CLEVELAND — The organization R.A.K.E., or Random Acts of Kindness Everywhere, has been doing good work in Cleveland and beyond for almost 10 years.
"So whether it's DJing a retirement home, giving gifts at the holiday season, whether its planting 40,000 trees or plants around the city," founder Ricky Smith explains. "Whatever we can do to make this place a little better than where we found it."
The organization began when Smith found himself in hard times, living in California. A writer and comedian, Smith was having a hard time finding a job in his field. Instead of being down on himself, he decided to spend some of the last few dollars he had to buy pizza for the homeless. That random act of kindness, eventually blossomed in ways he'd never imagined, eventually leading him back to his hometown of Cleveland and founding R.A.K.E.
Around the holidays, and with the help of social workers, Smith adopts 50 families himself and asks the community to adopt 50 more to give them toys, food, clothes, and a memorable holiday. This year, Ricky wants to do more, by adopting more families and asking businesses to step up and help. WKYC Studios has partnered with Ricky to help him with his mission.
"It's been a huge success. And this year, just blowing it out a little bit bigger, reaching out to about 150 families, doing it locally as well as all over the country," he says.
On Dec. 15, 3News anchor Christi Paul went on a shopping spree with Ricky at the Meijer in Seven Hills. The two filled two carts with toys and gifts, from scooters and stuffed animals to electronic games and Hot Wheels racetracks – all to be given to families in need, selected by local social workers.
Our employees pitched in $500 to fund the shopping trip, and the Meijer Seven Hills store surprised Ricky by contributing another $500. To learn more or to donate, click here.
You can watch highlights of the trip in the player below.
On Tuesday, Dec. 20, Ricky and other R.A.K.E. members will buy the gifts for those families and wrap them, but they need your help now. A $100 donation through the R.A.K.E. website will go towards the effort.
If money is tight, you can also help wrap, which Ricky says he could use help with.
"We come together and we gift wrap, it's almost like Santa's helpers. We come in, I am terrible at gift wrapping, so that's actually where it all started, where people tried to help me out. I am one of the worst maybe of all time, at gift wrapping," he laughs.
The wrapping party takes place at the Xmas Bar in the Flats in downtown Cleveland, from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. The gifts will be distributed shortly after that.
The whole idea behind the effort, Ricky says, goes along with the old adage of "it's the thought that counts".
"Just trying to do our part, and making sure that people know that now more than ever, that they're not forgotten, that they're loved," he explains. "I say a lot of times, it's not necessarily what you're giving, but the fact that giving something to somebody."
R.A.K.E. is also hosting a lunch packing party on December 17, for which you can find information on, here. You can also make a donation to the families and send any other inquiries to info@rakenow.org.