Today is the start of the 7th annual Random Acts of Kindness (RAK) Week in Duvall

The week-long event not only celebrates kindness it Duvall, it has spread to neighboring communities, which also have started scattering kindness.

“With each year our RAK Week grows and touches more people, as more community members, students, groups, clubs, etc. join together in this inspiring effort of simply sharing kindness,” says Connie Berg, RAK Week founder. “This is the fourth year for the Duvall RAK Week effort to also include and inspire our neighboring cities of Carnation, Monroe and Woodinville.”

“It really doesn’t matter what you do when you spread kindness,” she continued, “…just do something, as it all makes a lasting and meaningful difference within our community.”

She encourages everyone to visit the website, www.rakduvall.com for a list of inspiring ideas.

An act of kindness can be something as simple as sharing a smile with someone on the street, picking up trash in your neighborhood, buying a coffee for the person behind you in line, or taking flowers to a neighbor or your child’s teacher. The smallest gesture has an ongoing “ripple effect.”

This effect is explained by Dr. Jonathan Haidt, Professor of Psychology at the University of Virginia, who coined the term elevation to describe the emotion we feel when we encounter evidence of “moral beauty.” He explains, “Seeing or even just reading about others’ courage, compassion, or generosity can not only make us better people but increase the likelihood we’ll do good works of our own…. It makes people more open, more loving, grateful, compassionate, and forgiving. In other words, goodness is catching.”

Duvall’s RAK Week was a ripple effect of the Cedarcrest High School RAK Club. Berg read about the club and was inspired by their efforts to spread kindness and compassion in the community. In addition to RAK Week, Berg and her RAK volunteers are partnering with the school club to create clubs in each school building in the Riverview School District.