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<\/p>\nA kaleidoscope of pencils, crayons and tissue paper spreads across the kitchen table as 10-year-old Izzie carefully folds a handwritten letter and 8-year-old Evie arranges the items in her gift bag.<\/p>\n
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During the pandemic, the Tigner siblings have sent their letters and gift bags to older ones in their Gilbert community, according to a release.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe do this to show how we care about them,\u201d said Izzie.<\/p>\n
The children\u2019s efforts have touched hearts.<\/p>\n
Their great-grandmother, who lives in an assisted living home, was especially moved when she and her neighbors received cards and a care package from the Tigner family at the beginning of COVID-19.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe really appreciated the work that [Izzie and Evie] put into making cards for her and her neighbors,\u201d explained Paula, the girls\u2019 mother. \u201cA lot of them don\u2019t have family anymore, so they really liked it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Theirs is one of many Jehovah\u2019s Witness families helping teach their children powerful object lessons in compassion and community service.<\/p>\n
Love of neighbor is a central tenet of Christianity for Jehovah\u2019s Witnesses. It is the driving force behind the organization\u2019s public ministry, the release states.<\/p>\n
\u201cJesus taught that there\u2019s more happiness in giving than in receiving,\u201d Robert Hendriks III, U.S. spokesman for the organization, said in the release. \u201cSo when children are taught to recognize the needs of others and reach out to them from the heart, they are learning life skills that will contribute to a happy life and also benefit society at-large.\u201d<\/p>\n
In 2013, Jehovah\u2019s Witnesses debuted a video series designed to help parents cultivate qualities like kindness and empathy in young children. The animated adventures of Caleb and Sophia, a lovable brother-sister duo, teach lessons in everything from sharing with others to respecting people of all races.<\/p>\n
Some titles in the Caleb and Sophia video series \u2014 available on jw.org \u2014 include:<\/p>\n
Jude Nordgren, 9, and his sister, Rain, 7, have sent dozens of homemade cards and drawings to fire and police stations, social workers, and nursing homes around their hometown of Waterford, Virginia.<\/p>\n
Their cousin Kaylee, who has Down syndrome, takes part by painting colorful scenes depicting the animals she hopes to play with in the earthly paradise described in Scripture.<\/p>\n
\u201cI hope people like my dolphins,\u201d said the 15-year-old.<\/p>\n
In September, the Purcellville, Virginia Police Department took to its Facebook page to thank the Nordgren children for their cards and artwork: \u201cThanks for thinking of us and helping to brighten our day! #communitykindness #thankful #grateful.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDespite everything, they\u2019re thriving,\u201d said Nordgren. \u201cThey\u2019ve experienced the joy that comes from giving, and that\u2019s a priceless feeling.\u201d<\/p>\n