It’s time for your good news, Lebo!
This is the place where we celebrate kindness, generosity and moments of joy. It’s where we express gratitude for the people who make our lives better. Whether you drop a note into one of our Kindness Crates around town, send me an email or add a message to our Gratitude Board, your stories help create this column.
(Photo by Yinz Are Good)
The idea is inspired by my podcast, Yinz Are Good, whose mission is to highlight good news and good people, strengthen community connections, inspire others and offer hope.
To kick things off this month, I’m excited to share a full-circle moment connected to this very column. You may remember our May issue, when I shared the heartwarming email I received from Preethi Ravi expressing her gratitude for her wonderful neighbor, Olivia Benson.
In the true spirit of paying it forward, Preethi reached out again to offer her help with Yinz Are Good community events whenever we might need an extra set of hands. I was — and still am — incredibly grateful for her generous offer. As anyone who runs a small business (or a very small one!) knows, every helping hand makes a difference. More importantly, her offer was a thoughtful act of kindness that meant a great deal to me.
So, thank you, Preethi. Yinz are good!
The story doesn’t end there.
A few weeks later, Preethi and I met for coffee and had a wonderful conversation. Before long, I took her up on her offer, and she joined the Yinz Are Good team at July’s Final Fridays event at Clearview Common. We set up our table, brought along the Gratitude Board and spent the evening talking with community members.
A special shoutout to our “table neighbor,” Don Zuch of Howard Hanna, who was an absolute delight.
It was a beautiful evening filled with community, connection and great music from 59 Watts. Thank you to everyone who stopped by to say hello, and especially to those who took a few moments to share what they were grateful for, including the young women pictured here.
Here’s what they had to say:
“I’m grateful for…”
•
Good neighbors!!
•
My dog
•
Walkability of our town!
•
Summer
•
FAMILY!
•
For my health!
•
Books
•
Family
•
My dog, Teddy
•
Life & family
•
Chipotle & ice cream
•
My family and friends
•
Mom
•
Live music!
•
Roblox
•
My sweet family
•
New opportunities
•
Suzan – Julia, age 4
•
My friends’ & family’s health!
And now, on to your notes from our Kindness Crates! Currently hosted by our friends at Commonwealth Press, Lebo Subs, and Rollier’s, our crates house your responses to the prompt, “Please share with us who or what you’re grateful for today, an act of kindness that someone did for you, or a moment that brought you hope.”
•
Grateful every day for my family’s good health and their love. – Liz G.
•
My sweet students!
•
I am grateful for the great people of PGH and their friendliness. (Commonwealth Press), thanks for the great shirts too.
•
I am grateful for life, work, fun, God’s blessings!
•
I like my Taylor Swift book.
•
Grateful for the sunshine!
•
I’m grateful for being alive and proud of the people of Lebo for making it through hard times.
•
I’m grateful for my neighbors Tom, Anna, Lucy and Wasahi who greet and offer help often.
•
My baby brother Georgie makes me happy because he is so cute. – Mary, age 4
•
I’m grateful for my family and friends.
•
Grateful for metal music. People told me my guitar skills are good.
•
My neighbors took me school shopping and the mom bought me lunch. – Evelyna
•
Summer!
•
I am grateful to be able to celebrate International Cat Day with my furry friend, Mr. Carl Feathers.
•
I’m grateful for friends who have become family.
In addition to our Kindness Crates, you can relay your good news to me directly at yinzaregood@gmail.com. To listen to the Yinz Are Good podcast, just click on the links at www.yinzaregood.com.
