The students at Westlake Hills Elementary in Conejo Valley decided to partner with Book Ends to help improve the school library at nearby Elm Street Elementary in Oxnard.  Elm Street serves a student population that faces many challenges including poverty and language barriers (71% of the students are English Learners); 64% of the Elm Street students’ parents did not graduate high school.

The Project Goodness students at Westlake Hills led  their entire school in a book drive to collect gently used books for Elm Elementary in Oxnard. The students a learned how limited access to books has serious affects on literacy rates. The turnout was a HUGE success with over 3,000 books collected! .  The students then personally delivered the books to Elm Elementary and helped put together their new school library!

#1)  BE KIND – Smile at others to brighten their day!

#2) APPRECIATE – Tell your friends and family how much they mean to you.

#3) INVITE – Ask or invite a new friend to play or sit with you at lunch.

#4) START SMALL! - You already have what it takes to make the world a better place, simply by being you! Making a difference in the world may seem like an enormous task, but when everyone does a little bit with A LOT of heart it truly makes a difference. The size of the contribution is not what matters most. Remember, Every Little Bit Counts! Little seedlings can grow and blossom into large, mighty trees. The key here is to have the heart to do it.

#5) START NOW! - There is no one best time to start to make a difference in the world. You don’t need to wait until you’re older, have more time, or more money. Little efforts count, and you can start making small contributions today! Remember, Every Little Bit Counts!

#6) EMPOWER OTHER PEOPLE! - You can change the world by helping one person at a time. One way to help someone is to empower the person. How do you empower someone? Well, one of the ways is to be generous in giving praise and encouragement, instead of criticism. When you empower someone, you are “giving them power” to believe in themselves.  

 #7)  DO SOMETHING/TAKE ACTION! - When it comes to making a difference, nothing matters more than taking action.  If something  doesn’t seem right in the world, in your community, in your school, in your house, or wherever, you have the power to do something about it. All the whining and complaining in the world is not what’s going to make a difference.  It’s taking action that makes a difference!

#8) LEAD THE WAY & START A GOODNESS RIPPLE! - In addition to doing things that make a difference, we should also inspire others to start doing things to make a difference.   And the best way to convince other people is to lead by example. Start doing whatever it is within your ability today! Every effort counts, no matter how small and insignificant it may seem.  People younger than you, and even people older than you can learn from your positive example.  Be a role model at all times. You never know who or what you may inspire!

#9) REDUCE/REUSE/ RECYCLE – Make sure only to take what you need.  For example, grabbing too many napkins at a restaurant or throwing a whole piece of paper away when you make a “mistake.” Use reusable lunch bags and reusable water bottles. Make sure to recycle plastic, glass, aluminum and paper.SAVE – Save electricity by turning off lights, TV, and other electronics when not in use. Save water by taking shorter showers and turning off water when brushing your teeth.

#10) DONATE – Donate old toys, clothes and shoes for others in need.

Zachary Bonner is an American philanthropist and founder of the non-profit charity Little Red Wagon Foundation. Zach received the Presidential Service Award in 2006.

When he was seven years old, he founded the organization to aid the 1.3 million homeless children in the United States. Bonner said that, “These kids don’t have a home, they don’t have a safe place to sleep at night. They’re out on the streets not because they want to be, but because it’s out of their control.”

In 2007, Bonner began his three-stage “My House to the White House” project. The project’s purpose was to raise money and awareness for homeless children. In 2007, he walked 280 miles from Tampa to Tallahassee, Florida, while in 2008, he covered 250 miles from Tallahassee to Atlanta, Georgia. In the final leg of the trip, he walked 668 miles from Georgia to Washington D.C. Upon the completion of the “My House to the White House” project, Bonner planned another project, March Across America. From March 23 to September 14, 2010, he walked 2,448 miles from Tampa to Los Angeles.

We have shared Zach’s story in our classes and our children are truly inspired by Zach.  He is the true personification of what we teach: everyone can make a difference, no matter how young or old, rich or poor.

ALEX’S LEMONADE STAND

Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation (ALSF) shares the vision of their founder and creator, Alexandra “Alex” Scott—a cure for all children with cancer.

When Alex, who was diagnosed with childhood cancer just before her first birthday, was four, she told her parents she wanted to set up a front-yard lemonade stand. Her plan: to give the money to doctors to help them find a cure. Her first “Alex’s Lemonade Stand” raised an astonishing $2,000 in one day. While bravely fighting her own cancer, Alex continued to set up lemonade stands every year. As news spread of the remarkable girl so dedicated to helping other sick children, people everywhere were inspired to start their own lemonade stands—donating the proceeds to her cause.

n 2004 when Alex passed away at the age of eight—her stand and inspiration had raised over $1 million towards finding a cure for the disease that took her life. Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation was started by her parents in 2005 to continue the work that Alex began.

Since Alex set up her first lemonade stand in 2000—truly exemplifying the saying “When life hands you lemons, make lemonade”—we have raised more than $45 million. That money has helped to:

• Fund more than 200 cutting-edge research projects
• Create a travel program to help support families of children receiving treatment
• Develop resources to help people everywhere affected by childhood cancer

Alex remains and inspiration to us all!

Thanks for visiting the Project Goodness website. I’d like to take this opportunity to tell you a bit about myself, and how Project Goodness came to be.

At the end of 2008, I had a “light bulb” moment, where I decided that I needed to add a bit more “goodness” into my life. So, I challenged myself to complete 365 Good Deeds in 365 Days in 2009. Throughout this journey, I learned many valuable life lessons, including the lesson of “every little bit counts.” (My blog, 365DaysofGoodness.com chronicles this process.)

During my “year of goodness,” I volunteered in many different venues, including volunteering to teach a “Good Deed Program” in my friend’s 2nd grade class. I wasn’t exactly sure what I was going to teach, but I knew that I had a knack for teaching children, and that if I was able to find ways to do “good” everyday, then I could help inspire these 2nd graders with the idea of “every little bit counts.”

So, once a week for 20 weeks, I taught the “Good Deed Program” to Ms. Good’s (yes that was her name!) 2nd grade class. It was very clear that by having the idea of goodness in their consciousness, and learning that they had the power to make a positive difference in our world (even if it started small) these 2nd graders began to change. Before my eyes I saw the students transform into more kind and compassionate people.

Experiencing the positive impact of the “Good Deed Program” inspired me to think of ways to be able to offer free goodness programs to schools. The idea came to me to start a non-profit organization, and Project Goodness was born. Project Goodness aims to show our children that they have the power to make a positive difference in our world, helps them tap into their innate goodness, and reminds them that “every little bit counts!”

Anyone who knows me or has followed me on 365DaysofGoodness knows that my number one idol is Oprah. I know it’s not all that original, but she is definitely my biggest inspiration. If there is one person I would aspire to be more like, hands down… the big “O”! She inspires millions everyday, touching others, helping others, and motivating all of us to do better and be better. So you can imagine by total shock and awe when I received a large envelope today from Harpo Productions.

I opened the envelope and pulled out this autographed picture and personal note from none other than… Oprah, herself!

As you can see it reads, “Alli, Bravo on the work you and Project Goodness are doing for the world! Blessings, Oprah Winfrey!” Tears began streaming down my face, I could not stop the emotions that flowed through my body. I started Project Goodness because I saw a void in the world and one I thought I could help fill. It’s never been about recognition, but I do have to say, it felt pretty incredible to get just a few words of encouragement from this one particular person.

So now you’re probably asking, how did this come to be? How does Oprah even know about you and PG? Well, it all comes back to another inspiration in my life. Another woman I hold oh so dear– my mom. Yes, good ol’ mombo reached out to a contact at Harpo after Project Goodness won the Pepsi Refresh Grant with the hopes of something (a note, an email, something… who knows). Well, she sure was able to share the mission of Project Goodness with Oprah and Oprah responded with some blessings and encouragement.

It’s just the beginning, but I look forward to watching Project Goodness grow and I hope that as the word spreads, we can inspire more and more children to start goodness one little hand at a time!

Project Goodness programs are free of charge and are currently available for elementary schools, grades 2-6.

Project Goodness programs are 10 sessions long, and require a one hour visit to your classroom once a week for 10 weeks.

If you are interested in having a Project Goodness program in your school or class, email us at info@startgoodness.com with some brief information about your school/class, and one of our Goodness Ambassadors will get back to you shortly!

Thanks for taking the steps to Start the Goodness!