Does it feel to you like there’s a lot of “us” and “them” thinking happening these days? That way of looking at the world causes some problems. It’s easier to dislike, or even hate, that which is separate from ourselves. And that, as we’ve seen too many times, can lead us to hurt each other. On the other hand, focusing […]
Members of The Junior Joy Team and Hough Elementary Leadership Team delivered Happy Packets with hand-written notes of appreciation and candy to the entire staff of PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center’s Emergency Department on Saturday morning. The notes express thanks for all the care and healing the ER team provides everyday to people living in Vancouver, Washington. ER Nurse Donna Mairose […]
2012 has been an amazing year for The Joy Team. In January we started The Junior Joy Team to help children ages 5-12 to discover the warmth of spreading joy and building community. With hand-drawn notes of appreciation in Happy Packets the kids assembled themselves, The Junior Joy Team started by spreading joy to Vancouver City Hall. After partnering with […]
The Joy Team needs 1,300 jars (18 oz and plastic only) of peanut butter. And we’re going to need them every month, September through June. Here’s why. 25.4% of kids in Clark County live in food insecurity. Which is higher than the national average of 21.6% of kids, according to Feeding America. Through a new program launching this month called […]
Chalk the Walks 2012 is coming right up! Join us on Tuesday, August 21st in this international event of spreading joy, optimism and inspiration through the magical power of positive messages and sidewalk chalk. Here’s how you do it: Join the Facebook event: Chalk the Walks 2012! Chalk where ever you are (check with your city, but typically chalking is […]
Yesterday, Vancouver Police were visited by a joyful group of elementary school kids who showered Happy Packets on the West Precinct. Heart-covered bags for every employee of the Vancouver Police Department–caringly stuffed with personalized notes of appreciation, a Hersey’s chocolate kiss, a Bit-O-Honey and a Love Your Life card from The Joy Team–were handed out, left on desks or put […]
We’re going to Hough Elementary (go Hough Hawks!) today for our very first JOY Assembly, and we are super excited! Nearly 300 students will learn why joy matters, hear from The Junior Joy Team members who go to school there, and learn more about the second recipients of our Happy Packets: The Vancouver Police Department. Officer Tina Smith will talk to […]
The first full week of March is Words Matter Week, a perfect time to reflect on the power of words and be mindful about how we use them. Here at The Joy Team, we’re all about words. More specifically, we’re all about the power of positive words. So, to celebrate Words Matter Week we’ve made a little video with The […]
The very first Junior Joy Team project went so well that the heart of the city was swelling with joy. The kids had so much fun sharing smiles that Junior Joy Team member, Carter Jacob asked before walking out the door of City Hall, “Can we do this again tomorrow?” And as for the folks at City Hall, did it […]
The Junior Joy Team will be planting our first seeds of joy in the heart of our hometown: Vancouver USA’s City Hall. We picked February 13th, the first day of Random Acts of Kindness Week, to do our very first Junior Joy Team project. The inaugural group of 10 Junior Joy Team kids, ranging in age from 6 to 11, will […]
