Five Days of Kindness on Aquidneck Island

For the next five days tell us in the comment section or email your random act to newport@patch.com.  If you need ideas, check out this Facebook thread or this article on The Newport Buzz. 

Five Days of Kindess Day 2, Tuesday, April 23

• "Yesterday while waiting to give my deli order, a very big & loud man gave his order to the deli guy before he was finished with the woman right before me. The employee, like me, was shocked with the rudeness & went ahead & helped him. Any other time I would have told the 'loud mouth' it was my turn, but I was thinking more of the poor young employee who didn't seem to know how to treat the situation, so I didn't say a word. Then I remembered your post yesterday & try harder not to act to quickly & not be a [witch]!" - on Newport Patch Facebook
• Residents continue to give each other compliments on Facebook. Click here to say something nice or say it in the comments section below. 

Five Days of Kindness Day 1, Monday April 22

• A fund set up for Heather Abbott, the Newport resident who was severely injured in the Boston Marathon bombings reached nearly $50,0000 Monday.  Click here to donate.
• Newport Patch readers paid friends and family compliments on Facebook
• The Newport Buzz helped us spread the word about our five days of kindness campaign and even wrote up an article with suggestions for those who are stumped on how to be nice.
• Several readers changed their Facebook profile picture to our five days of kindness campaign.  Feel free to take the image of this article and do the same!
• A reader, who wished to remain anonymous, said she gave a homeless man $5 and sat down on a bench to chat with him.  “Although I did it for the kindness campaign, he made me smile and laugh. His attitude was contagious and I will visit him again,” she wrote.
• Patch watched a man let a mother with two children go ahead of him at Stop and Shop, even though she had a full cart and he only had a few items. 

About the Five Days of Kindness Campaign

Last week was five days of darkness.  This week, the country can begin to heal.

For five days last week, we waited. On Monday afternoon, we waited to hear back from loved ones who might had been affected by the bombing at the Boston Marathon. Then it was waiting for answers from doctors about the wounded and for law enforcement to tell us who could do something so monstrous.

The waiting came to an end when police said the bombing suspects shot and killed a MIT officer. Boston stood still and the world watched law enforcement hunt and capture the second bombing suspect.

When Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was captured Friday night, many cried tears not of joy, but of relief.

Nothing can repair five days of terror, death and injury.  Newport resident Heather Abbott remains in the hospital, severely injured.  Many island residents experienced the bloodshed first-hand and struggle with the horrors they witnessed. 

Island residents are battered, yet not defeated. We will heal and stay strong

For the next five days, let us do the opposite of what the bombers tried to do.  Instead of fear and terror, spread joy. Everyday, beginning Monday, perform a random act of kindness and ask others to do the same.

Over the next five days, let’s make smiles go viral. 

We will document our five days of kindness here, so make sure you report back if you witness kindness. You can either comment, upload photos or send us an email to newport@patch.com.  You can remain anonymous or let people know who you are.   

This is our community, our neighbors, our happiness. Stay strong Aquidneck Island.