If practicing more gratitude is one of your goals for 2023 and beyond, a Florida nonprofit is here to help. To recognize and encourage positivity and kindness, the Santoro Education Lifeskills Foundation (SELF) developed a thank you card program — and you can request your own set of cards for free.
Helmed by retired entrepreneur and current philanthropist Joe Santoro, SELF focuses on helping children and teenagers develop the skills they need to navigate the world. It does so by providing free educational resources, launching initiatives like the thank you card program, and offering an online curriculum for middle and high school students called Alive2Thrive, which has awarded over $90,000 in scholarships to young people who’ve graduated from the program.
“There is no better place to put my money than into helping people become their best selves,” Santoro told Nice News. “It makes the world a better place, and we want to help create a culture of kindness.”
The thank you card program is simple: Anyone interested can request a set of cards to be mailed to them free of charge. Once equipped, participants are encouraged to look for positive attitudes, kindness, and good work ethic in others. Then, according to the instructions on SELF’s website, the card holder should “smile and tell someone ‘Thank you!’ Give them two cards and a big thumbs up, and tell them to give one away to keep it going, too.”
And the bright yellow notes of gratitude aren’t just for individuals; SELF will send as many as requested to schools, organizations, and businesses. It even offers a free counter stand to keep the cards front and center. Since launching the program in early 2022, SELF has distributed over 40,000 cards by mail and by hand. Santoro hopes they also serve as a “conversation starter,” Spectrum News reported, that “promote positive interactions among everyone.”
In a statement shared with Nice News, 11th-grade Alive2Thrive student Christian Tetrault elaborated on that concept, saying the program is about “more than just giving a card; it is the consideration, appreciation, and reflection on just a small act of kindness that could have a big impact.”
