MERRITT ISLAND, Fla. — A kindergarten class at a Merritt Island elementary school recently designed a symbol for kindness. With the city and county supporting them, the students are now working to someday have the symbol recognized around the world.
- Transitional kindergarten class known as "Tropical Kingdom"
- Tropical Kingdom students, teacher worked to design symbol of kindness
- Mayor of Melbourne signed official proclamation making it official symbol of kindness for city
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"We have a sign for love, peace, for happiness," said Tropical Elementary School teacher Barbara Wilcox.
Wilcox's students, the transitional kindergarten class known as "Tropical Kingdom", are hoping to spread this symbol as an international symbol for kindness.
They've earned the support of their city and county government officials. In fact, Melbourne Mayor Kathy Meehan signed an official proclamation recognizing the students' design as the official symbol of kindness for the city.
Brevard County commissioners issued a similar proclamation.
Now they are looking to have the symbol recognized by Congress.
To accomplish that, they're asking for help. They've created an online petition at Change.org and a goal of collecting 100,000 signatures.
"So when we meet our goal they will automatically send it to the leads of Congress, Mitch McConnell and Nancy Pelosi," Wilcox explained.
The students believe that their symbol can be a reminder - when people see it, they may want to be more kind. Wilcox added that though a symbol can't make people be more kind, a visual symbol might remind people to be kinder along the way.
They have a long way to go, though, and a limited amount of time. The class hopes to reach their goal by the end of the school year.
To learn more about the students' efforts or to sign their petition, click HERE.