LEAWOOD, Kan. — Inspiring kindness and spreading love was the goal of the SevenDays Kindness Breakfast held Wednesday morning.
More than 600 people were expected to attend the annual breakfast hosted at the United Methodist Church of the Resurrection in Leawood.
SevenDays' goal was to raise $40,000 to continue promoting positivity in communities, starting with the youth.
Ten high school seniors were each awarded a $1,000 scholarship. Those seniors had to write an essay and execute a project that promoted kindness in their school or community.
Benjamin Soyka from Leavenworth High School created a social media page and uploaded uplifting posts after a classmate committed suicide.
"Even just from the very start, one of the first posts I made said, 'Be the light someone else needs today,'" he said. "And so my goal was really just to inspire other people to be kind to each other and lift each other up."
The nonprofit also works with youth leadership teams in area high schools. Volunteer Abby Hill is part of The Barstow School's first year working with the nonprofit.
“I think the world is filled with a lot of hate at the moment, and the only way to combat that hate is to overpower it with kindness," Hill said.
The breakfast kicked off seven days of events from April 10-12 and 15-18. You can find a full list online and learn more about how SevenDays started.
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