Giving and Receiving Kindness

At our Youth Hub, we believe every young person deserves to feel valued, celebrated and loved. This Valentine’s Day, what started as a simple conversation turned into a meaningful reminder of why moments of belonging matter so much.

Our very own Sue Searle shares a heartfelt story…

Valentine’s Day means something different for everyone — except that we can all agree it symbolizes love. Love for your partner, family, friends — and for each other. Most of us think of chocolates, flowers, and exchanging Valentines on February 14th — and that’s beautiful. But not all of us have had the opportunity to take part in Valentine’s Day festivities.

After having a few conversations with my Hub kiddos, I came to the heartbreaking realization that many of them had never participated in Valentine’s Day. They’d never had the chance to make Valentines and give them out — and they’d never received Valentines themselves.

I got to work right away to make this Valentine’s Day the best one yet for our kiddos.

Our workshop was a complete success! Hub participants decorated their own Valentine bags to collect the Valentines they received and created cards to share with friends and staff. We had some Tim Hortons gift certificates as door prizes, and the star of the show was definitely the stack of Krispy Kreme donuts that our manager, Kerri Koblun, dropped off for us!

Most importantly, our young people experienced something many of us take for granted — giving and receiving kindness.