Final thoughts

This year was a big year for this project. I stretched myself more than usual, in part because I scaled back so much last year. This was also a challenging year in some ways because my life is already pretty full (and pretty crazy). But thankfully I have a very supportive wife, and very understanding family.

I also tried to make more noise about the project this year. I generally don't like to be the center of attention, and it always feels weird to brag about stuff like this. But at the same time, one of my favorite aspects of all this is hearing from other people who were motivated to go do something because of what I'm doing here. Every year I hear from people who are doing things they wouldn't have done otherwise, and that makes me want to figure out how to make this whole thing even bigger. And then as soon as it's over I happily slip back into stealth kindness mode.

Thanks for following along. Hopefully a few of you were inspired to squeeze in a little extra kindness here and there even if you didn't let me know about it. And if you're really inspired and want to try to do a similar project, feel free to contact me with any questions or advice.

Here's a gallery I put together of all the stuff from this year. Enjoy!

Winner!

We have a winner in the drawing! The winner is James! Congratulations James, I will be in touch with you.

Day 47

Today I participated in a chili cook-off for charity. The competition was great, and the whole event was a lot of fun. I managed to finish second in the voting, which meant I got the amazing trophy pictured here. As far as I can tell it's a beauty pageant trophy with a small picture of a bowl of chili taped over her bouquet. Best. Trophy. Ever.

Also a great way to finish off my 47 days.

Day 46

Today I shaved my head. This was a fundraiser for childhood cancer research through St. Balderick's Foundation. This one's dedicated to Jake.

A few notes:

1. My scalp is stained blue in a few places from my dye job yesterday. Maybe I should turn it into a map of Earth

2. My wife has decreed that I should definitely pick a different fundraiser next year

3. Brrrrr!

Day 45

Today was an accidental triple play. First I bought breakfast from a fundraising event at my office.

Then, Steph found out a couple of our friends are having some cash flow problems, so she conspired to get some presents for their two kids, already wrapped and tagged with the parents' names.

And finally, we donated a huge box full of old shoes to Planet Aid.

Day 44

Today I bought a couple candy bars from a co-worker's kid's fundraiser. The name of these chocolate bars makes a pretty bold claim, and, well let's just say I'm glad it's for a good cause.

Day 43

I had planned on donating to the local food bank as I have in years past, but this year I discovered a cheat. PORCH is an organization that started right here, and is gradually expanding into other communities in the region, and even into other states.

The idea is extremely simple. Once a month, signs appear in the neighborhood, reminding people to put out non-perishable food on their front porch. Someone in the community maintains a list of participating houses, and volunteers go around and collect all the donations so they can be delivered to local food pantries.

They also work with local farms, markets, grocery stores, churches, schools, doctor's offices, hospitals, and shelters, to get food (and sometimes books) to those in our community who need it.