Rachel Joy Scott was a soul ahead of her time. She somehow knew she would touch millions of people’s hearts.
“I have this theory that if one person can go out of their way to show compassion, then it will start a chain reaction of the same. People will never know how far a little kindness can go,” Scott wrote in a two page essay titled, “My Ethics – My Code of Life.”
Madison Comprehensive High School hosted a presentation on Wednesday called, “Rachel’s Challenge.” There was a presentation during the day for students and a similar one in the evening for parents and community members.
Scott was the first student killed in the school shooting at Columbine High School on April 20, 1999. Twelve other students and one heroic teacher also lost their lives during the horrific murders.
Scott was inspired to write after reading Anne Frank’s diary and left six diaries, plus other writings, after her death.
In her essay, Scott talked about wanting to start a chain reaction of kindness and compassion, said Torski Dobson-Arnold, speaker for Rachel’s Challenge.
“Compassion is the greatest form of love we have to offer,” Scott wrote in her essay.
Dobson-Arnold left the audience with five challenges from the life and writings of Scott.
Challenge number one asked the crowd to ‘look for the best in others.’
“(Rachel) said, ‘if you look hard enough, you’ll always find the light. And if you’re able to find that light then you can be a beacon or a conduit, if you will, to let that light grow and flourish,’” Dobson-Arnold said.
When we look for the best in others, it helps to eliminate prejudice, she said. “People will never know how far a little kindness can go.”
With Challenge number two, the crowd was asked to ‘dream big’ by writing goals down and keeping a journal.
“I won’t be labeled as average,” Scott wrote on the back cover of the last diary she wrote before her death.
‘Choosing positive influences’ was Challenge number three.
Dobson-Arnold asked the audience, “What will your legacy be? And how will your story be told?”
After her death, Scott’s parents found out from her classmates that she did special things for the people in school who were ostracized or bullied.
There were three types of students Scott reached out to: special needs students, new students and students who were being picked on.
“Changing a life with a small act of kindness can make a huge impact,” Dobson-Arnold said of Scott’s writings.
Challenge number four was ‘speak with kindness.’
“Words can heal or words can hurt,” she said.
After Scott’s death, when her family went through her room, they found an outline of Scott’s hands drawn on the back of her dresser.
‘These hands belong to Rachel Joy Scott and will someday touch millions of people’s hearts,’ was written inside of the hand prints.
And the final challenge was, ‘start your own chain reaction.’
“Over the next three days let seven to 10 people closest to you know how much you love and appreciate them,” Dobson told the crowd as they closed their eyes thinking of those people. “Let those people know that you couldn’t be who you are without them.”
Rob Peterson, principal at Madison Comprehensive High School said the school has had some incidents of bullying like any other school in the area.
“We were looking for a speaker to bring in to share a message of kindness and combating bullying,” he said.
Peterson said he knew that Ontario High School had accepted Rachel’s Challenge and thought it would be a positive presentation to be held at his school.
“I had a couple of teachers contact me and they had some ideas and our student body is a buzz over this,” he said.
Students, parents, community members and administrators all signed a banner which will be posted in the school.
Upon signing the banner for ‘Rachel’s Challenge,’ everyone committed to upholding the five challenges and engaging in small acts of kindness.
For more information visit: www.rachelschallenge.org
“(Rachel) said, ‘if you look hard enough, you’ll always find the light. And if you’re able to find that light then you can be a beacon or a conduit, if you will, to let that light grow and flourish,’” Torski Dobson-Arnold said.
