Today we’d like to introduce you to Heather DeVine.
Hi Heather, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
The mission of People Spread Love (PSL) is to empower communities to write notes of love to those facing adversity. This act of kindness expresses empathy and revives human connection across community lines.
PSL began in 2015 in response to a mass shooting in Charleston, SC at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church. I found myself sad in my car listening to the trauma of nine black people who were murdered while they were in church during their bible study. I went to the grocery store and picked up nine greeting cards for the victim families and thought I should reach out to my community and ask them to sign them. The response of love and outpour was overwhelming. I mailed the package together to the church with the return address saying “People Spread Love.” That’s how it all began.
Ever since 2015, we have functioned as a grassroots project responding to community members submitting Love Requests to our website. The Love Requests are calling out to the people in their lives that need extra love, compassion, recognition, appreciation, and much more. People Spread Love responds directly to these requests by empowering communities to write notes of love to them and mails them letters, cards, and art to show their support. The work is powerful when people take the time to sit in empathy and kindness for others.
In 2021, People Spread Love became an official 501c3 non-profit organization. This designation helps deepen our impact and our commitment to the community.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
It’s been a rather smooth path as the community has guided the organization and how we show up for them. When I became a mother, I had to take a step back so I could be more present at home. In response, my local volunteers stepped up and hosted events which was inspiring and appreciated. When COVID hit the world, People Spread Love and realized that we needed love and compassion more than ever before. We held virtual events and continued our work and it motivated us to step into a 501c3 status so we could continue this important work with a deeper impact.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about People Spread Love?
People Spread Love is known for the heart-centered work of empathy. When we help unlock empathy in our community members, we are getting to our hidden superpower to change the world one note of love at a time. We are proud of the work we present to the community. We give people a channel to reach into someone else’s life and express kindness. The testimonials we’ve accumulated from the recipients and even the senders make all this work worthwhile.
Currently working on this special campaign:
Let’s Spread Love and Positivity to Uvalde and Buffalo Campaign:
Raising $6,500 to Benefit Both Communities after Mass Shootings
People Spread Love, a Wyoming/Idaho non-profit teams up with Colorado luxury sensory gift package experience company, Positive Packages, to spread love and positivity to Uvalde, Texas, and Buffalo, New York after the recent mass shootings leaving thirty-one victims dead. Often when the unspeakable happens, it can feel hopeless to know what to do to help.
This team makes for a natural alliance with a similar origin story being the same – gun violence. People Spread Love was founded in a response to a mass shooting in 2015 in Charleston, South Carolina when nine black churchgoers were murdered in their place of worship. Positive Packages was founded in 2020 in response to a personal gun violence incident she witnessed in Colorado leaving the owner, Akala Lemus, shaken and in need of comfort. It felt only natural for them to provide a channel to spread love and positivity to communities facing adversity, and in this case, tragedy and trauma.
Positive Packages curates luxury sensory gift packages. The Pampering Positive Package is an organic at-home spa experience that promotes worthiness and healing. The packages will be coupled with People Spread Love notes of love made by volunteers all across the country. These simple gestures to remind the victims’ families that they are not alone in their pain, can go a long way in coping with the grief they will be experiencing for the rest of their lives.
People Spread Love and Positive Packages are raising $6,500 to benefit the victims’ families. All proceeds from this campaign will be used to purchase and ship Positive Packages (83%) for the Uvalde and Buffalo victims’ families and additional funds (17%) will be donated to designated funds for both communities, the Buffalo 5/14 Survivors Fund and Texas Elementary School Shooting Victims Fund. All donations made to People Spread Love are tax-deductible.
For more information on this campaign visit: https://qrco.de/lovepositivity
Is there something surprising that you feel even people who know you might not know about?
I am still taken aback by the power of love and kindness. Every time I work with People Spread Love I am reminded that there is good in the world. This organization brings out the good in people.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://peoplespreadlove.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/peoplespreadlove
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/peoplespreadlove
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/peoplespreadluv
