Anne Marie Peirce is encouraging people to spread kindness on Feb. 17.
“It could be shoveling a neighbour’s driveway or sharing a favorite cookie or cake recipe,” said Peirce, executive director of the Brant Community Foundation, which began hosting Random Act of Kindness Day locally 14 years ago. “Better yet, send a cake or a batch of cookies with the recipe.
“People can also reach out to someone they haven’t spoken to in awhile.”
She said Random Act of Kindness Day helps reinforce the foundation’s vision of building a better community. It also seeks to encourage a “pay it forward” philosophy throughout Brantford, Brant County, Six Nations of the Grand River and Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation.
“Every act of kindness, no matter how small, can go a long way.”
This year’s theme is “Celebration of Kindness.”
“The foundation is committed to building a better community and really, the best way to have a better community is to have people connected,” Peirce said. “There is no better way to connect people than through kindness.”
Rob Nagy, chair of the Random Act of Kindness Day committee, said the aim is to get everyone to do something kind.
“We want our friends to think about kindness 365 days a year and Feb. 17 is just one day for people to start thinking about kindness.”
The committee will hold a flag-raising ceremony Feb. 9 at 10 am at Harmony Square in downtown Brantford during which Mayor Kevin Davis will proclaim Feb. 17 as Random Act of Kindness Day.
People can share their acts of kindness on social media by using the hashtag #CelebrateKindnessBCF.
For more information, call the foundation at 519-7856-2499 or visit its website at brantcommunityfoundation.ca.