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UConn Hillel Celebrates "Month of Kindness" on Campus
November 14, 2005Comments (0) | Add | E-mail this to a friend By Stephanie Burton
Dedicating an entire month to helping the hungry eat, providing wigs to those who have lost their hair from chemotherapy, helping a young leukemia patient find a life-saving bone-marrow donor—this is how University of Connecticut students are spending their November, which has been designated the "Month of Kindness" on campus..
Initiated in 2001 by Hillel at the University of Connecticut, the Month of Kindness promotes random, unselfish acts of compassion and consideration as well as tolerance for all people. David Harris, the Jewish student life coordinator at UConn Hillel, was a student during UConn's first Month of Kindness and has watched the program grow immensely since its inception.
"The Month of Kindness has evolved to become a huge phenomenon on campus, and it's really become something special. Speakers for opening and closing ceremonies have become prominent figures, such as Martin Luther King III," Harris said.
The UConn Hillel continues to be a major sponsor of the event and has organized many of its projects, such as "Locks of Love," in which students donate their hair to be made into wigs for cancer patients; "The Grand Sandwich Plan," in which participants make and distribute 1,000 peanut butter and jelly sandwiches to local soup kitchens; and the Gift of Life bone marrow drive, where students can potentially save a life by entering a national bone-marrow registry.
The Month of Kindness at UConn has truly become a university-wide program, with both Jewish and non-Jewish students comprising the large steering committee. Many other student organizations, such as Alpha Epsilon Pi fraternity, the Health Care Society and the Student Alumni Association, signed on as co-sponsors and have planned events such as an a cappella charity concert to benefit Habitat for Humanity and Hurricane Katrina relief, a walk for breast cancer and a winter clothing and food drive.
"We are proud that the Month of Kindness, which began at UConn five years ago, has become a national leader in bringing awareness to unselfish acts," said senior Sarah Boltuch, the public relations chair for the 2005 program. "Colleges across the United States are following in our footsteps and bringing the Month of Kindness to their campuses."
Texas Hillel is also spearheading the Month of Kindness at the University of Texas, Austin this month, and Hillels at other campuses, such as the University of Minnesota and Syracuse University have sponsored similar events.
Stephanie Burton is a senior at George Washington University and an intern in Hillel's communications department.
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