Sing to a group of people at the bus or trolley station. Remind custodians how much you appreciate their work. High-five bicyclists and thank them for reducing carbon emissions.
These are just a few items on SOLO Eyewear’s Acts of Kindness list, which community-based coed fraternity Alpha Phi Omega tweaked for San Diego State students during an event Nov. 16. The mission? Complete a list of 21 tasks in two hours and take a photo or video of your group completing each item.
From thanking a professor to buying someone a Scantron or a blue book, each act promotes the same concept: Do something kind for a stranger and impact his or her life in a positive way. The group that completed all 21 items in the shortest amount of time won a prize.
“It does become competitive,” SOLO Eyewear marketing associate and business management and psychology senior Alex Quen said. Quen said the competition did not weaken the sincerity of the event.
“I think it helps. It helps push them into actually making a contact with a stranger,” Quen said. “Because it’s really hard just to walk up to
somebody and say, ‘Oh, yeah, can I sing to you?’ With that competitive aspect, it kind of already pushes them out of their comfort zone and they’re more willing to do something crazy.”
SDSU business management senior and SOLO Eyewear brand ambassador Kimberly Uy said the event helps create a sense of unity among students.
“We’re in college and people feel like they should do things for themselves and people should be independent,” Uy said. “Then all of a sudden, you see this group of people trying to help you out and it stutters you out of your mentality.”
Biology sophomore and Alpha Phi Omega member Trung Phan, just completed his acts, said singing the SDSU fight song to people at the trolley station and carrying someone’s lunch to his/her table were the most memorable tasks he completed. He said another Alpha Phi Omega member noticed a sullen-looking woman in line to buy coffee and decided to purchase her beverage.
“Ideally, you do one random act of kindness for somebody and they do one act and then it just continues and continues and continues,” Quen said. “I want to see this in every city.”
