Holly Myers, Neighbor

I'm Holly Myers, a resident of Moorestown since 1982. Our two daughters were 3 years old and 6 months old when John Crayton and I moved to Chestnut Street. The girls have long since graduated from Moorestown Schools, Ellen and her husband Tyler live across the river in PA with our , granddaughter Sofia, now a second grader. Sarah lives in Moorestown with a dog and a cat. John is re-married and I've downsized. I'm enjoying the companionship of a creative, kindred spirit.

My work as a Holistic Psychotherapist has me assisting others (and myself!) to get in touch with obstacles and blocks that are at the heart of the matter for living a joyful, self expressed life. The creation of an emotionally safe and kind environment is a necessary ingredient, plain and simple. Training in 2011 for accessing the subconscious mind and releasing (unwanted) emotional patterns with therapeutic essential oils, combined with a growing understanding of the role of quantum biology in well-being have been particularly gratifying newer additions to my skill set.

In 1996 I took a formal stand to reduce the numbers of people emotionally harmed by an absence of kindness in their lives. A journal ad about a grassroots kindness movement known as The Random Acts of Kindness Foundation had caught my attention. I'd agreed to receive a community coordinator packet. Many influences had been at play in motivating that choice, especially including the work of Bryan Stevenson, a human rights attorney. An article in The Washington Post magazine about Mr. Stevenson's devoted work with death row inmates, had been brought to my attention in a talk by Bruce Main, of Urban Promise, Camden. It involved the tragic story of a young man's execution, and his statement that he had been treated with greater kindness on his last day on earth than in the rest of his life put together. The story increased my resolve to take a long held belief in the inherent worth and dignity of every person and live it more powerfully.

One of the suggestions in the RAK Foundation's community coordinator packet was to request a proclamation of Kindness Week by a local official. Mayor Walter Maahs readily agreed and the first of a tradition of annual proclamations of kindness was made. Moorestown Community Link emerged late in 1996 through the combined efforts of Lynn Ware, Tim Henry and me. Debbi Ellis, Lonnie Tait, Sue Dannheim, Vivian Banks, Robin Sands, Michelle Schumann and others soon joined in and an application as a social profit organization was developed and approved, with Lynn Ware at the helm. Kindness Link, Teen Link and Volunteer Link were established under the Community Link umbrella to meet various community needs.

Field trips by students from our public and private schools, to meet the Mayor and return as ambassadors of kindness, were subsequently developed and became a Moorestown tradition for many years. We outgrew town hall's meeting space and switched to the Rec Building in 2007 and then to assemblies at William Allen Middle School. Enthusiasm for Kindness Week was such that it was even mentioned by USA Today in 2005 when Moorestown was named by Money Magazine as the best place in America to live. By 2010 a mandated focus on Anti- Bullying in schools, extra demands on staff and the dissolution of Community Link had resulted in a waning of the energy and activity of our kindness movement. There was little more happening than the annual proclamation.

In 2012, Anne Creter, of Cinnaminson, a long time friend, peace advocate and member of a UN NGO Peace Committee, invited my attendance at a UN briefing on Building a Culture of Peace. That meeting further reinforced a recognition that kindness in community is the necessary starting place for peace in the world. It inspired the creation of new flyers and information.

When Victoria Napolitano became Mayor in early 2015 we met to discuss the future of our tradition of 19 years. Was there a way to have it become more meaningful – and more fully embraced - or should we simply agree that we'd had a good run and bring the tradition to an end? Mayor Napolitano enthusiastically stated that she thought the 20th celebration was worthy of a YEAR of commitment to growing kindness. Her declaration took place on February 9th, 2015.

But how does a community actually go about growing kindness?! The work of Piero Ferrucci, author of the book, The Power of Kindness has been a valued resource, with its 18 chapters on 18 qualities of kindness. It inspired the creation of a Kindness Labyrinth, and then of a Kindness Wheel to bring the kindness message to Moorestown – and beyond - with greater simplicity. The Kindness Wheel was formally introduced to the community of Moorestown in September, 2015 through partnerships with the Mayor, local papers, Moorestown Library, Moorestown.com and Facebook / Kindness Today.

A book discussion group met at Moorestown Library from the fall of 2015 to February of 2017, examining the 18 dimensions of kindness, one month at a time, one essay at a time. Videos are in creation and articles right here in Patch and in The Moorestown Sun will be published. These are all ways to engage in community conversation - and to continue to expand the culture of kindness that has the capacity to flourish here - and contribute so beautifully to the quality of our lives and the lives we touch.