The Rotary Club of Edina has honored three Good Samaritans for their selfless acts as part of the Mayor’s 2,021 Acts of Kindness Challenge.
During this difficult time, it is more important than ever to support one another and give back to our community. For this reason, Edina Mayor James Hovland launched the 2,021 Acts of Kindness Challenge. Residents are encouraged to submit your act of kindness or nominate someone at BetterTogetherEdina.org/kindnesschallenge. The name of each resident who is nominated will go into a monthly drawing to receive a gift card to a local restaurant from and funded by the Rotary Club of Edina to thank them for their kindness and support local restaurants.
Click READ MORE below to find out who and why the winners were nominated. The next drawing will be held around April 15. For more information or to nominate someone, visit BetterTogetherEdina.org/kindnesschallenge
The first monthly winners were Michael Lund and Maddie Tompkins. Their nominator said, “I am fortunate to have wonderful neighbors. Michael Lund has come over when I am struggling with a task outside and offers to help me or to take on the task. This winter, Maddie Tompkins has seen that the mailman's path from their front door to my front door is shoveled which makes it so much easier for the mailman to deliver my mail each day! It is so nice to have people looking out for me in my neighborhood!”
This month’s winner was Laurin Leih. “A resident and neighbor in our Edina condo, Laurin Leih is a talented and highly skilled woodworker with a great sense of community. When the quarantine shutdown began, Laurin quickly went to work on creating an original and one-of-a-kind work of art, known as parquetry. Fashioned from individual pieces of wood — much like assembling pieces of a puzzle — Laurin spent more than 100 hours creating a stunning 3-by-5 piece of original artwork that proudly hangs in our condo’s main lobby. It was truly a labor of love on Laurin’s part and a gift to his condo neighbors. For the residents at Lewis Ridge and our guests, it is a joy to walk by Laurin’s artwork and admire the beauty of the image, the warmth of the various woods, and marvel at the sheer challenge of this undertaking. On behalf of the residents at Lewis Ridge, we are grateful to Laurin Leih for his amazing act of kindness in creating this beautiful work of art for everyone to enjoy.”
Submit your act of kindness or nominate someone online at betterTogetherEdina.org/KindnessChallenge. The name of each resident who is nominated will go into a monthly drawing to receive a gift card to a local restaurant from the Rotary Club of Edina to thank them for their kindness and support local restaurants.
“Rotary’s motto is ‘Service above Self.’ The Kindness Challenge supports our desire to put others ahead of ourselves while at the same time helping the restaurants in our community,” said Rotary Club of Edina President Sam Thompson about the group’s support of the project.
Here are some ways you can spread kindness #AroundEdina:
- Pay it forward! Buy coffee or lunch for the person behind you in line.
- Purchase coffee at a local shop for a friend, teacher or healthcare worker.
- Drop off care packages to seniors who can’t leave their homes.
- Make cards for nursing homes, nurses or others to let them know you are thinking of them.
- Shovel someone’s sidewalk or driveway.
- Leave a note on somebody’s car telling them how great they are.
- Send gratitude emails or letters to coworkers or friends.
- While out shopping, wait while someone unloads their cart and then offer to return it.
- On a morning with frosty windshields, clean off a neighbor’s car.
- Allow someone to cut in front of you in the checkout line.
- Offer to walk a senior’s dog when the weather gets cold or the sidewalks are slick.
- Count a senior neighbor into the serving count of what you’re making your family for dinner and deliver them a hot meal.