On World Friendship Day, KindSBY encourages community members to pay it forward

SALISBURY, Md. – Grace Foxwell Murdock leads her life with kindness.

She’s a jack of many trades; she’s a gardener, a bracelet maker and a Kindness Commissioner for the city of Salisbury.

“When Jake Day was our mayor, we did many things with kindness in the community,” said Grace.

KindSBY is all about paying it forward. They host events in the community, and at the core of their mission, just encourage people to approach everyone with kindness.

On World Friendship Day, Grace said everyone should take the opportunity to show or tell someone important in their life how much they care.

“It’s said if you have five people that you can call for anything possible that you need to have done, you are rich,” said Grace. “You don’t need money, but you can be rich in friendships, and I am blessed to have people like that.”

And friendships are important for your health. They give you a sense of belonging, they help aid in personal growth, and just overall, make us happier.

Grace said finding new friendships, and sustaining long-term ones can make us healthier individuals.

“Coming together and making connections, it helps us grow and it helps our self-esteem,” said Grace. “To have those friendships, you have to be a friend, and by reaching out to people, that’s what’s important, and it keeps us healthy.”

And Martin Hutchison, a pastor of the Community of Joy Church in Salisbury, he preaches kindness, literally.

“I encourage our people to be friends with whoever because we’re called to love our neighbors,” Martin said.

He said one small act of kindness can make a world of a difference in a person’s life, and we should all strive to be positive change makers.

“It doesn’t cost you anything, and when you extend kindness, you win. The person that you extend kindness to, they win. It’s a win, win, win, win, so just be kind,” said Martin.

To become a Kindness Commissioner, you can visit the KindSBY Facebook page.