After more than 4,300 signs painted and given away, Gini Bonnell feels that she has found her calling. Now, she’d like others to help her continue her quest to spread kindness.

        It all started in 2017. Bonnell felt bogged down by all the negativity that bombards us. To counter that, she wrote positive messages on a white board in her front yard. People passing by would wave and honk, but then the board fell apart. In an “aha” moment, she realized that the world needed those uplifting messages. “Be Kind” signs were born.

        A scrap of wood, some paint, two hooks and hanging twine are all that make up a Be Kind sign—unless of course you count the love and intention Bonnell infuses with each stroke of her paint brush. With signs in Finland, Canada, Australia, Nova Scotia, Mexico and across the U.S., she’s still modest.

         “I’m just a messenger of a message that desperately needs to get out to the universe,” Bonnell says, adding, “Kindness has the power to change the trajectory of someone’s day.”

        She’s quick to point out that she’s not an artist, but she does admit that the popularity of the signs is validation that she’s doing the right thing. That is why Bonnell will continue to do everything she can to uplift people, one sign at a time.

        She has always given the signs away for free (asking for postage reimbursement when they are shipped). Six “angels” who are painting Bonnell’s design do the same. But there is no such thing as too many angels, so Bonnell would like to see this blossom into more people taking her design and spreading kindness.

        “Anyone that would like to paint, I talk with them to get them started on the basic design. I also explain the importance of giving the signs away and making personal connections,” says Bonnell.

 

Julie Peterson is a freelance writer who has a Be Kind sign and is helping spread this campaign. Contact her at [email protected] to become an angel in Gini Bonnell’s ‘Be Kind’ movement.