The Kindness Yard Sale Funds Are SPREADING!

It’s time for a KINDNESS YARD SALE UPDATE!!  Because the sale was soooo successful, there’s a ton of kindness to spread this year, and it is exciting!  So, let’s take a peek at the recent kindness that has gone down:

A woman named Tracey in my local Buy Nothing group posted that she was looking for white shoes to wear to nursing school.  Wait – what??  You can’t wear USED SHOES when you are learning to be a NURSE!  I pictured her standing on her feet all day, walking the hospital hallways, learning how to chart and take blood pressure, etc.  No, used shoes would not do in that situation.  She needed BRAND NEW ONES – shoes with good support and in perfect condition!

I contacted her and asked if it would be ok to get her some, and she was thrilled.  She looked online and found just the ones she liked.  I ordered, we waited, and VOILA – new white shoes!!!!

Nurse-to-be rocking her new white COMFY shoes!

Tracey - I hope nursing school goes great.  I know from experience that nurses are some of the most IMPORTANT people in the healthcare industry.  I bet you will be an awesome one!

(Spend on the nursing shoes: $64.26)

A neighbor sent me a message recently asking if I take nominations for people to receive kindness.  Hmmm.  The woman contacting me had both donated and shopped at the yard sale, so I didn’t have to think long before saying, “Well, sure!  What do you have?  I would love to consider it!”.  She explained that she had a friend who was feeling isolated during Covid.  My neighbor wished she lived closer to her friend so that they could visit in person, but wondered if perhaps a little kindness from a stranger would bring some joy.  That sounded like a perfect fit for a Kindness Activist act, so I started online shopping! 

Before long I landed on the website Uncommon Goods.  Boy oh boy, if you ever want to get someone an interesting, unique gift, check it out!  I asked my neighbor a couple of questions about her friend, then narrowed my search down to a few items.  My favorite was this bracelet, so I was glad it was my neighbor’s favorite, too! 

Here is the description of it from the website:“Shooting stars. Birthday candles. Found pennies. The perfect moment to make a wish doesn't have to rely on chance. Hidden within this bracelet's clasp is a secret compartment to stash your personal wish - whether it's a daily intention, a meaningful reminder, or exactly what you've been wishing for. Simply write your wish on a tiny bit of paper (a set of just-the-right-sized sheets is included), roll it up, and tuck it into the opening. Wear it as a daily reminder to keep at it and stay focused on your goal—because putting what you want out there is the first step in making your wishes come true. “

Just a few clicks, a little note to insert with the bracelet, and then we waited!! 

I was so excited the day my neighbor messaged me and said, “IT ARRIVED!  And she is trying to figure out who it is from!!”.  The mystery of it all made me giggle.  Eventually my friend revealed the back-story, and the bracelet recipient might even be reading this now!  If so, hope you liked your special gift.  I hope you wear it in good heath and tuck a special wish or dream in the secret compartment.  And I hope when Covid is over and you come to visit Arlington, I get to meet you!

(Spend on the bracelet - $54.64)

Website: https://www.uncommongoods.com/

You may remember a story I wrote about a young man I met at the Kindness Yard Sale and really took a liking to.  His name is Langston, and he is in the ASL (American Sign Language) club at his school.  I am an ASL interpreter, so I encouraged him to keep studying and come work with me someday!  The field needs more male interpreters and interpreters of color.

He and his mom bought several things at the sale.  One thing he picked out for himself was a Fit Bit.  He walked by a couple of weeks after the sale his dad and they stopped to chat.  I was thrilled to hear that Langston is using that Fit Bit every day!  His record is over 23,000 steps in one day!

Anyway, to continue to encourage him to study ASL, I used Kindness funds to buy him a t-shirt made by a Deaf woman.  It says “equal” in ASL.  It can also mean “equality”.  I thought it was really fitting with the Black Lives Matter movement happening now.  I wore my ASL shirt when we delivered Langston’s so we could take a photo together.  On mine, the “O” in the word “vote” is the sign for vote!  Isn’t it cool? 

EQUALITY!

(Spend on t-shirt - $24.45)

Website:  https://shop.spreadshirt.com/erryb/?fbclid=IwAR1MpPD49Nb1j2HEZg6-z9HqChi515eKFXe9PtZpUYO2tX_kCyGwkuPN5ZU

A woman in town is taking care of her mother who has memory issues.  That duo has such a soft spot in my heart - watching their relationship is beautiful.  When there was a little wicker desk/vanity left over after the Kindness Yard Sale, I hoped her mom could use it!  She likes to write cards and letters to mail to people.   Sure enough, it was a size and style that would fit in their home, so we put it in the back of our car and brought it to them.

But you can’t have your own DESK without a little PLANT on it…  So, we got a little potted mini rose bush.  And if you are going to have a desk, you need PAPER…  Got some memo pads.  And if you are going to write cards, you need CARDS!  Grabbed some cards. 

Desk with supplies - all ready for the new owner and lots of letter writing

It was very fun to drop everything off at the house.  Because of Covid we socially distanced and set it up in the front yard (they brought it in later that evening).  But we talked a while and the mom smiled.  She was very curious about the tiny roses.  And as we pulled away I saw her move the desk a bit so she could sit at a bench in the yard and “work at the desk”.  Made my heart very happy.

(Spend on desk supplies - $14.52)

And finally for this update – a MYSTERY GIFT!!!  I read somewhere that someone bought something for a stranger off of their Amazon Wish List.  I do not use an Amazon Wish List, so I wasn’t sure how that would work, but I called my big sister on video, shared my screen, and off we went!!  It was FUN!

We decided a BABY GIFT would be good, so we went to the Baby Registry.  Then I made up a name (a common-ish sounding name) and typed it in – VOILA!  There were about a dozen women with the name I entered who were having or had had babies and had wish lists!!!  We chose a woman whose baby is due soon (September 3^rd) who lives in Kentucky.  We could tell from looking at her wish list that she is having a boy, and it looked like it was probably her first baby. 

Nothing on her list had been purchased so we had lots to choose from!  We debated which route to go – diapers would be PRACTICAL but also maybe something local friends and neighbors would give her.  In the “go big or go home” department – we decided on the most expensive item on her registry – a video baby monitor!!  It looked really nice and I bet she will get a ton of use out of it.   And it is also something that would be hard to buy out of a pocket when you are also dealing with getting all of the basics.  We also bought a little board book about animals. 

New baby monitor for a brand new baby

We included a note that the money used to buy these gifts was raised at the Kindness Yard Sale in Arlington, VA and we had chosen her at random on Amazon.  The gifts were delivered this Saturday!  I wish I could have seen her face when she got them.  She doesn’t have my name or contact info, but who knows, maybe she will Google “Kindness Activist” and end up reading this!

(Spend on baby gifts - $179.83)

That's the 2020 update so far.  More Kindness Yard Sale news as it happens!! 

Lunch Time Kindness

This story of kindness makes me smile so big.  It is an act of kindness I have heard about, read about, even WROTE about near the beginning of this project* (see link at the bottom of this post), but this is the first time I was (almost) around to witness it!!

Ryan and Beth were in a restaurant eating lunch.  They were working at a conference, and had taken their hour-long break to grab a bite to eat.  But before you can understand the act of kindness and how cool it was, you need to understand Ryan and Beth and how cool THEY are!  Smiley face**.

Photo of Ryan and Beth seated and smiling.  Ryan is wearing a green short sleeve t shirt and Beth is wearing a short sleeve dark green shirt.  Beth wears glasses and a silver bracelet.  They are at a table in a restaurant.***

Beth is Deaf.  She lives in Seattle.  She is a “PAP” – Professional Access Provider.  Basically, that means she provides full communication and access to someone who is both Deaf AND Blind, a person who is known as DeafBlind.  Beth does many things in her PAP role – guiding, interpreting menus, interpreting conversations, traveling with a DeafBlind person – she does a LOT.  One thing she does NOT do is HELP.  She is not a HELPER, she is just there to facilitate the independence of the DeafBlind person.  And trust me, if you met her client Ryan, you would understand that he is not looking for HELP, smiley face.

Photo of Beth seated, smiling.  She is wearing a bright orange shirt that says "St.. Lucia"

Ryan is DeafBlind****.  He also lives in Seattle and is who Beth was working with on the day that this kindness occurred.  He communicates via tactile sign language, or preferably via "pro-tactile" - which conveys not only the WORDS that are spoken, but the visual environment and the non-manual responses of those around him (like head nods).  Ryan is wicked smart.  The things you and I “cheat” and look at our cell phones to confirm (you know, like someone’s phone number, the address of where we are staying, a credit card number…) – yeah, Ryan has all of that stuff MEMORIZED.  He communicates using American Sign Language (ASL) and braille.  His cell phone syncs with a Bluetooth braille reader, which gives him access to everything you and I take in with our eyes. 

Photo of Ryan.  He is standing outdoors, wearing a black shirt and smiling.
There are green trees, grass, and a light in the background.

So, on the day this kindness occurred Ryan was working at a booth at a conference and Beth was supporting him.  They took their lunch break, and when I saw them after they ate they were both smiling from ear to ear!!!  I talked with them to ask what made them so happy, and here is what they told me:

Beth: “I was with my client, Ryan.  He and I were wondering what to have for lunch and we decided on the Mexican restaurant, Mi Casa.” 

Ryan: “We wanted chicken salad, but couldn’t find any good looking salads, so we settled on MiCasa, where we had eaten a couple of days before.  We were hungry and pressed for time.”  

Beth:  “When we were finished with lunch, Ryan asked the waiter for the check and was told that the man who had been seated at a table behind us eating and had left had ALREADY PAID FOR US!  We both thought, ‘What???’.  Ryan asked the waiter who paid – what the person looked like and what his name was.  The waiter wrote down the person’s name and gave it to us.” 

How did it make you feel when you realized he paid, I asked.

Beth:  “At first, I was kind of shocked.  Then I thought, “Man, that was totally out of the blue that he paid for us!”.  But it felt good.  It gave me shivers.  I thought, 'How generous for someone to do that!'."

Ryan:  “It was really unexpected, shocking, and nice.  It was a BIG PLUS! It was really inspirational.  I thought it was so nice of him to buy our meal!  It was a very unexpected random act of kindness.”

After they told me the story of what had happened, I could see that they really wanted to THANK this man.  Also, I wanted to make sure he knew how touched they were that he had treated them!  So, I set about FINDING him!!  We had his name from the slip of paper the waiter gave them, so I started where any amateur Private Investigator would start – FACEBOOK!! 

As luck would have it, the secret stranger has a super long (12 letters!) last name, so even though the waiter actually wrote it down wrong and skipped one letter, I FOUND THE MAN ON FB!  I could tell from the name, location, and job description that he was likely our guy!  I did a bit more detective work (part of which was walking around trying to read name tags of conference attendees, but that idea didn’t help much, grin).  But asking at the registration desk was very effective, and resulted in an email getting to the man asking him to come to Ryan’s booth.

Sure enough, about an hour later, up he walked!!!  He was very humble and a bit shy, but happily accepted Ryan and Beth’s profuse thanks.  He was also happy to receive an official KINDNESS ACTIVIST pin (which he said he would give to his daughter). 

The BEST PART of getting to meet the Kindness Activist was learning WHY he had paid for their lunch.  You might imagine it was because he saw them and wanted to “help”.  Or maybe because he is the type of person who likes to “pay it forward”.  But no – he bought them lunch, he explained, because they had helped HIM the day before!!!  He had come up to their booth (which was promoting Sprint IP Relay*****) and asked questions.  Ryan had answered them so well and explained the product he was representing so thoroughly and clearly that the man just wanted to quietly “thank them” by picking up their check!!  Isn’t that great? 

When I asked Beth why she thought he bought them lunch, she said, “I think just out of the goodness of his heart, really.”  Because the stranger paid "in secret" and because we only met him after I hunted for him, I will keep him anonymous and not call him out by name in this story.  But I am very glad we got to meet him!

I asked Ryan and Beth if that had ever happened to them before, that a stranger paid for their meal.  Remarkably, they BOTH had experienced it previously!  “This is the 2^nd time this has happened to me, but this one was even more touching,” said Beth.  “The first time it happened was when we ate out and paid for some people from church.  When someone saw we had done that, THEY paid for us!  But this time it was totally out of the blue!”  Ryan said, “This wasn’t the first time it I had experienced something like that.  I had my meal paid for another time this month, too!”.  I told him this must be his LUCKY MONTH – smile. 

Like so many acts of kindness, this one inspired the recipients.  Beth said, “I think that next time we go out to eat we need to “pay it forward” and buy someone else’s meal.  We can inspire them!”  Ryan agreed; “Yes, this inspired me to pay for someone else’s meal, too.  I would rather pay for a disabled person’s meal”, to which Beth added that she, as his Professional Access Provider, can be on the look-out for a disabled person in a restaurant while they are eating.

I have a feeling that someday soon the “Ryan and Beth team” will be secretly picking up a stranger’s tab. 

Kindness – it just keeps on spreading!!

*Link to the previous piece in Kindness Activist about paying for a stranger’s meal:  Waffle Kindness

**You may have noticed that instead of using “emoticons” in this piece, a description of the emoticon was written out.  That is because people who use braille do not have access to emoticons.

***You may have also noticed that the captions on the photos for this post are descriptions of the photos.  That is so that people who are blind/low vision and use braille or a program that reads text aloud for them (a screen reader) can visualize what is shown in the photo.

****For more information about DeafBlindness, check out this link:  AADB FAQ 

*****More information about SprintIP, the product Ryan was promoting, can be found here:  SprintIP

No Show Kindness

I met Andria Alefhi a couple of months ago when we teamed an interpreting assignment.  She seemed like a cool person, we functioned well as a team, and we got along swimmingly, so we became Facebook friends. 

The newest Kindness Activist - ANDRIA!

Yesterday morning she posted this thought provoking and motivating status: 

“Interpreters: in the spirit of giving, for the month of December, I'm creating a No Show Donation Challenge. I just came up with it now. For every client that's a no show or is late, take 5 minutes of that wait time to find a new organization to donate to. If that organization doesn't directly serve the Deaf community, a donation is a great time to add a question or message about making sure they know how to obtain an ASL interpreter (if it's a service organization). If you like this idea, share the organization you find with me so I can check it out too. I just donated to The Bronx Freedom Fund, check it out.“

Isn’t that a GREAT idea?  Maybe I need to explain a bit.  Interpreting, like other professions, sometimes has more “down time” than expected.  For example - you are booked to interpret a doctor appointment, but the patient doesn’t show up and so your work cancels.  Andria’s challenge to her cohorts is to USE that time that you suddenly have available to the world’s advantage!  Take just five minutes of the time you just got back to GIVE BACK to someone and make a donation to an organization/charity that you have never supported before!  Google makes it super easy to find a worthy cause to support.

I asked Andria how she came up with this swell idea and she told me, “I am not sure why I thought of this today! Donations for the recent fire in the Oakland art and music space were on my mind, and today I was sitting in the lobby waiting for a client, and the idea to use my time doing something productive for someone else came to mind.”

I would like to add, the NO SHOW DONATION CHALLENGE can apply to many, many professions!  How many of you have NO SHOWS/CANCELLATIONS as part of your professional life?  I can think of several right off the top of my head:  hair stylists, dentists, therapists, flight attendants/pilots, manicurists, doctors, fortune tellers…  ANYONE who works by appointment has cancellations!   Andria says, “I targeted the challenge to interpreters, and I'm calling it the No Show Donation Challenge, because, when we find out an assignment is a no show or has been cancelled, interpreters are often fortunate enough to be able to bill for that and leave, ending up with free time and 'bonus pay' if you will.  There are some fields of work where no client equals no billing.”  So, if you are in a field where “no show” does not equal “no income” for you, please follow Andria’s advice and USE your new found free time to find an organization and make a donation!  And if you are an interpreter, heed this gentle reminder from our Kindness Activist, “As ASL interpreters, we have an obligation to give back to the Deaf community, so consider donating to all kinds of service organizations; your money, or your time, or education and outreach.”

Andria and her husband Jonathan

An added benefit of the challenge is that Andria has asked her friends who participate to comment on the post and tell her what new organizations they found to support.  This means she (and her friends who follow the post) will get to find out about other worthy organizations that they, too, might want to give to.   Andria has her next no show donation ready to roll, “Next on my list is the Nyle DiMarco Foundation. I'll probably donate to 50/50 Deaf and general organizations.”

I always ask Kindness Activists that I interview how doing their kind actions made them feel, and almost unanimously people say how terrific they felt while doing whatever it is they are being recognized here for.  Andria was no exception, “I felt great donating to The Bronx Freedom Fund today. I've been meaning to do it for a month now and just kept forgetting. They serve underrepresented and poor people who are arrested and cannot make bail and are pushed into pleading guilty to crimes they may not be guilty of in order to not go to jail, all because they cannot make bail. I don't know if they have ever had a Deaf client, so, I added a note to my donation.  So now they got my donation plus education and a useful contact.”

In the spirit of the holidays, Andria has a good reminder for us all, “Of course, people can donate every day, you don't have to wait for a No Show client.”

Thanks for the great challenge Andria!  CHALLENGE ACCEPTED!

Isn't this a lovely photo of our Activist?  

Here is some fun bonus stuff I found out about Andria that you don’t want to miss (though with all of these things going on, I am surprised she doesn’t use her cancellation time to NAP!):

Andria has an Etsy shop where she sells custom built clocks made from found and recycled objects!  Don’t believe me?  See for yourself here: New York Clocks

Andria and her friends run a funky business called Speakeasy Karaoke, where you can “Make your next event extra VIP with a private karaoke party. Speakeasy Karaoke has everything including a live band and thousands of songs to choose from.”  Follow them on FB and go sing your heart out.

Andria even PERFORMS WEDDINGS!  Yup, she can marry you in English or ASL!  Find out more about that and her interpreting work at her website: http://www.andriaalefhi.com/

And here are links to organizations mentioned in this article:

Nyle DiMarco Foundation - https://nyledimarcofoundation.com/

The Bronx Freedom Fund - thebronxfreedomfund.org

Food Bank Kindness

This is Tatyana

“I am certain that if we all find a place to serve, we can change someone's life and make a difference in this world together.”  This amazing sentiment was said by Tatyana Metzenseva, a beautiful woman with an even more beautiful heart. 

And Tatyana has found her place to serve – both figuratively and literally.  Almost every Sunday she volunteers for two shifts at the Potter’s House of Denver, a free food bank that operates under the “Food Bank of the Rockies” umbrella.   And many of the 800 – 1,000 people she helps there have an instant connection to her, because, you see, Tatyana understands not only their LANGUAGE, but their EXPERIENCE.  Some of them recently arrived in Colorado from Ukraine, which they left to flee the war, and do not speak any English.

Well, Tatyana’s family immigrated to the USA from Ukraine in 1996 when she was 9 years old.  At that time she, like so many people she serves at the food bank now, spoke only Russian.  American schools not only taught her English, but because she, like her parents, is hard of hearing they also taught her American Sign Language.  This makes her a perfect fit for helping not only the Russian speaking people needing food each Sunday, but also the Deaf and hard of hearing people!  As she told me, “I decided to volunteer at the Food Bank because I was informed that there are many Russian individuals attending there who don't speak English. Right then, I knew I wanted to get involved and help out. I know what it's like to have language barrier, and if I could help, I would.” 

Tatyana working at the sign in desk

Tatyana explained that she volunteers as a Team Lead at the sign in desk, where she has loyal Russian, Deaf, and hard of hearing customers, along with a diverse group of people from other cultural and ethnic backgrounds, like Middle Eastern and African.  She, along with a team of around 5 other volunteers, helps them choose from a menu of food that is available that week.  The menu contains things such as:  non-perishable items like rice and pasta, a gallon of milk, a dozen eggs, canned fruit and vegetables, cereals and other breakfast things, peanut butter, jelly, etc.   The thing that I found fabulous was that the customers have 3 options of meat every week (such as chicken, pork chops, ground beef, or fish) of which they are allowed to receive 2.  Customers work with someone at the sign in desk to choose from the menu, and other volunteers in a warehouse bag the items.   When people pick up their bags at the warehouse, they also have other things they can help themselves to like salad greens, fresh fruits and vegetables, bread, pastries, etc., which vary depending on what is available. 

First off, I LOVE the fact that these people are getting healthy, hearty food to eat.  And secondly, they are getting service with Tatyana’s amazing SMILE!  I can see why the Russian speakers love coming to talk with her!  In fact, I would imagine that a lot of them would want to just sit down, drink a cup of tea, and CHAT!  I think it is interesting that some of the older Russian people she helps do not understand the concept of “volunteering” and Tatyana has to explain to them what it means to GIVE of your time like she and the other people at the food bank do.  “I often have to explain that people take time out of their life to serve others not for the money, but out of the goodness of their hearts,” she said. 

Photo from a successful "Feed the Children" campaign at the Food Bank

One word Tatyana uses to describe her volunteering at the food bank is REWARDING.  She said, “I believe that we are in this life to serve one another. To me, if we are not serving others, then we are not fulfilling our purpose in this life.”  And the word she used to describe how the customers at the Food Bank react is GRATEFUL.   She explained it so well, “The way their faces light up when they first find out you speak their language. The communication barrier ceases to exist and they can communicate freely to tell us how we can serve them. There are people that cry tears of happiness because of how grateful they are.”

Tatyana and her cousin with the Potter's House Food Bank van

Tatyana, you are TRULY a Kindness Activist.  You give of your time, your energy, and your heart.  I know that you help to make these peoples’ lives much happier not only by ensuring they have food to eat, but a person they can talk with who understands.  When I told Tatyana how lucky and blessed those people were to have her there to support them, she summed everything up with: “I am blessed to be a blessing.”

Please visit this website to learn more about The Potter’s House of Denver Food Bank - The Potter's House of Denver Food Bank   

You can find them on Facebook here Potters House Denver on Facebook and on Twitter @TPHDenver

And if you, like me, are inspired by Tatyana and her giving heart, please look around your own community and see where YOU can pitch in.  There are opportunities to be kind all around you – just take a peek and jump in!