Positively Kind

Lena Ford was 7 when she started Arting for You. For this project, Lena collected art supplies and donated them to kids in foster care and homeless shelters in and around her hometown of Marietta, Georgia. “My granny always wanted to give back” to others, Lena, now 15, told TIME for Kids. “I was inspired by that.”

CHARITABLE GIVING Lena presents a check to a local charity after hosting an art party, in 2017.

Two years later, she launched a small business called Positively Lena. It sells products with uplifting messages, including a book Lena wrote to help kids deal with bullying. “The world can be a really tough place,” Lena says. “My goal is to spread positivity.” She also offers workshops on creative writing, entrepreneurship, and scrapbooking. Part of the money she earns goes toward her charitable efforts.

SHE’S AN AUTHOR In 2022, Lena celebrates the launch of her first book at the Book Worm, in Powder Springs, Georgia.

Lena has another project: Kinship Family Initiative. She and her mom cofounded the nonprofit in 2022. The group helps kids who are being raised by a family friend or a relative other than a parent. This cause is close to Lena’s heart. “My mom and her brothers were raised in kinship care,” she says. One way Lena contributes is by assembling “positivity pouches” packed with school supplies and books.

BOOK MAIL Lena packages copies of her first book to be shipped to customers, in 2022. The book delivers an antibullying message.

“Honestly, it makes me feel really happy,” Lena says. “And that’s my motivation to keep doing what I’m doing: knowing that I’m making a difference and knowing that I’m making [people] happy.”

Kindness Counts

Kindness is powerful. Lena knows this. You probably do too. Think about it: How does it make you feel when someone pays you a compliment or does something nice for you? Now consider this: How does it feel to give a compliment or help someone?

Studies show that giving and receiving kindness are good for our health. They boost our mood and reduce stress. They give us a more positive outlook and help us connect with others. Research also suggests that kindness can be contagious. A person who receives an act of kindness is more likely to show kindness to someone else in return.

BRAND REP Lena showcases her positivity products at a Girls Inc. event in Atlanta in March 2023.

“Kindness means just making someone happy,” Lena says. “It can even be something as small as giving someone a compliment: ‘Hey, your shirt looks nice.’ Something just like that can make someone smile. It doesn’t have to be a grand gesture. You can always just do something small, and it can make someone’s day.”

Party Time

Every few months or so, Lena hosts a packing party at a local shop called the Book Worm. “I found that’s the best way to get the community involved,” she says. Kids and teens volunteer their time to pack positivity pouches and Embrace Their Roots kits, which contain African-American hair products for kids in foster care. People are “coming out, they’re having fun, they can invite their friends and family to help,” Lena says of her squad. “All we have to do is tell them instructions.”

PACKING POSITIVITY In December 2023, Lena and other volunteers prepare 150 positivity pouches at the Book Worm.

Lena hopes more people take action to spread kindness. “If we want to grow up with kind people surrounding us, then we need to be kind to others,” she says. “You never know how [you] can impact someone else.”

Inspired?

Let Lena’s story inspire you to spread kindness in your own community. Click below for ideas about how you can make a positive difference.