Blog 5 – Kindness Week

Kindness Week

https://www.canada.ca/en/department-national-defence/maple-leaf/defence/2024/02/kindness-gift-keeps-giving.html 

On September 22, 2025, City Council declared the third week of February in each year as Kindness Week in accordance with the Kindness Week Act passed by the federal government in 2021.

The Kindness Week Act describes and encourages the following:

• Kindness encourages values such as empathy, respect, gratitude and compassion;
• Kind acts lead to the improved health and well-being of Canadians;
• Designating and celebrating a Kindness Week throughout Canada will encourage acts of kindness, volunteerism and charitable giving to the benefit of all Canadians;
• Kindness Week will connect individuals and organizations to share resources, information and tools to foster more acts of kindness;
• Kindness Week might encourage a culture of kindness in Canada throughout the year;

Kindness Week aims to actively celebrate kindness in Sault Ste. Marie during the third week of February in each year and further encourage a culture of kindness throughout the year. Kindness Week is already celebrated in a number of Canadian cities. The declaration of Kindness Week in Sault Ste. Marie is timely. Peter Vaudry has just published a book Kindness is Sault Ste. Marie, which demonstrates brilliantly that kindness is part of the spirit and soul of Sault Ste. Marie and its people. The book is intended to be a catalyst to actively celebrate kindness in Sault Ste. Marie during the third week of February in each year and further encourage a culture of kindness throughout the year.

Kindness Week Committee

There is a concern about the growing prevalence of unkind behaviours in our society and a need to prevent it from becoming a force of negative change in our community. The vast majority of Saultites are kind. It’s important to try and influence a few of the others and encourage the majority to continue their kindness.

A committee of eight members has been formed and includes the following members: Lisa Veseau-Allen (Ward 2 Councilor), Derek Jackson (Past President of the Chamber of Commerce and Employee & Community Engagement Manager Human Resources), Diane Morrell (Accessibility Coordinator – Planning and Enterprise Services– SSM), Jeff Broadbent (Lawyer), Jasmyn Rowley (Director of Marketing and Communications at Village Media), Bryan Davies (Publisher – Tagona Press, Sault Ste Marie), Peter Vaudry acting as Chair and myself.

The committee meets regularly by Zoom to discuss and work to accomplish the following:

• Promote Kindness Week in the community to encourage acts of kindness throughout the community and create a culture of kindness;
• Encourage people to be proactive about protecting the community from the corrosive potential of such behaviour, e.g. we should all be able to express our opinions but we can do so in a kind and respectful way.
• Promote a kindness campaign, which will provide a beautiful opportunity to remember and celebrate who we are as a community. As we go through a difficult time in the community we will work to spread kindness throughout the community sand set an example for the world. Everyone desires kindness and respect.
• Distribute the children’s book ‘Odin the Owl Encourages Kindness in his Community’ written for Kindness Week and published by Jennifer Barone, Tammy McFadden and myself. The book provides examples of kindness and how it benefits both those receiving acts of kindness and those showing kindness. It is intended that a copy will be provided to as many children of elementary school age as possible.
• Distribute ‘Be Kind’ chocolate bars produced by ‘Sweeten’ and operated by White Pines Collegiate 
• Encourage local charities to become involved by promoting the benefits provided to those receiving assistance and those volunteering.
• Work with Bon Soo to create an event, which will promote the culture of kindness in the community.
• Encourage the community to create events and activities to promote the culture of kindness in the community.
• Encourage sponsors to come forward to assist in funding the promotion of a kindness culture in the community, assist in the cost of providing children with a copy of ‘Odin the Owl Encourages Kindness in his Community’, ‘Be Kind’ chocolate and the creation of events and activities.  
• Be creative in finding ways to promote kindness.

Kindness Week Budget and Sponsor Recognition 

The following are the initial thoughts about sponsorship needs:

• $20,000 – Children’s book – Odin the Owl Encourages Kindness – to distribute to all elementary school children.
• $2,000 – A big community Random Act of Kindness video to kick off the week (I’m thinking something like one of our grocery store giveaways where we surprise people by buying their groceries at the check-out, etc.);
• $1,000 – Promoting a contest on SooToday that integrates a kindness meter. Every time someone does something kind, the meter grows and they are entered to win a local prize;
• $1,000 – Promoting ‘Be Kind’ Cookie campaign during Kindness Week with Tim Horton’s. 
• $5,000 – School Challenge (we could create a list of kind things students can do – like a Kindness Passport – and the school that has the most students complete their passports wins a prize); We can tie in Maggie Running’s idea to gathering Student’s Kind Deeds for prizes and their story told in book being written by Maggie – “Alphabet Soul for the Child’s Soul’.
• $3,000 – Kindness Booth at Bon Soo (if timing aligns, could have a kindness booth that gives out free hot chocolate, stickers, flowers or even high fives!); Co-ordinate with Bon Soul and have students use their hours to give out ‘Be Kind’ Chocolate and children’s books.
• $1,000 – Promote Create a Kindness Wall (somewhere with high traffic) where people can post kind notes or words of encouragement. I have seen this done in art galleries and they stay up as installations afterward. Maybe this could be tied into the school challenge. Place in Downtown Plaza and ask city to coordinate for kindness done and kindness received.

Total – $33,000

Sponsors will receive acknowledgement and appreciation as follows:

• In the children’s book;
• On website, media and social media promotions;
• All other promotions;
• At all events and challenges.

Anyone interested in assisting as a sponsor, please contact me at [email protected]. 

The next blog will feature Peter Vaudry and his new book ‘Kindness is Sault Ste. Marie’.