Shelter Room (Apartment) Makeover! |
Last weekend I volunteered for a project with “My
Girlfriend’s House”. They were doing
one day makeovers in all of the apartment units in a shelter in Washington DC. When I heard about it I wanted to be involved
so that I could see all of that KINDNESS go down! But the ironic part was, the kindest bit of
all didn’t really have anything to do with the painting, cleaning, and hauling
in and out furniture.
The kindest bit was Lauren. She is “five and a half” (the half is
important when you are her age!) and showed up with her mom Melissa in the
afternoon. When she came I was
frantically working to put the children’s bedroom back together. Another team had painted it a beautiful
purple. I had worked with a teammate to
put together some donated bunk beds. But
we still needed to get a LOT done before our afternoon deadline when the family
would come home for the big reveal!! So
when little Lauren showed up, I put her to work!
Lauren sweeping up the room! |
We took a big pile of donated shoes and paired them up to
display in an under-bed roller cart. We
helped fold donated clothes and put them in a dresser. We cleaned. And we did what I know was Lauren’s
favorite part – put wall stickers up! Oh
we had flowers and hearts and swirls – it was a little girl’s dream.
These walls could use some PRETTY STICKERS!! |
And then it was time for the TOYS… There were lots of toys that people had
donated for the 3 little girls who live in the apartment. There were books, crayons, bracelets,
etc. But I didn’t realize until we were
unpacking them and finding fun places to display them that Lauren herself had
donated some of the toys!! Yes siree,
she was kind enough to give those girls she had never met some of HER
toys! And it was all going really well,
she was admiring the toys as we unpacked them but not upset about giving them
away, until we came to a pretty puzzle that must have been a favorite… But she was a trooper, one quick little talk
with Mom and she was ok giving them her prized puzzle! J
But it was that quick little breakdown that touched me. Seeing her eyes fill with concern and sadness
– sure, she had agreed to share her toys, but did she have to share THAT
ONE??? That’s what made me realize what
a sacrifice it was for her, and how amazingly kind it was. I mean, lots of kids probably go through
their toy boxes and pick a few things out to donate to the Salvation Army
(knowing that they don’t play with them anymore and that new toys are sure to
replace them soon…). But Lauren was
going a step further – she had chosen what to give, then was smack dab in the middle
of the actual GIVING! She was organizing
her own toys in some other girls’ room for THEM to play with! And THAT, my friends, that is kind!!
What a kind little kid |
I didn’t have time to talk about her generosity while we were
there (we were busy finishing the room!) but have since talked with her and her
mom to learn a bit more about the whole thing.
Here is what they told me:
Melissa said that they teach Lauren to always be kind, no
matter what, and always treat everyone the same. The family donates a lot to
charities and volunteers whenever they can.
Melissa told me, “Last year, Lauren saw a piece of mail from UNICEF or
something like that with a picture of a malnourished child on the envelope. She
said she wanted to help sick kids. So she did a lemonade stand to raise money
for a charity. She raised $44 for a foundation called Stillbrave who
helps families with children with cancer.”
Isn’t that awesome?? She saw a photo and TOOK ACTION and helped
out the best way she could! I asked
Lauren about the lemonade stand and why she did it. She told me it was for “sick kids” J and that she is going
to have ANOTHER lemonade stand! She
stressed that there will also be cookies.
J And as we talked she came up with an awesome
new idea to raise money for sick kids – a HOT CHOCOLATE STAND in cold
weather!! You go, girl!!
Melissa said that she explained to Lauren about the shelter
makeover by saying that their friend, Miss Becky, knew a family that needs help
- a nice home and some new things/toys. It was, “A little follow by example I
guess J” Melissa told me.
We were almost done with the room here! |
I asked Lauren how she felt giving the toys to the other
girls and she said, “”Happy”. She is a
girl of few words, that Lauren. Her mom
said it was not too hard to convince her to donate toys, “I told her that she
has many toys, and there are some that she doesn't play with that would be nice
to give some to a child that doesn't have many nice toys.” Lauren said some of the toys she gave were
things she got as a baby. I asked her
which toys she thought the girls would like best and she didn’t hesitate, “THE
DOLLS!”. She had given them these super
pretty magnetic doll sets. I could tell by
the way she handled them as we were looking for a new home for them that she really
treasured those.
Lauren and her mom were still there for the big reveal, and
Lauren got to meet the mom who lives in the apartment and ask her about the
kids. Melissa thinks that Lauren
actually SEEING where her donations will be used helped, and I agree. The whole experience was more “real” I bet
because she unpacked those toys and got them ready for the kids.
Way to raise a Kindness Activist, Melissa. It was an honor to pair up and put away tiny
shoes with your daughter.
Do you know a kind kid or adult?? Please tell me about them! The world needs more kindness, and by talking
about kind actions, we can inspire others!!
Email me at kindnessactivist@gmail.com and follow me on
Twitter - @kindactivist
·
For more information about Stillbrave, the organization that
Lauren supported with her lemonade stand money, see this website Stillbrave (And hey, now
that I look at that website, I see it is someone I recognize, Tattoo Tom!! He worked with Gabriella Miller, whose family
started Smashing Walnuts!)
·
For more information about My Girlfriend’s House, the
organization that ran the shelter apartment makeovers, see this website My Girlfriend's House
What a touching story written by someone who so understood things from a 5 1/2 year old perspective. Quite the lovely little girl, that Lauren.
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