Kindness Co-Tails Fund: Paying It Forward With Acts of Kindness
For Kevin Smith, “Good Friday” took on an entirely different meaning on the morning of April 7, 2023. After returning home from a grocery run, Kevin noticed that his wallet was missing. In a state of panic, he jumped in his car to rush back to the store. At that same moment, a young woman was ringing his doorbell. Kevin’s wallet was in her hands!
“By going the extra 2.6 miles to return my wallet, in just a matter of minutes, this complete stranger transformed my state of mind and my attitude about the world,” Kevin tearfully explained.
He offered the good Samaritan a monetary reward, but she refused. Still feeling bewildered by the brief encounter, he asked for her name.
“Brooke,” she replied, and then she was gone.
“I couldn’t stop thinking about this stranger’s act of kindness and decided to contact our local news outlets,” shared Kevin. It took one local reporter all of 7 minutes to respond to his email.
By Monday, the story had aired and the video footage from Kevin’s Ring Doorbell was broadcast nationwide. Brooke’s face was blurred out because neither the station nor Kevin had a way of confirming her identity.
“I couldn’t stop wondering who this woman was and felt that our paths had to have crossed for a greater reason.”
That’s when he decided to search Facebook. All he had was her first name, but didn’t know if she spelled it with an ‘e’ like Brooke Shields.
When he came across the profile picture of a woman resembling Brooke hugging a dog, Kevin sent a message asking if she was the woman who had returned his wallet. After confirming she was the one, he asked if she had seen the news coverage. She responded, “Yes, I’m just the blurred-out image in the story!” Her comment struck Kevin, who was beginning to feel like she deserved to be recognized for her honesty and kindness.
After sharing his encounter with Steven Martinez, Executive Director at York County SPCA, Kevin was stuck by something he said, “pets are the glue that bond people and communities together.” Later that evening, while scrolling through Brooke’s Facebook page, Kevin saw that they both shared a passion for animals and the work of the SPCA.
He finally knew how to pay Brooke’s kindness forward – by making a contribution in her honor to support the SPCA’s “Second Chance” fund; a fund that pays for surgeries and medical attention for unhealthy or injured animals.
But that didn’t feel like enough. He felt a calling to do more. Like Brooke, he wanted to go the extra mile.
When Kevin met with YCCF’s Vice President of Development, Mary Kay Bernosky, he learned how a fund could perpetually support his vision for a kinder world. By creating the Kindness Co-Tails fund at the York County Community Foundation, Kevin Smith is providing the community with an opportunity to endow each small act of kindness.
“Through a single act of kindness on Good Friday morning and events leading to today, it’s clear that kindness pays – literally and figuratively. Kindness also compels us to pay it forward. In this instance, through the establishment of the Kindness Co-Tails fund kindness now pays forever,” Kevin remarked.
But creating a fund also didn’t feel like enough for Kevin. “See the good. Be the good. Go the extra mile.” This is the motto of his new initiative: Kindness Week, a community collaboration and celebration of kindness that launches in York on November 11, 2023. At special VIP reception held on November 10, Brooke was finally introduced to the community, and is no longer “just the blurred-out image” in the news story.
According to a recent press release, from November 11 – 18, “Community-minded businesses and individuals have a unique opportunity to lead by example and reinforce the ideals of Kindness Week through charitable giving and organized participation in acts of kindness and service.”
Several sponsorship levels exist to allow businesses and individuals to make endowed gifts and help create a “Kindness Legacy.”
YCCF is proud to house this fund and we look forward to hearing about the many acts of kindness that will be inspired by Kindness Co-Tails. After all, philanthropy is fueled by compassion — one of the essential ingredients for a vibrant and thriving York County!
