Kayla Leeper with her kindness bags.
Kindness — the quality of being gentle, helpful and caring — is one of the first qualities children learn. As people grow, unfortunately, some forget the true meaning of kindness. But not Kayla Leeper, an Alva FFA member from Oklahoma.
In 2017, Leeper started “Kayla’s Kindness Project” when she was 8 years old. After visiting her grandpa, Johnny Sitting, at the University of Oklahoma Health Stephenson Cancer Center while he was undergoing chemotherapy, Leeper said, “It looked like the life was draining out of those patients.”
So, Leeper decided to put action to her observation and brighten others’ days with kindness bags.
The Beginning
Kayla’s Kindness Project was originally intended to last one year, and Leeper planned to fill bags to take to patients at the Stephenson Cancer Center and the Oklahoma Children’s Hospital — Jimmy Everest Center. These bags were filled with hygiene products, toys, knickknacks and socks.
Throughout the year, community members began to hear about her project and supported her so she was able to continue her project longer than she imagined.
How It’s Going
After the COVID-19 outbreak in 2020, Leeper decided to focus her efforts at the local level at Share Medical Center in Alva, Okla. She continues to keep the Share Medical Center fully stocked with kindness bags, and has purchased several TVs and charging stations for it, along with teddy bears for the Survival Flight Helicopter.
In 2024, she partnered with the Alva FFA Chapter to build a gazebo so families of long-term patients have a place to sit and get fresh air as part of the Making Things Better Challenge. She also donates food to the Blessings Boxes in Alva.
Kayla’s Kindness Project has taken Leeper far in life, both figuratively and literally. In 2023, she traveled to a school in Belize to bring them school supplies and tell them about kindness. She will be returning there at the end of 2024.
In April 2024, Leeper went to Virginia to talk about kindness through her community service project for the Moose International Youth Awareness Congress. In a couple of months, Leeper will travel to South Dakota to speak about kindness, and she also partners with Andy Clean for products and promotions. She has been on news channels several times to talk about her project.
Leeper (center) presents new TVs to Share Medical Center.
How Leeper’s Life Has Changed
Leeper now works as a receptionist for Share Medical Center.
“I’m so grateful for how much community members love and support this project, and how often people think about it,” she says. “I still have people from the Oklahoma City hospitals send me letters about how they remember my projects, and I’ve had so many opportunities through this whole thing.”
Leeper plans to continue to grow her project and encourages others to start their own kindness projects or participate in the Making Things Better Challenge. If you would like to learn more about, donate to or support Kayla’s Kindness Project, contact the Alva FFA Chapter on Instagram (@alva_ffa), or on Facebook by searching Alva FFA or Kayla’s Kindness Project.
