TRABUCO MESA ELEMENTARY SCHOOL,
COME FROM AWAY
AND SEGERSTROM CENTER FOR THE ARTS
PARTNER IN “RANDOM ACTS OF KINDNESS CHALLENGE”
The SAKtivists (Student Acts of Kindness) program started in Mandy Kelly’s sixth-grade class with a simple assignment: Perform one
random act of kindness every day for a month and write it down. By the end of December 2016, the students
weren’t ready to quit kindness. They kept it going the next month. And the month after that. And the month
after that. Eventually, the school year ended, but the SAKtivists didn’t. Each year, the students in Mrs. Kelly’s
class continue the program, looking for new avenues to expand their reach and spread their message.
Trabuco Mesa teacher Mrs. Kelly said, “We’re thrilled to partner with Segerstrom Center and the musical
Come From Away to help spread kindness around the world!” The students added, “We’ve learned that the
smallest act of kindness can have a large impact. An act doesn’t have to be a grand gesture, take a lot of
time, money or effort – anyone can perform a simple act of kindness that can change someone’s day, even
their life.”
The class explained: “Each week we challenge students from around the world to complete a random act of
kindness. Right now, we are challenging the cast of Come from Away and then they challenge other cast
members, friends and actors in other shows. And we’re challenging Segerstrom Center for the Arts to
challenge their staff and other arts centers around the country.”
Kindness begins at school and at home for the self-named SAKtivists . They
encourage their peers to spend time with someone new on campus, leave kind notes on the desks of
students and to help around the house. They have bought drinks for strangers at Starbucks, opened doors
for others, distributed balloons to children in the park. They
even created business cards to pass out with each good
deed, reminding recipients to pay it forward. They now
have their own social media platforms. People can join the
Random Acts of Kindness Challenge by going to
bit.ly/SAKtivistsForm.
Mrs. Kelly’s class produces weekly videos challenging
others to become SAKtivists by performing specific acts of
kindness, as they did for the Come From Away cast. They
have created an online form to connect with other K-12 classes. Today, classes continue to accept
challenges. There are more than 150 schools in 28 states. Classes from across six continents, countries that
include the United States, Ireland, England and Dubai, and an entire school in Canada have taken on their
challenges.
Mrs. Kelly said, “We really try to make sure every challenge can be done by anyone in any socioeconomic
background, any kind of home life. Anyone can be kind. I’ve been so amazed and just so touched at how
much it’s changed the culture within the classroom.” Mrs. Kelly estimates that thousands of acts of kindness
have been performed by the SAKtivists at Trabuco Mesa alone and that thousands more have come in
response to their challenges.
Segerstrom Center for the Arts is an acclaimed arts institution as well as a beautiful multi-disciplinary
cultural campus. It is committed to supporting artistic excellence, offering unsurpassed experiences and to
engaging the entire community in new and exciting ways through the unique power of live performance and a
diverse array of inspiring arts-based education and community engagement programs.
Previously called the Orange County Performing Arts Center, Segerstrom Center is Orange County’s largest
non-profit arts organization. In addition to its six performance venues, Segerstrom Center is also home to the
American Ballet Theatre William J. Gillespie School.
The Center presents a broad range of programming for audiences of all ages, including international ballet
and dance, national tours of top Broadway shows, jazz and cabaret, contemporary artists, classical music
performed by renowned chamber orchestras and ensembles, family-friendly programming, free
performances open to the public from outdoor movie screenings to dancing on the plaza and many other
special events.
WE ALL HAVE STORIES
Segerstrom Center for the Arts – Julianne and George Argyros Plaza
600 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa, CA
Saturday, February 16, 2019 from 2 – 5 p.m.
Event Schedule:
2:30 – Santos Tovar: You Are Important
3:00 – The Ten Rules of Podcasting, Part I
3:30 – Trabuco Mesa SAKtivists: Stories of Kindness
4:00 – The Ten Rules of Podcasting, Part II
4:30 – Salina Mendoza: How Being Kind and Vulnerable Makes Our World a Better Place
Information:
Admission – FREE
Online – SCFTA.org
Phone – (714) 556-2787
From 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. daily
Information provided is accurate at the time of printing but is subject to change. Segerstrom Center for the
Arts is a public, non-profit organization. “Segerstrom Center for the Arts” is a registered trademark.
