CLEVELAND — Whether it's paying it forward in the Starbucks drive thru line, volunteering at a local charity or something as simple as writing a nice note to a friend, it doesn't take much to brighten someone's day.
Today is National Random Acts of Kindness Day, a day that encourages us to spread kindness to others.
It's a day recognized nationally and locally thanks to the Cleveland-based charity RAKE, which stands for Random Acts of Kindness Everywhere.
The organization was started six years ago by Cleveland native Ricky Smith. On Friday, Mayor Frank Jackson declared today as 'RAKE' Day in Cleveland.
Smith and his team at RAKE will be spending the day performing 24 random acts of kindness throughout the city by surprising kids with toys, providing meals to the homeless and surprising first responders.
Smith says that even the smallest of gestures can turn someone's day around.
"Go do something. You never know what people are going through. So the act of kindness, you never know what will inspire and motivate people."
Smith's Instagram account explains how you can participate in RAKE Day:
#1: February 17, RAKE celebrates the act of 'paying it forward' by performing a random act of kindness every hour, for 24 hours.
#2: RAKE asks you to perform at least ONE random act of kindness on this day!
#3: Post your RAKE on Instagram with the hashtags #RAKE #RAKENOW and your city and we will post our favorites!
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Learn more about RAKE by clicking HERE.