My Neighbor

I live in a house with 3 women. This winter was pretty brutal for us and the hired snow removal company never seemed to show up when they were needed. One day I was shoveling the walkway when my neighbor, a young high school boy, saw me struggling. He insisted in helping me and of course I said yes. I immediately thought that someone inside my house hired him to shovel the walkway. I ran inside and told both my mother and sister. They were shocked because neither had asked him to help. I was in utter disbelief that a young boy would offer to help me shovel. I ran back downstairs and saw that he was finished and had gone home. I immediately rang his doorbell and informed his mother. I told her that I wanted to give him compensation for his hard work and asked her if it was alright. She said yes. I gave him $10 and told him how special it was that he helped me in a time of need.

Honest Taxi Driver

There was an excerpt in The Gazette in March about a Concordia University student that took a taxi to meet her friends for breakfast. The story was included in a section titled "Random Acts of Kindness." It stated:
"On Saturday morning I took a taxi to meet a friend for breakfast. Upon arrival at the restaurant, the taxi driver mentioned that he thought the total amount was too high and thought that he may have forgotten to clear the previous fare. I also thought the fare was high but not unusual. About 10 minutes later the taxi driver showed up at the table and stated that he checked the meter. He did overcharge the student and gave her a $5."

This taxi driver took the time to check his meter and return the $5 bill, despite the fact that the customer did not verbally question his mistake. Considering today's economic crunch, it was incredibly kind of a taxi driver to reach out to a customer.

If you witness a random act of kindness, inform The Montreal Gazette:
mtldiary@thegazette.canwest.com

TNT: Working to Fight Leukemia and Lymphoma

Every 73 minutes, a Canadian is being diagnosed with a form of blood cancer. The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (LLS) is the world's largest volunteer organization dedicated to funding blood research, education, and patient services. "The LLS's mission is to cure leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin's disease and myeloma, and improve the quality of life of patients and their families."

Team in Training (TNT) is both the fund raising campaign for the LLS and an endurance sports training program. TNT organizes marathons and trains participants and fundraisers to run or walk either a half or full marathon.

Team members that participate and raise the minimum amount of funds receive: a four to five month training program (includes both gorup and personal sessions), hotel accomodation, and airfare. TNT members receive motivational support while partaking in the marathons.

Since 2007, the Montreal Chapter has worked to raise funds for those suffering from Leukemia and Lymphoma. The Montreal Chapter organizes marathon's for local residents who wish to raise money for the cause. There are three marathons this year, the first is in Montreal, is on September 13th. The second is in Chicago on October 11th. The final marathon is in San Francisco on October 18th.

To find out more about TNT or the LLS you can contact the Montreal Chapter:
Montreal Chapter
1255 Universtiy, Suite #705
Montreal, QC
H3B 3W1

Kiva - Microlending with a Purpose

My generation grew up seeing the Christian Children's fund commercials. The commercials always asked for viewers to call in and donate to children in impoverish countries that are in need. Though successful, those commercials are rarely seen these days because the Internet has replace them with micro-lending.

Kiva is an organization that lends money to entrepreneurs in third world countries that wish to create businesses for the purpose of being financially independent. It's mission is to alleviate poverty and connect people around the globe. Kiva is a micro-lending organization that has merged the recent "pay it forward" movement and brought it to a whole new level.

Kiva allows individuals to lend directly to entrepreneurs around the globe. As a lender, you can browse entrepreneurs profiles and choose someone who best suits your ideal profile. Loans range from 6-12 months and as a lender, you can receive email journal updates and track repayments. If you are satisfied with this process, you can then re-lend the money to someone else in need.

To do this, we are using the power of the internet to facilitate one-to-one connections that were previously prohibitively expensive. Child sponsorship has always been a high overhead business. Kiva creates a similar interpersonal connection at much lower costs due to the instant, inexpensive nature of internet delivery. The individuals featured on our website are real people who need a loan and are waiting for socially-minded individuals like you to lend them money

The Pay It Forward Game

Akoha is a Montreal based website, founded in 2006 by a group of techies, that are "passionate about the power of play." This group has started a Pay It Forward Game where players accumulate points. It is a reality-based Pay It Forward Game that can be played among friends.

In order to play, each participant must recieve a card with a tracking number or order cards. If you get a card, you must login on to the website and enter your information. Upon login, the participant can view others that have played with the exact same card (i.e. how many hands it has passed through).

This game encorperates fun into fulfilling acts of kindness. Though these acts are not random, they are self-less. If you want to perform acts of kindness for your loved ones, check out the website!

The Kindness Crew

A group of 4 guys from Victoria, BC started a group in 2002 called The Kindness Crew. Brad, Erik, Chris, and Val started after one of their members, Brad, lost his mother to Cancer. Brad claimed that his mother was a kind woman and he aspired to be as kind as her.

The guys got together to perform acts of kindness. In August 2002, they traveled across Canada in a motor home for 3 months performing acts of kindness. In the past, the group has been acknowledged for giving out free hugs and massages. They have been featured on CBC's Canada Now feature: Bright Lights and CTV.

Today, the group funds other projects, such as rebuilding community facilities, by speaking at schools and consulting within companies. If you are looking for a holiday gift, ask for their book: "Cool To Be Kind: Random Acts and How to Commit Them." It gives tips on how to incorporate more kindness into your life!

Teaching Life Lessions

There is a teacher at the John Molson School of Business (JMSB) in Montreal, Qc that exemplifies passion. Most of this mans students consider him to be a leader. Yet, others think of him as a comedian, because he begins most of his classes with jokes. Even though this professor may seem unorthodox, he is one of the most desired marketing professors at JMSB.

The comedy is not the only reason that this professor is not ordinary, he sets goals and asks students to help accomplish the objectives. This man has been throwing parties every Christmas for the past 8 years. This is not any normal Christmas party, it's a fundraiser for needy families in the Montreal area, solely executed by the professor and his students.

In the first year, he chose to "adopt" three needy families, knowing only the number of gaurdians present, number of children, ages, and sex. Yet, he manages to provide Christmas for countless families year after year. Each fall semester he proposes his idea to his students and asks them to help by generating donations. Every year the number of last years accomplishment becomes the current years quota plus 1 (i.e. in the 7th year, 36 families were provided for and 37 is goal for the 8th year).

He once said to me: " I grew up in Verdun. I believe in giving back to your community. All of the families that I help are living in that same area." Those words impacted me and they resinated in my brain all evening.

Overall, this professor enstils life long lessions in the students that enter his classroom. There are many things that I have learnt from this one man but the most important thing is that kindness never hurts and a smile can go a long way.