What Will Your Good Turn Be?
OTTAWA, April 1, 2015 /CNW/ - Kindness begets kindness and increases feelings of happiness and health. Fostering happier and friendlier communities is the goal for Scouts Canada's 6th annual Good Turn Week challenge. From April 25 – May 3, Scouts Canada is challenging Canadians to perform a Good Turn for someone else, whether a neighbour, friend, family or community member.
Studies have shown that performing an act of kindness has the power to create feelings of happiness, both with the giver and recipient. It doesn't take an extraordinary measure to make a positive impact. A Good Turn can be as simple as holding a door open for someone or buying a coffee for the next person in line.
"Canadians have a reputation of being kind, but we can always do more. In our busy day-to-day lives, it can be easy to forget that by helping others, we strengthen our communities as a whole." said Kaylee Galipeau, National Youth Commissioner and Chair of the National Youth Network, Scouts Canada. "Good Turn Week is our chance to remind Canadians that even the smallest acts of kindness can make a powerful difference."
Scouts Canada is asking Canadians of all ages to join in. All that's required is doing a Good Turn for someone else and asking the recipient to pay it forward, creating a ripple of positivity and goodwill from coast-to-coast.
Canadians can share their Good Turns with Scouts Canada's 100,000 members by submitting them via the Good Turn Week website, on Twitter by tweeting @ScoutsCanada using #GoodTurn, or at facebook.com/scoutscanada.
Scouts Canada has also challenged Scouting youth across the country to come up with their best and most significant ideas to help their community. Featured Good Turn Week projects include:
Dartmouth, NS: The 1st Portland Estates Scout Group is seeding trees and native flowers in the community to help boost dwindling bee and monarch butterfly populations.
Kingston, NS: The 1st Kingston Cub Scouts are launching a community-wide food drive to support Upper Room Food Bank and raise awareness of the food bank's ongoing need for donations.
St. John's, NL: The 1st MacDonald Drive Beavers Scouts, Cub Scouts and Scouts are creating more than 100 snack kits for Bridges to Hope containing a week's worth of nutritious lunch and recess snacks to distribute to disadvantaged children.
Torbay, NL: The 1st Torbay Scouts are launching the Great Scouts Collection Blitz, collecting non-perishable food, clothing and pet supplies to donate to the Food Security Network, charitable thrift stores and animal rescue groups.
Toronto, ON: The 78th Toronto Scout Group is renovating the community hall at St. Sebastian's church, providing much needed repairs and a cosmetic facelift.
Toronto, ON: The 401st Toronto Scouts are holding an e-waste drive, collecting old electronics from the community to dispose of safely, as well as hosting a community cleanup along the Renforth Creek.
St. Catharines, ON: The 1st St. Catharines Scout Group will lead a community effort to do a spring clean-up of the historic Merritt Trail in downtown St. Catharines.
London, ON: The 80th London Scouts and Urban Forester Venturer Scouts and Rover Scouts have adopted London's Westmount Park and are working with the City and local schools to create a welcoming community space by building an observation deck overlooking a pond as well as planting trees, shrubs and other vegetation.
St. Thomas, ON: The 18th St. Thomas Cub Scouts are collecting and donating program supplies to Camp Trillium-Rainbow Lake in Simcoe, a non-profit camp for youth impacted by cancer.
Cochrane, ON: The 1st Cochrane Ontario Cub Scouts are building Little Free Libraries that will be placed across town, providing community members with 24/7 access to books for children and adults.
Edmonton, AB: The 26th St. Peters Venturers will help revitalize the Youth Empowerment and Support Services (YESS) which provides vital services and shelter for homeless youth between the ages of 16-18.
St. Albert, AB: The 12th St. Albert Scout Group are donating food and cooking a meal for more than 200 people in need at Edmonton Mustard Seed.
Winnipeg and Brandon, MB: Scout groups from Winnipeg and Brandon are collecting donations of food and essential items to fill canoes. The Scouts are also challenging their local communities and businesses to join them by filling a canoe of their own, and then portaging through the city to donate the items to Siloam Mission in Winnipeg and locally in Brandon.
Kelowna, BC: 1st Glenvalley Scout Group is creating care packages – including food and sanitary products – to distribute to homeless individuals and shelters in the community.
"Community service is at the heart of Scouting, but through Good Turn Week, we are able to instill a deeper value for kindness and generosity, not only amongst our youth, but with the general public as well," said Doug Reid, National Commissioner, Scouts Canada. "We hope that by witnessing a Good Turn or by being the recipient of one, others will be inspired to do something kind for someone else."
For more information on Scouts Canada's community projects or Good Turn Week visit Scouts.ca/goodturn.
About Scouts Canada
Kids in Scouts have fun adventures, discovering new things and experiences they wouldn't discover elsewhere. Along the way, they develop into capable, confident and well-rounded individuals, better prepared for success in the world. For tens of thousands of children and youth across Canada, Scouts is the start of something great. Scouts Canada is the country's leading co-ed youth organization, with 100,000 members nationwide. Scouts Canada offers programming for children and youth aged 5-26 in multiple languages, reflecting Canada's multicultural landscape and communities. For more information, visit Scouts.ca.
Scouts Canada is a not-for-profit organization (Charitable Registration No. 10776 1694 RR0028) and a member of the World Organization of the Scout Movement.
SOURCE Scouts Canada
Image with caption: "During Good Turn Week 2014, Scouts built Little Free Libraries that are placed throughout Brooks, Alberta, providing community members with 24/7 access to children’s books in Spanish, Arabic and German. (CNW Group/Scouts Canada)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20150401_C4190_PHOTO_EN_13848.jpg
Image with caption: "Toronto Scouts hit the streets with their “Hike for Hunger” parade during Good Turn Week 2014, collecting enough food donations for the local food bank to fill two 6’ x 12’ trailers to maximum capacity. (CNW Group/Scouts Canada)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20150401_C4190_PHOTO_EN_13849.jpg
For interviews, to cover a local Good Turn Week project or for more information contact: Andrea McLoughlin, Holmes PR, [email protected], 416-628-5609
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