Partnering with people who want to Be the Change they want to see in the world is one of the best parts of the Butterfly Effect. We get to see, first hand, how small acts of kindness and service spread the particles of change into communities all over the globe. JoBeth Clark is one person who is effecting her community in ways that are not yet completely knowable, but we are sure those effects will be far reaching for generations.

As a teacher for 30 years, JoBeth is committed to showing her kindergarteners that even they can make a difference in their world. This year her students were a part of a curriculum in which they wrote about “How I can change the world with my writing”. Ms. Clark shared with her students about an organization that she was involved with called The Butterfly Program.

“The butterfly Program, sponsored by Children’s Hospital Colorado and Porter Hospice of Centura Health at Home, has filled a unique and relatively empty niche in the Denver metropolitan community since 1999, providing comprehensive pediatric palliative care to children and their families experiencing a serious illness. Butterfly patients receive palliative and comfort care at home or the hospital regardless of the current goals of their care or the family’s ability to pay for services. Because supportive services including counseling, chaplain visits and bereavement services are not reimbursed, the program relies heavily on fundraising for support.”

Each student made a butterfly to decorate the hotel where the Soup for the Soul party took place. They also each wrote a letter to the people that attended the event asking them to support this special program and gave them the reasons why. The Soup for the Soul committee LOVED the kindergartener’s writing. The children also collected money to donate the the program.

As a result of this project, a classroom parent told Ms. Clark about The Butterfly Effect.  Watching her students become little philanthropists was inspiring, JoBeth wanted to the momentum to continue and she agreed to partner with us and have her students decorate a butterfly to Drop in her community.

“It’s heartening for me to see them making the world better.”
Watching her five year-olds becoming aware of other people’s needs was an amazing process for JoBeth Clark. “It became all about who we were helping, parents told me that it had definitely changed the dinner conversations,” she said. Parents told her that it opened up a way to communicate about global needs and how not every child is as lucky as they are.

One of the coolest parts of this Butterfly Drop was that the child who found the butterfly, will be attending kindergarten next year! He will be able to a part of the same writing curriculum in the fall and has already started spreading change by asking to have funds donated to the Tennyson Center for Children one of the Rocky Mountain region’s leading treatment centers and K-12 schools for emotionally and crisis-affected children and youth, particularly those suffering from abuse and neglect. Thanks Devon for Being the Change! (click HERE to view his video)

“The very beating of your heart has meaning and purpose. Your actions have value for greater than silver or gold.”- Andy Andrews

JoBeth Clark is definitely on the front lines, making a difference in the future of our country and our world. We are inspired by her dedication to the kids she works with every day. When asked how this experience has impacted her personally, JoBeth said, “It gives me so much hope about what kids can do, I think we need that as a culture. It did change them, I’m very happy that my future is in their hands.”

We would like to thank JoBeth Clark and her amazing kindergarteners for Being the Change in their community.

Here are some examples of the children’s writing about the Butterfly Effect.