Students at Nettle Middle School have formed a Kindness Club, carrying out good deeds across the city of Haverhill. (Courtesy photographs)
Nettle fifth and sixth grade students are letting their peers know that kindness is cool. As Haverhill school counselors Megan Crowley and Erin McCann tell WHAV, a group of students have banded together to form a Kindness Club, carrying out good deeds at school and in the community.
The group of approximately 20 students meets weekly with Crowley and McCann to plan random acts of kindness. Last month, students held a scarf donation drive and distributed the cold weather accessories in downtown’s Railroad Square. Notes attached read ‘I am not lost. If you are cold and need me, please take me.’
As McCann explains, the Kindness Club offers an after-school alternative to sports or other organizations that have requirements for membership.
“What’s nice about this club is that it’s easy for them to join, you don’t have to be athletic or have great grades,” McCann said. “It’s a nice, positive thing for kids who may not join or qualify for another club, but this allows them to take part in their school community.”
Since organizing last fall, the group has surprised their teachers with holiday gift packages and delivered Valentines to local nursing home residents. Organizers knew the club was really taking off, however, after students wrote inspiring messages on Post-It notes and stuck them to lockers, creating a chain reaction of kindness.
“We had the kids write notes to students with empowering statements to ‘Have a Great Day,’ and let them know ‘You’re Awesome!’ and put them on lockers so students would see them. We’re trying to get the message across to students that it’s the little things that can really make a difference in someone’s day,” McCann told WHAV. “It’s really taken off and we’re excited about that.”
To fundraise for their club’s activities, the group is currently selling “Choose Kind” bracelets for $1, available at Nettle School by emailing [email protected].