Guest blog by Robin Kennedy of Raleigh, NC.
Kindness. Love. Community Service. Selflessness.
Those words are important character traits in our family. How do you teach a child to show kindness and love to those who are less fortunate? As a parent, how do you demonstrate the impact of community service? What ways can you show a child to think of others and act in a selfless manner?
My daughter Carlyle is 13 years old. She participated in her very first Stop Hunger Now meal packaging event at age six, and has been packaging meals ever since! Carlyle has learned that one person, no matter how young, can make an impact on the lives of others.
Carlyle’s 7th-grade social studies class was assigned a semester-long project focusing on social justice. Carlyle chose to research the topic of world hunger for her project. In addition to raising nearly $150 to donate to Stop Hunger Now, she participated in two meal packaging events: one through her church youth group and one with her entire 7th-grade class at school. Carlyle also visited the Stop Hunger Now warehouse where she toured the facility, interviewed several key employees and watched a shipping container being loaded full of meals for a school in Haiti.
Carlyle has grown to have compassion for those who have less than she does. Carlyle has learned many valuable lessons by volunteering her time and talents at Stop Hunger Now. She learned that even small actions contribute to the well-being of others, and that she can make an impact on others—people she will never meet—by taking action in her own community.