CT Celebration of Kindness Day

Schedule

Thu May 23 2024 at 06:00 pm

Location

Reverie Brewing Company | Newtown, CT

Celebrate Kindness with Ben’s Bells Project
Join Ben’s Bells to celebrate kindness at out biggest fundraising event of the year! The evening will include live entertainment, food, drink, and a live and silent auction. Enjoy all of this while supporting kindness education and studio programming.
Celebration of Kindness Day
Thursday May 23rd, 2024
6:00-9:00 PM
Reverie Brewing Company
57B Church Hill Road, Newtown, CT 06806
https://bensbells.org/ctcelebration/
Tickets are $85 for Adults & $1 for Children 18 yrs old and younger. Food for the event will be provided by FLIK Independent School Dining and will feature a “Smok’d Food Truck”. In addition to a great meal, each guest will receive two free beverages from Reverie’s large craft beer selection. Soft drinks and water will also be available at no charge.
The event will feature live music from the popular band, ODDFELLAS, out of Stratford, CT. Guests can also enjoy various outdoor games including the dual hoop zone donated by Super Fun Inflatables.
The live and silent auctions are among the event highlights and include incredible local art and other gifts and services. The hottest and most exclusive items of the evening are Ben's Bells mosaic benches - available ONLY at the Celebration of Kindness each year. Also returning to the silent auction are mosaic stepping stones designed and built by Ben’s Bells amazing volunteers!
A special Shop KIND pop-up shop will be open for all of your KIND shopping needs. Special to Celebration of Kindness, 30 limited edition necklaces will be available for purchase.
We look forward to presenting our Adult Kindness Champion Award to Kelly Clark, a school counselor at Bethel Middle School and our Youth Kindness Champion Award to both Kate Frederick and James Miller, students at Meeting House Hill School in New Fairfield.
Our final recognition will be honoring the life and memory of Liz Teed posthumously as our Legacy Volunteer Award recipient. Liz was a dedicated teacher in the Behel School System and largely responsible for growing Ben’s Bells in the Bethel Schools. Her impact and influence is still felt today.

Kindness Award Winners:

Kelly Clark
Kelly embodies kindness in her daily actions and interactions with others. Whether it's through simple gestures like holding the door open for someone or actively listening to a friend in need, Kelly consistently demonstrates the importance of kindness.
She actively participates in local charity events such as the Vicki Soto 5k. By supporting these events, she not only contributes to important causes but also inspires others in the community to get involved and make a positive impact.
As an educator, Kelly fosters inclusivity and empathy among her students. She creates an environment where all students feel valued and respected, regardless of their backgrounds or differences. By promoting empathy, Kelly encourages her students to understand and appreciate each other's perspectives.
Kelly makes it a point to recognize and celebrate acts of kindness within her community. Whether it's acknowledging a student who helps a classmate or praising a neighbor for their generosity, she ensures that acts of kindness are celebrated and appreciated.
She understands the importance of self-care and wellbeing in fostering kindness. She encourages community members to prioritize their mental and physical health, knowing that acts of kindness often stem from a place of inner peace and contentment.
Overall, Kelly's efforts to promote intentional kindness in her community are commendable. By leading by example, participating in charity events, fostering inclusivity and empathy, recognizing acts of kindness, and promoting self-care, she creates a culture of kindness that positively impacts those around her.

James and Kate
Last year two third grade students approached their teacher, Barbara Strashum, to start a kindness club. Several weeks passed, and they approached her again and followed up again. These amazing kids rallied their classmates and the Kindness/Leadership Club was born at Meeting House Hill School in New Fairfield.
Students eagerly gave up their recess time to meet with Mrs. Strashum weekly, and the Kindness Club numbers grew. Kate and James had many ideas about how to add kindness to their school and community. They were able to turn many of these ideas into reality last year with a kindness cart for teachers, kindness affirmations on lockers of all students, and "Ripples of Kindness" themed morning meetings conducted by these third graders, in the classrooms of kindergarten students.
Their Kindness Club numbers have doubled this year. Kate and James are still present as leadership, but allowing for peers to share responsibility and leadership opportunities. They are currently working on a whole-school kindness themed morning meeting and the creation of a healing space for a beloved school psychologist who passed last year. These kiddos are definitely paying it forward!
The Kindness/Leadership Club plans to continue next year as these students transition to 5th grade. We can't wait to see what these kids think of next.

Liz Teed
We are proud to present the Ben’s Bells Volunteer Legacy Award for 2024 posthumously to Liz Teed. Liz was an active volunteer with Ben’s Bells whose impact is still being experienced by her family, friends, colleagues, students and fellow Ben’s Bells Volunteers. Liz worked tirelessly to spread the message of Intentional Kindness. Liz was instrumental in bringing the Kind Campus curriculum to the Bethel School system, where she worked first as an EL teacher and then as a 4th Grade teacher. Our current Studio Manager, Mallory Bruno, was a student in Liz’s classroom and was greatly impacted by Liz’s focus on Kindness. Mallory is an example of the ripples of Kindness that Liz set in motion that continue to this day.
Shortly after Liz's untimely death, her family, friends and supporters rallied together and greatly influenced Ben’s Bells, finding a permanent home in our current Bethel Studio. We will honor Liz with a plaque in the studio next to our other Legacy Volunteers who, like Liz, have given so much of themselves to Ben’s Bells mission.

Where is it happening?

Reverie Brewing Company, 57 Church Hill Rd, Newtown, CT 06470-1614, United States,Palestine, Connecticut

Event Location & Nearby Stays:

Host or Publisher Ben's Bells Project

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