Random Acts of Kindness Week

To celebrate and publicize Random Acts of Kindness Week, I'm republishing my series from 2008, with some editing to fit 2010. For those of you participating in the Winter 2010 GeneaBlogger Games, there are some ideas here that you can use for Task 6. Reach Out & Perform Genealogical Acts of Kindness.

As a member of the National Education Association, I receive their monthly publication, neatoday. Each issue comes with a diversity calendar, highlighting holidays, celebrations, observances and month-long events. Did you know that February, in addition to American Heart Month and Black History Month, is also Library Lovers' Month? And yes, we all know about Groundhog Day (Feb. 2), Abraham Lincoln's Birthday (Feb. 12), St. Valentine's Day (Feb. 14) and George Washington's Birthday (Feb. 22). Few American school districts celebrate the presidents' birthdays as distinct; now they are combined into Presidents Day, honoring all presidents, on the third Monday of the month; this year it's on February 15th....

Something new I learned was that the second full week of February is Random Acts of Kindness Week. What a great idea! I thought that for every day this coming week, I would share a way that we as family historians and genealogists can commit an act of kindness. As a group, we certainly are aware of passing a favor forward (rather than returning it), since most of us have been able to get where we are in our family tree research only with the help of others. I'll be writing about some traditional and, hopefully, new-to-you ways to pass on a good work to another individual or group. I'll be challenging myself, as well, to "up the ante" on paying it forward to the genealogical community.

Won't you join me?