Celebrating our Friendship February Student Winner: Piper

Each February, Nora Project students, families, and friends flex their friendship muscles to share the magic of TNP within their communities. Friendship February has quickly become a fan favorite, giving individuals the chance to strengthen friendships with their peers, raise funds for an important cause, and show that everyone can make a difference in the world. 

This year, participants completed nearly 1,500 kindness challenges and raised over $9,200 in just 28 days! These funds were shared with TNP partner schools in the form of inclusion grants with each school receiving $30 to make inclusion improvements this year.

Throughout the month, we asked Nora Project teachers to nominate students that went above and beyond throughout the campaign. We received so many incredible nominations of students who were kind, helpful, and positive role models within their classes. This year’s student winner is a fourth grader from Joseph Sears School: Piper! 

In her nomination, Piper’s teacher shared, “Piper is the true definition of a friend. She has the ability to put aside her feelings and step into the shoes of others to do what makes them feel happy and accepted.”

We recently connected with Piper to ask her a few questions about Friendship February and kindness. Here’s what she shared with us.

Young girl stands smiling in front of a light wood wall wearing a long sleeve red shirt and red bow in their long brown hair

What did you do during Friendship February?

I focused on all the ways I could be kind or helpful. I tried to include everyone I could. I wrote down all my acts of kindness on pieces of paper to track how many I did.

What did you enjoy the most about Friendship February?

I enjoyed helping other people and making closer friendships. It was also fun to see how many acts of kindness I could do.

What did you learn from doing acts of kindness? How did people respond?

I learned how to be kind even when someone wasn’t kind to me. It made me feel really good and it was nice to see how they reacted. I also liked how others seemed to follow my example.

Friendship February was only for one month, but what will you/have you continued to do beyond the month of February?

I will continue to be inclusive in my friendships and to be kind to those around me. I also have stood up for many of my friends and will continue to stand up for people even if they are not kind to me–they may need extra kindness to make them feel better.

What advice can you offer to other children your age about performing acts of kindness on a consistent basis?

You can be kind to people even if they are different from you or have challenges. Don’t be afraid even if they act differently from you. My twin brother Turner has challenges–he doesn’t speak, wears glasses, has hearing aids and acts differently. While he is in the fourth grade, he does not know as much as I do as he learns differently. Some people react to him differently than others, stare, or walk away fast. I feel like just because he’s different doesn’t mean he can’t be your friend. Be kind to everyone. 

Did you know? Friendship February is a student-lead initiative. Meet this year’s planning committee and find out what they wanted everyone to know in this blog post.

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