27th Annual Kenosha Kindness Week set for Jan. 13-21

'Kindness Begins with Me' is this year's theme

By KENOSHA KINDNESS WEEK

Established in 1996, Kindness Week was created to bring our community together during the week following Martin Luther King, Jr. Day in mid-January, especially focusing on King's message of kindness.

”Kindness Begins with Me” will be the theme for the 27th Annual Kindness Week, which will run from Jan. 13-21 with a variety of events throughout Kenosha.

The Annual Community Unity Breakfast & Awards Recognition Ceremony, one of the cornerstone events of Kindness Week, will be held starting at 8:30 a.m. on Saturday, Jan. 14 at the cafeteria of Indian Trail High School & Academy, 6800 60th St. The event is free and open to the public.

The 29th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration, sponsored by Gateway Technical College, will be held at noon on Monday, Jan. 16, in Haribo Hall at the Madrigrano Auditorium of the Gateway Technical College Campus, 3520 30th Ave. The theme of the celebration is Recapturing the Dream to Make it a Reality and the guest speaker will be Elizabeth Rosiles-Zavala, director, Hispanic Student Programing at Gateway. The event is free and open to the public.

Kindness Week is organized by the Kenosha Coalition for Dismantling Racism with the engagement of many community partners. The late Pastor Olen Arrington Jr. first launched Kindness Week in 1997 to commemorate the legacy of Dr. King. Pastor Arrington Jr. lived and preached the wisdom of Dr. King, often quoting “We must all learn to live together as brothers (and sisters) or perish together as fools,” and “The time is always right to do what is right.”

“The Annual Kindness Week is an opportunity in Kenosha to promote kindness and have these events serve as a reminder to us all to offer acts of kindness,” Yolanda Jackson-Lewis, Kindness Week Committee coordinator, said. “Members of the Coalition for Dismantling Racism are grateful for Pastor Arrington for sharing his vision of kindness for a better Kenosha and for Adelene Greene, CFDR chairperson, who continues to keep that vision alive.”

For a complete list of Kenosha Kindness Week events, visit the Kenosha Kindness Week Facebook page, or kenoshaiskind.weebly.com.

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