Prior to the kickoff of the Orlando City L.A. Blues game last Friday night Orlando City Captain, Rob Valentino was out in the concourse promoting his Player Cause, “To Be Kind”. This campaign is led by Teacher of the Year Adam Sherman and comprised of a large group of students from Lake Brantley High School who are interested in spreading the anti-bullying message throughout their school and other schools in the Central Florida area.
Around twelve Lake Brantley High students, who are apart of the Leadership Class at Lake Brantley HS, were in attendance to kickoff their campaign message. The students brought with them a large banner for OC fans to sign and pledge that they would be kind. Valentino was the first to take the To Be Kind pledge and put his signature to the banner. Children and adults alike followed taking the pledge and offering their signatures.
To Be Kind is a message that touches people from all walks of life. While anti-bullying is being spread throughout the youth and schools, it is also a good reminder for adults. Being kind is an area all of us can continue to grow in, whether it applies to your school, workplace, team or community. Some of the simple goals in the campaign are: teach others the value of kindness and its positive effects on people; help create understanding between individuals in an effort to reduce social differences; accept a challenge each day such as saying hello to someone sitting alone. The class is working on a variety of materials that will be tailored to particular age groups and presented to the school by Rob.
Sherman reflected on the event, “We were so honored and privileged to be at the game on Friday. The students were excited all week and were thrilled to be a part of the night. We were able to get our message of kindness out and the response from the fans was incredible. So many people stopped by to sign our pledge and to promise to make an impact in their own lives. The students were proud to see the overwhelming support of the Club and the fans and they can't wait to continue to watch the relationship between TBK, the Club, the fans, and Central Florida continue to grow and develop. We are extremely thankful to Kay Rawlins and Rob Valentino for reaching out to us a month ago to make this happen.”
Thanks To Be Kind!
