1.31.22 | read time: 3 min
Kindness in 2021’s Fourth Quarter
Christelle Lyman
At 116 & West we commit to performing 116 Acts of Kindness (116 AOK) each year, no matter how big or small. Each month, we participate in at least one event that can impact our community or environment in a positive way.
Here’s all the kindness that happened in Q4!
October – St. Luke’s Coloring Books
Over the past four years, we’ve partnered with Fisher’s Technology to make Halloween-themed coloring books for St. Luke’s Children’s Hospital. We have some gifted and generous designers, so it’s a no-brainer for us to take on this project each year.
The Halloween coloring books are for the littles who are unable to dress up or trick-or-treat on Halloween. These coloring books also feature activities, like crossword puzzles and mazes. In addition to the coloring books, children receive a small pack of crayons. We hope to help cheer up those little goblins who can’t be home or out gathering candy on Halloween.
If you are interested in finding other ways to help St. Luke’s Children’s Hospital, visit their website for more information regarding their programs, donation information, and volunteer opportunities.
November – Holiday Dinner Baskets
For November, the Westies split into three teams. Each team created a food basket for families in need at Hillcrest Elementary School. The baskets held all the non-perishable trimmings and treats to prepare a festive dinner. We also supplied gift cards so families had access to perishable items to complete the meal. One of our teams even shared some of their favorite holiday recipes!
The trunk of my Outback was jam-packed, but I will forgo the bragging opportunity and focus on what is important. Take, for instance, some projections about food security in Idaho provided by the Idaho Foodbank:
- More than 202,390 Idahoans may have experienced food insecurity in 2021 due to the pandemic–this equates to 1 in 9 individuals.
- Even more disconcerting is the 57,620 kids (1 in 8 of Idaho’s children) who could be living with hunger.
If you want to make a difference, the Idaho Foodbank has lots of information regarding volunteer opportunities on their website, so, check it out!
December – WCA Christmas
The Women’s and Children’s Alliance (WCA) is a secure, transitional shelter program for women and children fleeing domestic violence and/or sexual assault. Their crisis program is an invaluable asset for the Boise community, and we’re lucky to have them!
Each Christmas, local businesses and individuals are invited to sponsor a family through the WCA (via holiday gift giving). Once we received the good word that we had been selected to sponsor a family, we then got the list of much needed items/gifts desired by our family. Then, we got to work to fulfill that wish list.
We gift-wrapped the presents, labeled them appropriately (while the family remains anonymous), and then delivered them to the WCA. We internally funded this project. If they couldn’t donate, Westies happily volunteered to wrap or deliver gifts.
We feel a great deal of gratitude knowing we can help a family have a nice Christmas in spite of life’s difficulties. If you are interested in other volunteer opportunities with WCA, check out their website. They also have a year-round wish list for their clients that you can check out as well.
Continuing Kindness in 2022
In the spirit of kindness, we feel the need to thank you. Thank you for taking the time to review our Q4 acts of kindness. Thank you for learning about volunteer opportunities in your community. And thank you (in advance) for staying kind for the entirety of 2022.