News » Kindness
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Christmas Trees and Small Acts of Kindness
Thirty years ago, in Urbana, Ohio, Tracy Bild and her brother wanted to buy a Christmas tree as a present for her Mom. But that would take money, which they didn’t have.
So they decided to visit their local Dairy Queen, run by a man named Gerald Woodruff, who locals called “Jug,” to scrounge for coins in the parking lot and even in the seams of the restaurant seats. This was somewhat fruitful, but not enough to buy a Christmas tree, which were being sold in the Dairy Queen’s lot.
But Mr. Woodruff (or “Jug”) noticed what was taking place. Known as a kind man, he gave Tracy and her brother a Christmas tree. He called it “the best tree in the lot.” Tracy joyfully brought it home.
But the story doesn’t end there.
It turns out that Tracy and her family maintained a friendship with “Jug” for the rest of his life. Although Jug is recently deceased, she still socializes with Jug’s family from time to time.
Kindness isn’t something we expect, but we do privately crave it. It even has some interesting qualities. According to the experts,
- Kindness begets kindness
- The more kindness we get, the better our lives become
- The earlier we receive kindness, the better our lives become
There’s also a kindness hormone called “oxytocin.” It makes people smile, as it does the recipients of smiles. It even changes our biochemistry.
Sounds contagious to me. All we have to do is smile at others, and extend acts of kindness to them, as soon as we can.
And perhaps go looking for a Christmas tree, whether we have the money or not.
It just might lead to a lifelong friendship.
“Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays” from the Make Life Good Team.
Source: Sunday Morning, CBS, 12/17 -
Make Life Good! Partners with Crossroads Rhode Island and YWCA of Central Massachusetts for Facebook Contest
Crossroads Rhode Island won a contest we recently sponsored on our Facebook page (Facebook.com/TheMakeLifeGoodCompany). and won a donation of 25 of our Make Life Good! logo t-shirts.
The other participant in the contest, which began on February 1st and ended a week later, was the YWCA of Central Massachusetts. As the runner-up, they received a bunch of our imprinted Make Life Good! wristbands, which include part of our mission statement to “remind, encourage and inspire” people to Make Life Good for others, as well as postcards with our logo.
Our goal for the contest was to highlight the great work of both organizations in their communities and bring attention to our mission to support groups that Make Life Good! for others. So the contest was a win-win for all of us.
And the contest was simple - whichever organization got the most “likes,” essentially votes, on our Facebook page, would win the contest. We posted two photos combining our Make Life Good! logo with the logos of each organization, sharing them for a week on Facebook. We thought this was a great way to bring some well-deserved attention to the good work of both organizations while also engaging followers.
In the end, Crossroads came out on top with 40 likes.
On February 12th, we presented the 25 Make Life Good! t-shirts to Maria, the in-kind donations manager and volunteer coordinator of Crossroads Rhode Island. While we were there, we took some photographs to commemorate the event (see below).
Crossroads Rhode Island works to make the experience of homelessness as temporary as possible by helping families and individuals secure stable homes quickly. They are actually the largest homeless services organization in the Ocean State today and we’re happy we can support them. We just wish we could do more.
The same goes for the YWCA of Central Massachusetts. They provide safe places for women and girls, build strong women leaders, and advocate for both women’s and civil rights.
We look forward to working with both organizations again in the future.
This was our first time partnering with local non-profit organizations. And it was a great experience for all of us at Make Life Good! It left us inspired to find more ways to recognize organizations and people who make life good for others everyday in their communities.
And we hope you, too, are inspired to take action, to show compassion for those less fortunate, to lead by example, and, above all, to Make Life Good! for others however you can.
We offer several t-shirts with various messages that are designed to remind, encourage and inspire others by showcasing the change you may want to see in the world. So visit our webstore at MakeLifeGood.co.
We hope you continue supporting The Make Life Good Company, Crossroads Rhode Island, the YWCA of Central Massachusetts, and the hundreds of other groups and organizations trying to make the world a better place for all of us.. We can’t do it without you.
Make Life Good's Sean-Paul Fitzgerald with Maria of Crossroads Rhode Island.
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Random Acts of Kindness Make Life Good!
We’re quite excited for the Random Acts of Kindness (RAoK) Day on the 17th because we’re a little more prepared for it this year. While still in our initial stages as a business, we’ve grown and are fortunate enough to have had the opportunity to create several new designs for the social holiday. One iterates how the act of helping others is rewarding to you personally and the other simply states, “Random Acts of Kindness Make Life Good!” It doesn’t get any clearer than that.
We hope that these designs on this apparel reaches a fresh set of eyes…someone who hasn’t been so exposed to our calls to action and someone who could really stand to see positive messages like these. For that to happen, we need to get the shirts out there! Buying our products is great because a portion of the profit will go to organizations that make life good and the message you invested in will probably mean something to you personally; but, if you make sure to wear that shirt or sweatshirt out and about, the potential GOOD you could do is so much greater.
Our products are eye-catching because we want these messages to be seen! You can feel good about being an MLG ambassador on National RAoK Day because the purchase you will have made will find its way back to a business that does good for others. You can wear that smile proudly because the design you’ll be modeling will put a smile on someone else’s face—and ideally push them to put a smile on another person’s face.
Fair warning: you might be approached or questioned about your product! Whether it’s your bag or your bracelet, people will wonder what Make Life Good is all about and why you invested in us. This is an opportunity to make a true connection and communicate honestly. We could use more of that nowadays.
Lead the charge this RAoK Day and do so sporting a Make Life Good product. We want the positive influence you’ll have on others to be as great as can be. Share your random acts of kindness with us. We’d love to see what you come up with. We can always use a little more inspiration.
