Hello kind krafters!
 
      While reading and keeping myself informed with all the amazing work that kind krafts does as well as talking with my fellow youth ambassador about volunteer ideas for the upcoming school year AND keeping up with summer work, teaching lessons as well as the busy life of friends, family and planning for the future, things can get busy!
    I am someone who loves to be involved, positive and constantly on the go. With this being said, sometimes it’s important to take a step back and reflect on our own well being.
      Self love is something we sometimes put on the back burner but in order to put our best foot forward in the community it all starts with ourselves.
 
What are the benefits of self care and self love?

• Motivation and Healthy Habits - self love and self care promotes routines and motivation in everyday activity. Healthy habits and routine and feeling motivated creates a positive atmosphere, productivity and, outlook with everything you do. Showing love for yourself helps you put more energy into everyday life.
• Mental Health Improvements - Taking better care of yourself and remembering to put yourself first is a great way to keep negative thoughts out of your life. Learning to care and love yourself little by little can really be a great stepping stone for those who struggle with many forms of mental health struggles.
• Confidence - Working on yourself really makes you build your confidence. Trusting in yourself and your abilities to achieve can really change your mindset and create opportunities. Feeling confident in the way you look, speak, act and feel can make a huge difference!
• A Happier Life - Everything that happens around you and how much happiness you get out of life ultimately starts with you! Giving yourself the appreciation you deserve will create happiness and positive energy within your life and others as well.

How do I practice self care?
        
         Self care comes in all shapes and sizes but here are some things I like to do to practice self care!
 

• Exercise - I have always loved being active and have played sports all throughout school and have continued exercise routines into University. The gym is truly a happy place for me and a great way to sweat out some stress! A great and sweet friend of mine recently introduced me to kickboxing and it has been a great experience so far. Work hard, feel good!
• Music - Music has been an escape from reality for me for such a long time. If it is listening or playing, music has always given me peace of mind. Music is a huge part of my life and I have met many of the most important people in my life through music. Music always helps me reflect on myself and puts a smile on my face.

Self love is different for everyone!
 
         Don’t forget, self care and appreciation doesn’t happen overnight. Any little step toward taking care and appreciating yourself is something to be extremely proud of and everyone practices self care differently. It is okay not to be okay. Find something that works for you and makes you happy and pursue it! Self care is not selfish.
 
“If you don’t love yourself how the hell you gonna love somebody else” - RuPaul
 
 
Take some time for yourself and continue the awesome work here at Kind Krafts!
 
Until next time,
Amy Cameron.

"If you can't feed a hundred people, then feed just one" - Mother Teresa

​Hey kind krafters!

With our new cause for the season being Community Gardens, I have been thinking about ways that I can contribute to building sustainable local food systems when I head back to university in the fall. I volunteer regularly with the Wolfville Farmer's Market where I have access to fresh, healthy, and nutritious food and am wondering how I can use this to my advantage when helping others. 

​I decided to message a group of my AMAZING friends to ask if they would be willing to start a mini soup kitchen when we all return to Acadia in the fall, and it was so lovely to see how eager everyone was to get going. We then started brainstorming a bunch of other ways we could get involved with our community and help those in need throughout the year. I was so happy to see this response and it showed to me that all you need to do is ask and you will be flooded with support. 

However, as we plan out the logistics, there is still plenty of work that can be done in our different provinces while we live at home for the summer. I took a look through different websites to find food banks and meal programs close to me. Here's what I found -

https://www.feednovascotia.ca/find-food - Feed Nova Scotia's website is probably one of the most up-to-date resources online. If you click on the link provided you will be able to find all the necessary information to find any program near you! Feed Nova Scotia is a charitable organization that collects and distributes food to more than 150 food banks and meal programs around the province.
​
http://adsumcourt.weebly.com/drop-in-centres-soup-kitchens--food-banks.html - The Adsum Court in Dartmouth is one of the locations for Adsum for Women & Children. This super helpful link provides a list of drop-in centres, food banks, and soup kitchens around HRM.  The locations are also written on the website along with days and times that their services are in use! 

I also asked the brilliant volunteer coordinator at the Wolfville Market if she knew of any programs in the Valley and here are some of the things she told me -
​

1. The Market has a program called Food Bucks which provides market dollars to those in need so that they are able to buy wholesome produce at the Market. This program is sustained through donations and volunteers!
2. https://www.facebook.com/pg/SharingOurUnappreciatedProduce/posts/ - SOUP or Save Our Ugly Produce is a local organization that takes food from farms and turns it into soup for those in need. Check out their Facebook page for more information!!
3. http://foundns.com/ - FOUND Forgotten Food is an organization in Nova Scotia that strives to reduce food waste by gathering and sharing forgotten fruits and vegetables. The group sources the food that wouldn't usually end up on our plates from local producers, farmers' markets, and even the trees around them.

About our cause!
​
The Dartmouth North Community Food Centre is a project of the Dartmouth Family Centre. They believes in creating a welcoming space for people to come together to grow, cook, share, and advocate for good food! They pride themselves in providing people with access to high-quality food in a dignified setting that doesn't compromise their self-worth. Skills for cooking and gardening are taught and kids are encouraged to participate to expand their taste buds and help them to make healthier food choices. Community members find their voices on the issues that matter to them, and people find friends and support. CFCs offer multifaceted, integrated, responsive and prevention-focused programming in a shared space where food builds health, hope, skills and community.

I am so glad that we have chosen this cause for the season and can't wait to get involved with our kind kraft events and projects!! Keep checking for upcoming events because we'd love to see you there!
 
Rhian xoxo

Well it’s June! University is over, grade school is coming to an end and everything is feeling much different than it has for the last eight months. Summer is a time for feeling refreshed and a time for change. For those moving back home they are starting long distance relationships and friendships from school and rekindling with all the friends and family they've missed for eight months. For those who have stayed home, its friends coming home and no longer living in the library rather than their own home.
           Since we are free of the stresses and school that the year brings it is time to start that refreshed and summer feeling! While enjoying the sunshine, what's a better way to spend the summer than taking advantage of the community and environment around you?
          Here are seven tips and ideas to kick off your summer taking in the outdoors and the pleasures of local establishments!
 
1. Eat Local. 

Who doesn’t love a good lunch date? Eating local is such a great (and delicious) way to support local restaurants around you! By eating local you are supporting local economy, benefiting the environment and not to mention enjoying food full of flavor right in your community.

2) Get outside! Go for a Hike.
 
For myself, Cape Breton and Wolfville NS is full of the most beautiful hiking trails. Not only is hiking a great way to take advantage of the environment around you it's also a great workout!
 
 
3) Enjoy live entertainment.
 
If it be a band, a singer/songwriter or local theatre, getting out to watch local performers is my favorite way to spend my summer! Most of these performers practice and rehearse so hard to hard to bring you the happiness and entertainment that music and theatre brings! It's a great way to take in some talent this summer while you are supporting someone's passion.

4) Make the most of your summer job.
 
Working for the summer can sometime be a drag, as we all know. But keeping a positive attitude can make it a little less painful. Some advice I would give would be to try to find summer work you are passionate about! If you are working a job you love you won’t feel like you are working at all! So many local establishments are usually looking for students, don’t be afraid to reach out if your interested, more than not they would love to have you.
 
5) Shop local.
 
Summer is a great time for wandering around local shops. (also who doesn’t love a few nice new pick-me ups for summer?) If it's art, clothing, or craft, buying local is supportive and a great way to shop!
 
6) Get involved in local workshops
 
Learning something new is a great way to keep yourself involved and keep creative! Local photography, theatres, yoga studios and art centres often have camps and workshops! This is an awesome way to learn something new and also support a local business

7) Reach out and get involved!
 
Summer is the perfect time to volunteer and find out some more information on charitable organizations around you that create a positive impact on your community! Volunteering is the best feeling (trust me) you wouldn’t want to spend your summer any other way.
 
Until next time, Amy Cameron.

​Hey kind krafters!
 
This week marks my first six months as a member of the kind krafts team! I have learnt so much in my short time here and can’t wait for what is still to come for this organization. Because of this milestone in my kind krafts timeline, I thought that I might write about why I think it is important to volunteer and be a part of an organization. 

Why Volunteer?
 
Throughout my years in junior high, high school, and university, I have volunteered in numerous ways and places. From Sunday Suppers at St. Andrew’s United Church, to random sporting and musical events, to Saturday mornings at the Wolfville Farmers’ Market. Here are some of the main reasons for why I like to volunteer:
 

1. Learning new skills – Through volunteering you can constantly be gaining new experiences. You could be figuring out how point systems work at karate competitions, how to handle cash at a vendor booth, or starting to master a new language to better communicate with others at your placement.
2. Making a difference –  Volunteering allows you the chance to give back to a cause you believe in. There are always opportunities to volunteer if you ask – just because it isn’t advertised doesn’t mean people wouldn’t appreciate any help you might be able to provide. What might seem to you like another day greeting people as they walk into an event, might actually be the highlight of someone else’s week. You never know the impact you have on someone’s life, no matter how small.  

3. Creating connections within your community – I think this is the BEST reason to volunteer. Why keep within your small group of friends and work colleagues/fellow students, when you could meet so many new and inspiring people?! I have found friendships with people I would have never expected through going out and working with other folks in my community. I can’t stress enough how lucky we all are to be able to do this!!

Why join an organization?
 
I have been a part of several organizations over the past eight years ranging from school councils and committees, to non-profits such as kind krafts! Being involved with all of these groups has taught me lots and helped me in lots of ways. Here are some of my favourite reasons for joining an organization:

1. Having a break from studying/work – Sometimes participating in something outside of your day-to-day life is super helpful for distracting you from stressful situations and allows you to focus all of that energy into something positive. It gives you a great study break and is productive at the same time!!

2. Learn how to work with others – Playing a part in an organization means working with others no matter what the role and how big or small it may be. This gives you awesome life experience for how you collaborate with your other team members and allows you to figure out what works and what doesn’t in a safe setting – Score!! 
 
3. Experiences – Through your time in an organization you will be exposed to countless new experience like workshops, AGMs, new courses, etc. This is an incredible opportunity for students as these chances may not come up too often through schooling depending on class sizes and course material. Take advantage of attending as many as you possibly can, or use your position to ask to create your own events for the company’s development. 

So, have fun volunteering kind krafters!! I really encourage all of you to reach out and seek volunteering opportunities within your communities. These experiences are irreplaceable and so essential to your growth! It’s also incredibly humbling to use your talents and time to help others.
 
With love,
Rhi xoxo