Ladysmith council is set to explore the prospect of a Random Acts of Kindness project for the town.
The idea was prompted by a delegation led by Ron Dale at the June 16 regular council meeting at City Hall.
“I was a teacher and school administrator my whole life, and one of the schools I was at had a Random Acts of Kindness week and we all loved it,” Dale said at the meeting. “I’m asking for council’s support in hope of getting a Random Acts of Kindness project for our whole community. It’s a great place to live, but it could be better.”
The project encourages people of the community to take upon acts of kindness to aid people in need, and that does not necessarily mean financial.
Dale and compatriot Kim Judson showed a video to council showing various examples.
One police officer allowed a girl with Down syndrome to join him for the day to allow that girl’s dream to come to true. Another scene showed a blind dog being guided by a specially trained guide dog.
“If formalized, this could have big power in our town,” said Dale. “A random act of kindness is when you are aware of somebody’s needs and you do something for them. It doesn’t have to involve money, although it can, but it is the act that is more important.”
Judson said “this isn’t something that’s foreign to Ladysmith, as we have lots of amazing people here.”
Dale confirmed that if he was to get the support of council, he would then go about contacting the Chamber of Commerce, various schools and business owners of Ladysmith.
“It’s not so much the person that’s receiving, it’s the person that’s giving which is the wonderful thing,” he said. “Even if you just buy someone a coffee who’s waiting behind you in the Tim Hortons line up, it’s a small gesture but it’s so powerful.”
Judson suggested the idea of a forum on the Town’s website.
“It would be great if we can get a place for people to comment and post stories, either anonymously or not, of their experiences,” she said. “Or we could proclaim a week to the project.”
Coun. Steve Arnett said “we could do a proclamation for sure.”
Mayor Rob Hutchins called the project “a beautiful idea” and said he will look into a proclamation for the Town in the near future.
