This Couple Used Their Wedding Day To Promote Random Acts Of Kindness

The power of paying it forward.

Leigh and James Clark had a simple request for all 100 guests at their Sept. 26 wedding: They wanted them to perform a random act of kindness to honor their union.

Miranda Lawson Photography / Via weddingphotographerfl.com

The Florida-based couple included a line on their invitations saying, "If you are so inclined, please do a random act of kindness sometime between now and the wedding and use the hashtag #kindleigheverafter on social media."

Leigh told BuzzFeed Life that she started doing frequent random acts of kindness — like dropping off goods to hospitals and giving food to the homeless — during the holiday season three years ago.

According to Leigh, 25–30 guests have sent her examples of their acts, and she receives more every day.

"We wanted people to do this not only to help celebrate our day, but to also put a drop of positivity in the bucket and hopefully keep helping others," she said. Non-guests have also contacted her on Facebook to tell her how she inspired them.

Paying it forward was a common theme — their friend Keegan Leahy, for example, bought lunch for the person behind him in line at Tim Hortons.

Courtesy of Leigh Clark

Leigh said that she often calls her friends to rally them to get involved when she volunteers.

But the most powerful examples, Leigh said, were people who took it one step further and involved their children.

Courtesy of Leigh Clark

Emily Schairer, a bridesmaid, and her daughter, Chloe, took pet supplies to a local animal shelter. "They have a cat, so she told her daughter, 'We’re going to something nice for other cats who don't have a home,'" Leigh said.

Jillian Bhatia, Leigh's childhood friend, had her children help donate supplies to a local women's shelter.

Courtesy of Leigh Clark

She added that many people want their acts to remain anonymous. For example, one guest, who had upgraded their airplane seat on the way to the wedding, forfeited their seat so that a family could sit together.

"People who had never done one before really got involved in the idea," Leigh said.

She emphasized that she didn't expect people to spend too much money or time. "It's as easy as buying Starbucks for the person behind you in line. It doesn't have to be extravagant."

For their part, Leigh and James delivered flowers from their wedding to local hospital patients and nursing homes.

Courtesy of Leigh Clark

Leigh uses a portion of sales from her Etsy shop to fuel random acts of kindness, and the couple often spends free time doing things like putting lottery tickets on strangers' cars.

This holiday season, she has a bigger project in mind. "I’m launching a Gofundme to pay off layaway to surprise a store's worth of people," she said. "Celebrities do this all the time, but I want to allow other people to get involved even if they don’t have the bankroll."

Leigh shared her story on her Huffington Post blog after her wedding, and hopes that her story will make the world a nicer place, one act of kindness at a time.

Miranda Lawson Photography / Via weddingphotographerfl.com

"Some people say it's sad we live in a day and age where you have to be reminded to do things like this, but I think it's a good reminder to keep your eyes open and always look for opportunities," she said.