It’s time for another
update on how the money raised at the Kindness Yard Sale is being used!!
So far, $1006.72 has been spent
to SPREAD KINDNESS! This entry will
update you on the newest ways/places the money was used.
·
$15 was used to pay for the car behind us to get into
Cape Canaveral National Seashore. Cape
Canaveral is a National Park, and as such you have to pay to enter. EXCEPT, if you are lucky like us, you have a
Senior Citizen pass that, once you pay for it, you get into all National Parks
for freeeee! And we nabbed ours a few
years ago before the price on those puppies went up! Anyway, we were going for the BEACH, and
since we got in “free” we used some of the kindness money to pay for the strangers
in the car behind us. Little did we know
that there was a LAUNCH of a Space X rocket going to happen there that
evening! (Somewhat blurry video of the rocket launch below.) I am guessing that is why the
person behind us was coming – to watch the launch!! We got to see it, too, which was
excellent. If you are ever in Florida I highly
recommend stopping here: Cape Canaveral National Seashore
·
$7 was used to buy 2 delicious tamales for a homeless
man who was outside a Mexican restaurant in Daytona Beach, Florida. We had seen him there a couple of years ago,
too, so he must frequent that area. I asked
our server if the restaurant gave him food and she said they do not, so I thought
instead of watching all of the outside diners enjoy our meals, he should be
treated, too.
·
$66.22 was spent on supplies for Raising Men Lawncare
Service. It is an organization I read
about online that sounds amazing! They mow
lawns for FREE for senior citizens, single parents, people who are disabled, and
veterans. How amazing is that? And not only THAT, they recruit KIDS to do
the work, teaching them the importance of helping in their communities and
being kind! They had an Amazon Wish List
on their page, and the kindness money was used to fulfil a wish on their list –
we sent them a Fisher Price Bubble Lawn Mower for one of the younger kids who
wants to join and is not quite old enough for a real mower yet 😊. We also sent 24 bottles of Gatorade to help
quench the mowers’ thirst! They are looking
to expand – it would be awesome if someone could set up a branch of RMLCS in
Arlington! Their website can be seen
here: Raising Men Lawncare Service
·
$13 was spent on a backpack. Since it is back to school time, I really
hoped to use some of the Kindness Yard Sale money to buy supplies for
students. The thing is, you have had to
be careful who you offer the money to. I
do not want to offend anyone, do not want them to feel as if I don’t think they
can afford the supplies. So, it took a
while to find the right person to offer it to, but the perfect little boy in
WalMart crossed our path and he ended up with his choice of backpack with money
from the Kindness Yard Sale. He was
shopping with his mother, and neither spoke much English. The mom seemed to be trying to understand the
note from the school and figure out what supplies to buy. I asked if he was going to be getting a new
backpack, and they smiled and nodded. So,
I walked with him over to the backpacks and let him pick one out. He chose a Jurassic Park bag, which looked
perfect for him. His mother “God Blessed”
us, which I pass along to YOU here – God Bless all the donors and shoppers at
the Kindness Yard Sale!
·
$30 was spent on another back to school activity – buying
diverse books and supplies for Ms. Sokol’s classroom at Campbell Elementary
School in Arlington, Virginia. And
because of an anonymous donor, the $30 was doubled, making it $60! I found her project on the Donors Choose
website, and I think it so clearly reflects the values of the Penrose
neighborhood where the yard sale was held.
She wrote:
“Diverse
Classroom Supplies: I See Me In Stories! My Project
This project will
provide diverse books to the students in my classroom. It will also provide
diversity activity materials that have different colored art materials that
each student can match to their skin, hair and eye color and texture! As a
Kindergarten teacher, it is important to teach about diversity and inclusion in
ways that students will understand. One way I want to do this is through books
that students can see themselves in. The students will be able to identify with
the books because the characters will either look or act like them.
Students
need books that are "mirrors," or books that they see themselves,
their families, and their communities reflected as important and valued in.”
Isn’t
that great?? If you have never logged
onto Donors Choose, check it out here: Donors Choose
- · $25 was donated to a memorial fund for a Nebraska man, Cody Reutter, who died in a fishing accident. He left behind a wife and 4 young children. The funds will be used to help with funeral costs and on-going living expenses for his family. Cody Reutter Family GoFundMe Campaign
- ·
$28 was used to cheer up a cancer patient in England. As some of you know, my sister in Nebraska has
Glioblastoma (GBM), a form of brain cancer.
Because of social media, we have been able to connect with other GBM
patients and their care givers all around the world. One of our favorite people that we have met
is “Queen Jean” from Lancashire, England.
Her daughter-in-law visits her very often and shares photos and videos
with the GBM group. Jean has been having
a rough go of it lately and her husband has also been in the hospital. Despite it all, Jean has a very cheery
disposition (and a very heavy British accent 😊 ) and it is so fun to
watch her on video. Most recently she
read the story of the “Wonky Donkey” aloud and she laughed at every page! So, to give Queen Jean a new, funny story to
read aloud, I sent her the book “It’s A Bad Day” by Mary Ellen Friday using
funds from the sale. It sounds bad (and
sad) book, but it has a very nice ending that I know she will enjoy. I am guessing she will giggle especially loud
at the cheekier parts…
- $5.71 was spent to surprise a stranger named Savannah with a birthday gift. A call went out to send cards to a teenager in Omaha who has been ill and is having a birthday. I sent a card, along with a pretty bracelet bought with yard sale funds.
Over $500 of the Kindness Yard Sale proceeds remain to be spread around - can't wait to find more ways to use it!!
