Service

Pay it Forward Day

Pay it Forward Day is an international initiative that embodies the power of giving. Always occurring on the last Thursday in April, Pay it Forward Day encourages people from around the world to intentionally step out of their comfort zone to do a good deed for someone else without expecting anything in return. The concept of Pay it Forward is that the recipient of the altruistic good deed will then be asked to continue the chain of kindness by doing something nice for someone else. Pay it Forward Day cards that explain the altruistic movement can be handed out to the recipients of the good deeds.

2012 Projects

History

Pay it Forward Day was created in 2007 in Australia and has been proclaimed by the Governor of Nevada since 2010 and the mayors of Las Vegas and Henderson since 2009.

Pay it Forward is significant to Las Vegas because parts of the movie were filmed at Centennial High School and the Golden Gate Hotel & Casino.

In the past, members of the UNLV community have participated in the following Pay it Forward Day activities:

• Candy for Classrooms – Placed 500 bags of candy in various classrooms for unsuspecting students and teachers to find and enjoy
• Coffee and Cocoa for Commuters – Handed out coffee, hot chocolate, water, bagels and doughnuts to 650 commuter students by the Student Recreation & Wellness Center
• Nevada Partnership for Homeless Youth – Cleaned and painted an emergency shelter to be used for homeless youth and provided them with hygiene products
• Free Hugs Campaign – Gave out “Free Hugs” in front of the Golden Gate Hotel & Casino (2009 & 2010) and in front of the Bellagio fountains (2011)
• Flower & Cookie Giving – Walked around campus and gave flowers and homemade cookies to unsuspecting faculty and staff members
• Tree Planting – In 2011, 120 UNLV volunteers planted trees by Pioneer Wall to help UNLV become the first Tree Campus USA in Nevada

Do you have a project or an idea for a project that may be done on this day but don’t know how to get started? We can help!