An Act of Kindness Helps Rebuild a School and Its Students
A member of the Boomerang Project traveled to Joplin, MO, and performed an act of kindness to help a wounded yet resilient school system rebuild.
SANTA CRUZ, CA - August 15, 2011 - In a true-to-form act of kindness, the Boomerang Project recently soared into Joplin High School, the home of the Eagles, and assisted the tornado-stricken school with the important task of student orientation. Boomerang Project co-founder, Carolyn Hill, was delighted to witness the wonderful acts of kindness that student volunteers performed during the two-day orientation event.
Since its inception, the Boomerang Project has trained educators to facilitate peer mentorship in schools using leadership and group development methodologies through their programs, Link Crew and WEB. The very popular 9th grade orientation and transition program, Link Crew, has impacted millions of incoming freshman in schools throughout the United States and Canada for over 20 years.
The staff and students of Joplin High not only shared in the Boomerang Project vision of creating a great, safe and connected place for kids to learn, they also agreed that rebuilding personal relationships is as vital as rebuilding physical structures.
On May 22, 2011, the town of Joplin, Missouri, was ravished by an EF-5 tornado, which damaged a number of schools and reduced the high school to a pile of debris. With the ever-fighting spirit of an eagle, the town began to reconstruct just four days later and quickly found temporary locations where lessons could continue.
“After talking to some of the Joplin High School staff, it did not take long for Carolyn to decide that she needed to volunteer her time and bring a Link Crew Orientation Day to Joplin. She was inspired to offer up this Boomerang Project-style act of kindness in Joplin after she heard about the destruction the town endured, then saw the relentless, unwavering spirit of the residents, and finally read the call to action posted on the school district’s website: ‘People make the difference and we invite you to join us,’” stated Mary Beth Campbell, an original founding member of the Boomerang Project and creator of the spin-off intentional acts of kindness company, Boom Boom! Revolution.
Thanks to the resourceful efforts of the district and to receiving so many acts of kindness from organizations such as the Boomerang Project, the Joplin School District has found it possible to designate August 17, 2011,as the official day that students will land in the fully refurbished albeit temporary classrooms. The township is determined to rebuild the high school, as it had been newly constructed and was a great source of pride for the town.
In addition to returning to school on August 17, students and administrators will have the chance to view the CNN segment “Recovering From a Disaster,” which is scheduled to air that evening. The report will show the nation the sorrow and devastation that bonded the Joplin community, the devotion and perseverance that Joplin’s residents demonstrated, and the acts of kindness that people performed to help community members rebuild their schools and their lives.
For more information on the continuing reconstruction efforts or on how to contribute to the Joplin Schools Tornado Relief Fund, please visit: www.joplinsschools.org/tornado.
To learn more about the Boomerang Project, please visit http://www.boomerangproject.com/, and to discover what the Boom Boom! Revolution is all about, please visit http://blog.boomboomcards.com/ideas-info/faq/.
About Boomerang Project
The Boomerang Project, located in Santa Cruz, California, is an educational consulting company that focuses on creating a positive school climate and enhancing student success through orientation, transition and leadership programs. The programs, Link Crew and WEB, have been successfully transforming schools for 18 years.
Connect with the Boomerang Project on Facebook, http://www.facebook.com/boomerangproject, and Twitter, http://twitter.com/#!/BoomerangPrjct.
About Boom Boom!
Boom Boom! Revolution (BBR) is a social innovation company founded in 2008. It creates positive consumer products with the intention of inspiring an uprising of guerilla goodness. Boom Boom! Cards are the flagship product; they showcase a combined real-world and online social network linking players globally through random acts of kindness that are paid forward. BBR is a 4th Sector Corporation, For Profit For Good. Boom Boom! Cards are made from 30–100% post-consumer recyclable materials. Ten percent of the purchase price is donated directly to the charity of the purchaser’s choice. The BBR community can be found at www.boomboomcards.com.
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