The Kindness Challenge

High school teacher Kristina Ulmer has transformed personal tragedy into a powerful lesson in empathy for her students. Each year, she gives each of her students $20 with a simple instruction “use it to perform an act of kindness”. This initiative, was created to honour the memory of her sister, Katie who had been coming home from working as a waitress when she was killed in a car accident. Kristina decided to start the challenge with the money that Katie had received as tips that evening saying, “Katie was such a kind person – this helps her live on.”
Students have embraced the challenge wholeheartedly, – some have donated to shelters or created care packages for the homeless, another knitted hats for premature babies while others sent cards to residents at a carehome.
“I didn’t think it would be possible to make a difference with $20,” said one student. “But I learned that’s really not true.”
The ‘Kindness Challenge’ has since attracted over $7,000 in donations to keep it going and, it’s created more than 350 acts of kindness—each one unique!.