Vol. 1 – July 2025

From the Heart of Kindness Grows

Hello Friends,

Last spring, I stood behind a folding table at a transition fair in Cass County, talking with families whose children with intellectual and developmental disabilities were about to graduate from high school. One after another, parents leaned in and quietly asked the same question… “What’s next for my child?”

They weren’t looking for a traditional day program or another grocery store job. They want more for their child than to greet people at the local Wal-Mart or take tickets at a movie theater. Their sons and daughters are growing into adults with so much to say, so much to give. But the community around them hasn’t made room for that. I can see where the options for a program that fits their needs often feels limited.

And the labels don’t help. The system in Missouri chooses to call participants with disabilities “consumers”. That word has always felt wrong to me because I don’t see people with disabilities just as passive recipients of care…I see them as contributors.

Teachers. Leaders.

At Kindness Grows, we choose different words.

Words that give strength.

Words that call people forward.

We are building a community farm where individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities become Kindness Coaches guiding children from our community through hands-on, heart-opening lessons about empathy, connection, and kindness.

Each Kindness Coach is supported by a Sidekick… someone who offers quiet encouragement and respectful support when it’s needed.

This is not pretend. The work is real. The impact is real. Our community connections are real.

We believe deeply that every person is a teacher… but for the world to listen, we must first honor the value of every voice. That belief is not just part of our mission, it’s woven into everything we do.

For the past 18 months, a remarkable group of people have been gathering around this vision. Adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, their families, caregivers, teachers, service coordinators, farmers, and gardeners have come together to ask one bold, beautiful question: “What if we created a day program so meaningful, so alive with purpose, that the community would be the ones begging to spend time with us?”

This group became our Steering Committee. Their wisdom, humor, and heart have brought Kindness Grows to life in ways I could never have imagined. I can’t fully describe the joy it has brought me to walk beside them. What I can say is this; they give me hope for a better, more inclusive world. One where everyone belongs and everyone is heard.

I’ve worked in the disability field since 1991. My first job out of college was in a sheltered workshop where it wasn't uncommon for random people from our community to drop off leftover bread, used clothes with holes and stains and stale donuts proclaiming things like, “I thought your people might enjoy this.” It was well-meaning, maybe… but it left a mark. It told me how low the bar had been set for how someone with ID/DD is seen by the rest of the community and at that moment I chose to do better…to make a difference in the way I spoke about people.

Thankfully, slowly, things are shifting.

People are beginning to understand that differences aren’t deficits. They are texture. Beauty. Wisdom. The problem is, with our society’s dependence on technology coupled with the after effects of the pandemic we’ve all grown too disconnected as a society. Every last one of us needs a place to heal from the stress of technology, and the way isolation has dulled our sense of empathy. We’ve forgotten how to slow down and truly see each other. There could be no better time than to build connections through a community farm where we let the sun warm our skin, the dirt heal our souls and the animals to remind us how important it is to care for one another.

Our philosophy is that when you combine nature with the belief that every person has value, you reshape the way we see the world and our place in it.

That’s what this farm is about.

Kindness Grows is a place where the chaos quiets. Where labels fall away. Where kids learn how to be kind and connected and adults with disabilities finally get the stage they’ve always deserved, to teach as a Kindness Coach. And I promise you, the Kindness Coaches I have the honor of knowing have so much to say. What if they are non-verbal, you ask? Ha…we will teach the world that wisdom is even deeper when a person is non-verbal and our trained sidekicks are ready to make sure their value is communicated.

Right now, our physical farm location is still a dream. We’re deep in the fundraising stage. But relationships are blossoming and this fall, we’re bringing our mission to life through Pop-Up Playdates where we will hold interactive, heartwarming experiences in local businesses, parks, libraries or any place where Kindness Coaches can teach children through puppets, crafts, stories, and simple moments of connection.

This isn’t a petting zoo or a booth at a fair.

It’s a traveling classroom of compassion… led by people who were never meant to be on the sidelines.

If this speaks to you, I hope you’ll reach out.

Maybe you have land.

Maybe you have a donation.

Or maybe, you just have a heart that’s ready to grow something beautiful with us.

That’s the kind of place we’re building.

And we’d love for you to be part of it.

For those of you who I met last year at the transition fair and your family members who love you. I see you. I hear you.

With gratitude,

Julie Wiley

Founder, Kindness Grows

P.S. Visit www.kindnessgrows.org to learn more or connect with our team.