A Night Filled with Heroes and Hope

November 30, 2017 Lauren DuBoisLeave a comment

Thanks to a gathering of heroes changing the world with kindness, tonight was filled with hope – the hope that one day our children will live in a world where bullying has no place. A hope that kindness, courage and respect will prevail. Over 100 heroes, both women and children, came together at kidkind foundation’s 5th annual holiday event, held in Warren, New Jersey, to continue the mission of restoring the power of kindness and heroic character.

The organization’s Founder Leigh Ann Errico thanked kidkind foundation’s supporters for helping to spread kindness and goodwill to all. Guests came laden with donations for our troops overseas, as well as gifts for orphaned children in Trenton.

Ms. Errico shared the good works and accomplishments of kidkind foundation throughout the past year, including the creation of a children’s picture book titled IT’S GOOD TO BE KINGD, by Lauren DuBois Rosemond. In addition to making the book widely available for purchase, kidkind foundation has donated IT’S GOOD TO BE KINGD, which teaches kids to STOP and THINK whether their choices will HELP or HURT, to Kindergarten classrooms in Bound Brook, Patterson, Trenton, and Camden, as part of its “1000 Books” donation pledge to underprivileged schools throughout the nation.

Ms. Errico also praised those who donated books in the name of kidkind foundation. Special mention was made of Ms. Vas Nair, who donated 20 copies of IT’S GOOD TO BE KINGD to The Newark Public Schools. IT’S GOOD TO BE KINGD can be purchased on Amazon.com or Wear the Cape’s website, where copies can also be donated.

Another infusion of hope, Ms. Errico revealed that kidkind foundation will spend 2018 creating a Hero Assembly for middle school students. This program comes on the heels of great success with the elementary level Hero Assembly that has already been presented to students in Bridgewater, East Brunswick, Fort Lee, Madison, Scotch Plains, Hazlet, and Garfield, most recently during the Week of Respect and Anti-Bullying Month 2017.

The night was even more magical thanks to kindness fortune-tellers who provided both young and old with Kindness Fortunes, which encouraged ways that guests could continue to be heroic in the future. Such fortunes included several taglines from Wear the Cape, including you’re “Better Than That™” – better than bullying – and “It’s Cool to Be Kind.”

Another highlight of the evening, as always, was the traditional cookie swap. Ladies brought three dozen cookies and left with an assortment of dozens more. Every cookie, made with love, is another message of hope – and how sweet it is!

For more information on how to donate to the kidkind foundation, bring a Hero Assembly to a school near you, and purchase or donate IT’S GOOD TO BE KINGD for a child in your life or for kids in need, please email leighann@wearthecapekids.com.

Stay strong in the mission, heroes! Thank you for changing the world, one person’s world at a time. ❤

Wear the Cape’s NEW Children’s Book is HERE!

June 6, 2017June 6, 2017 twhimsLeave a comment

On the heels of the success of Wear the Cape’s Hero Assembly, which our team presented in over 30 schools since its launch in 2016, we are ready to release another powerful kindness tool for young children:

INTRODUCING…

IT’S GOOD TO BE KINGD, Wear the Cape’s new children’s picture book!

Brought to life with hand-painted illustrations, the children’s book shares the story of Leonard the Lion—admired by all other animals as King of the Jungle—who wears a red cape and uses his power and status to make a positive impact on those around him. Sprinkled with magic and mystery, the fun, colorful book is perfect for a young child’s summer reading list.

ORDER YOUR COPY HERE | DONATE A COPY HERE

Also taught in Wear the Cape’s assembly program for elementary schools, IT’S GOOD TO BE KINGD incorporates mnemonic devices that remind kids to STOP and THINK whether their choices will HELP or HURT. Both the book and assembly are designed to assist kids with making connections, practicing skills and learning strategies needed to be a positive force in their communities and be BETTER THAN THAT™ – better than bad choices including bullying.

Wear the Cape’s kidkind Foundation will be donating 1,000 books to kindergarten classrooms in underprivileged schools throughout our nation. To meet Lenny and follow his journey with your family as he learns that it’s better to be a hero than a bully, click here to purchase a copy of our book and/or click here to donate books to children in need.

Wear the Cape has made an impact far and wide with its mission to restore the power of kindness and heroic character…let’s keep spreading the “cool-to-be-kind” message!

Bringing Holiday Cheer to ALL Kidkind

December 5, 2013December 6, 2013 Leigh Ann ErricoLeave a comment

“As parents, we all want our children to grow up to be responsible citizens and good people. We want them to learn to feel, think and act with respect for themselves and for other people. We want them to pursue their own well being, while also being considerate of the needs and feelings of others. We want them, in short, to develop strong character.” Source: U.S. Department of Education pamphlet, “Helping Your Child Become a Responsible Citizen”

This week, the kidkind foundation held its inaugural charitable fundraising event, and oh what an event it was, with great energy and spirit shared by all! What a way to get the holidays warmed up and rocking.

All attendees/donors – over 70 people – “wore their capes” and brought homemade cookies and other food and specialty good donations for our military troops. Our troops are in need of so much support and supplies, and we wanted to show them our appreciation for what they do for us every day. We are preparing a GIANT shipment to send off to Afghanistan today! The children who attended our event took the time to write heartwarming letters and to draw pictures showing their gratitude to the soldiers who fight for our freedom.

We raised thousands of dollars that we will use to publish our work–in-progress children’s picture book on character and kindness. The master plan is to donate the book to underprivileged kids across the country to help shape behavior and mindsets from an early age (who doesn’t remember an impactful book from childhood?!). We’d love to hear other ideas from you on the best way to put the funds to good use.

At the event, our fun Wear the Cape clothes and gear were for sale, including several new products like the cape to the left. The merchandise was certainly flying off the shelves, as they say.

It was beyond encouraging to see people rallying around the mission to build good character and kindness in children by showing them how to be everyday heroes. Folks seem to be loving Wear the Cape’s Hero Tags, fastened on all merchandise, with teachable moments that spark conversations about building good character. When I spoke to our guests about what we are trying to achieve with kidkind, and what seems to be eroding in our society that we want to bring back stronger than ever, there was not a dry eye in the room (including mine!). Seeing that people share our hopes for society was definitely motivation to “keep on truckin’” to realize the vision.

Thanks to all of our treasured kidkind supporters, located in good ole’ NJ, who took the time to support us on Tuesday night. Your enthusiasm and zest for this mission is what keeps us focused on moving the ball down the field and encouraged for what the future holds for our cause.

Remember: Kindness is free. So go forward and spread some kind during this magical time of year.