In the mornings of the week of February 10th, people coming into Oakdale High School were greeted by friendly faces to start their day. These greeters were all participating in Oakdale’s Kindness Week. 

This week long event was organized by our school organization Bear Pride and included many other organizations. Other organizations that participated include: Rho Kappa (Social Studies Honor Society), National Honors Society, Fine Arts Club, Creative Writing Club, Book Club, Spanish Honors Society, Junior Class Club, and Journalism students, as well as other students that participated individually. 

Kindness Week was organized as a way to spread kindness and each day had a different focal point. Monday was to say “hello” to three people you may not know, Tuesday was the school-wide “Red Out” for the American Heart Association, Wednesday was to sit with somebody new at lunch, Thursday was quotes of kindness around the building, and Friday was Main Street Madness during lunch.

Emma Melton, a senior who is president of Rho Kappa and vice president of NHS explained, each day had something students were able to take away from it. Melton commented in regard to Thursday’s theme of quotes of kindness: “I think a lot of people can learn from that. People say words have a lot of power, and they do. Words can bring people up or bring people down, it can make a person’s day just spreading kind words.”

When asked how Melton feels when she spreads kindness she discloses: “I feel hopeful. Because, if I was able to make that person feel good for the day or that moment, perhaps they can take that happiness and make someone else feel good. It’s a big chain and it can reach someone that is feeling dreary and isn’t radiating happiness. You can impact someone’s life and spread that kindness.”

Lissa Smith, a Social Studies teacher at Oakdale High School that participated and helped to organize Kindness Week, utters she likes to spread kindness and participate because, “I think in a time period where there is a lot of nastiness in the world, I would like to surround myself with kindness.”

This is the first year that Kindness Week has been an event at Oakdale High School, but there are many other school pride events constantly taking place. If you are interested in participating in any of these events, look out for posters and school find out first emails.