On Monday 20 January 2020 Brighter Cumbria, supported by The Cumberland, will be turning Blue Monday on its head by giving and encouraging random acts of kindness throughout Cumbria.
Brighter Cumbria are trying to break an unofficial world record of pledging over 20,000 random acts of kindness in one day.
A spokesperson said:
"All you need to do to get involved is pledge your own random acts of kindness, even if it's just 1 or 10 or, heck maybe you're super human and can do 100?! It can be as small as holding open a door, or complimenting someone. You could donate to a food bank, offer someone a lift, pay for someone's coffee... there are a million things you could do.
"If you want to take part all you have to do is take action and do some random acts of kindness and let us know what you did on our Facebook page - www.facebook.com/BrighterCumbria
"We are looking for organisations who can make a big impact with this. We've already got support of The Scouts, Tesco and several schools throughout Cumbria."
Eddie Ward - Cumbria Scouts County Commissioner said:
“4500 Cumbria Scouts are proud to support Brighter Cumbria, good deeds are part of our DNA. As Scouts, we believe every act of kindness has the power to transform society and make it easier for everyone to get the help they need. As Scouts, we’re always striving to leave the world a little better than we found it. Over the last one hundred years, the issues we’ve tackled have evolved and changed, but our young people’s drive to make a positive impact remains constant.”
Lorrayne Hughes, CEO of the Cumbria Education Trust said: "We are delighted to be part of this initiative as it reinforces the Trust’s values of respect, resilience and responsibility. Our students and pupils have some fantastic ideas for the 20th January, and we look forward to seeing their random acts of kindness making a difference to others, both in school and within their local communities."
Here are a few ideas on what you could do for #BrighterCumbriaDay:
Pay it forward - Leave small change at a business to pay for someone's drink or food
Smile at someone - It's an easy way to brighten someone's day and counts as an act of kindness
Litter pick on your way to work - Is there litter in your local park, on your walk to work or on your break? Take gloves and a bin bag along with you and help out the environment!
Let someone go in front of you in line - Queuing somewhere? Let the person behind you go in front of you
Say hello to a colleague or neighbour - Introduce yourself to a colleague or neighbour you've never spoken to before, and ask how their day is going
Bake for your colleagues, friends and family - Bring in a traybake for your colleagues to spread the kindness. Why not bake for your friends and family too.
