Nicole Boolukos decided that instead of receiving gifts, she would cekebrate the few days leading up to her 40th birthday — which was on Nov. 27 — performing 40 acts of kindness throughout Atlanta. The Atlanta native decided to give back to people and revisit places that were part of her childhood.
One of the places was her former school, Dresden Elementary, where Amanda Clements and her first-grade class received a donation for their class project to raise money to purchase dry erase boards and markers. “The excitement to see Nicole’s donation was so wonderful,” said Clements. “Being the holidays, it became a great way to teach the kids about giving and find ways for them to pay it forward.” Clements is working on teaching her students to write letters, sing songs, and even distribute candy to other school mates to spread kindness and cheer.
“Birthdays are fun and bring happiness,” said Boolukos, who works in advertising. “I wanted to spread the same sentiment to people and just share kindness. Sometimes it just takes one act of kindness to make a bad day into a good day.”
On one afternoon, Boolukos and her mother ate lunch at Mykonos Taverna in Chamblee. Niko Wood, a waitress at the Greek restaurant, received a surprise gift certificate to Massage Envy. “They left before I could say anything,” shared Wood. “I really couldn’t believe it when I saw the gift certificate. It was such a surprise, and it was just so different and sweet. I really hope she had a wonderful birthday!”
Boolukos continued spreading the kindness as she spent the day delivering cookies to local firehouses and police stations, donating blankets to the Atlanta Humane Society, paid down someone’s layaway account at Walmart, and even hiding one-dollar bills in books and toys at local stores for children to find.
For the Brookhaven resident, her reason to give back was simple and almost selfish. “I hope those simple acts made a difference to those who were on the receiving end, but it made me feel so good too that I almost think I got the better end of the deal,” Boolukos reflected. “ It was just about being kind and sharing some love which really wound up making for an awesome birthday.”
In other news:Verizon Wireless presented ten Atlanta-area charities with $5,000 grants during an on-campus event on Dec. 11 at its South Area headquarters in Alpharetta. The combined $50,000 donation was given from the company's HopeLine program to Caminar Latino, The Drake House, Dress for Success Atlanta, Elite Women of Excellence, Georgia Commission on Family Violence, Pi Alpha Omega's Ivy and Roses Community Fund, Partnership Against Domestic Violence, The Ron Clark Academy, YWCA Greater Atlanta and YWCA Northwest Georgia. Verizon's HopeLine program has distributed more than 151,000 wireless phones with more than 453 million minutes of free wireless service to be used by victims of domestic violence and cash grants totaling more than $18.1 million to domestic violence agencies and organizations throughout the country.
On Dec. 5. Taziki’s Meditteranean Café presented The Rally Foundation with a check for $2,000 at its Alpharetta location. The donation aided the continued mission of the Rally Foundation to raise awareness and funds for childhood cancer research to find better treatments with fewer long-term side effects and ultimately to eradicate cancer.
The Metropolitan Atlanta Automobile Dealers Association contributed $85,500 to the Salvation Army Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Atlanta by hosting the MAADA Annual Charity Golf Tournament. In its 13th year, the tournament has raised more than $1 million for the inner-city clubs that provide children with after-school services.
Ozone Billiards, based in Kennesaw, raised $10,000 for the American Cancer Society’s Making Strides Against Breast Cancer and the fight against breast cancer. The money will help the American Cancer Society fight the disease with research, information and services, as well as access to mammograms for women.
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