs in each and every Riverview school; demonstrating the ongoing ripple effect, and what a difference can be made through each and every act of kindness.
Please join these extraordinary volunteers both young and old, as they lead the way to “Be the Change” in our community – one simple act of kindness at a time.
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