One act of kindness
A local Catholic school teacher’s experiences with generosity inspired her to pen “The Story of One,” a children’s book which illustrates just how far one small act of kindness can go. (Book cover art provided by Meghan Hader)CHARLOTTE — It took over seven years for St. Gabriel School fifth-grade teacher Meghan Hader to pen her first children’s book, “The Story of One.”
“It started out as a poem, and then more and more stanzas and ideas came to me,” Hader says.
As with any good book, there is a story behind the story, and this book is no exception.
Hader, a native of Cincinnati, Ohio, has been teaching at St. Gabriel School for the past 14 years. She shares “Feel Good Friday” videos with her class each week that offer inspirational or funny stories highlighting a positive message.
During the 2014-’15 school year, she shared a video about a Cincinnati Bengals football player, Devon Still, whose daughter, Leah, had just been diagnosed with a rare childhood cancer.
“At the end of the video, it showed that the Cincinnati Bengals were selling Still’s jersey for $100, and all proceeds were going to the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital,” Hader recalls. “One of my students raised his hand and said, ‘I think we should get one for the class.’”
Hader says the student went to his lunch box and pulled out roughly $2. A few other students followed suit, and by the end of the day the class had about $9 toward the jersey.
“Without prompting, the students must have talked after school because the next day, over $130 showed up on my desk,” Hader recounts. “I still proudly have our class jersey displayed behind my desk from that class of 2014-’15.”
Hader believes that this simple act of giving on behalf of her students, in helping a child they would never meet, prompted her story writing.
“I just wanted to illustrate just how far one small idea can go,” she explains. “It was easy to fill in the rest of the pages (of my book) from other wonderful things I have seen through teaching, through my family, and just in everyday life.”
Hader says she doesn’t plan on a second book but hopes the universal message of doing or giving “just one” continues to carry on.
— SueAnn Howell, Senior reporter
Get a copy
Meghan Hader’s book, “The Story of One,” is available online from Amazon, Target or Warren Publishing, or in Charlotte at Park Road Books, 4139 Park Road, in the Park Road Shopping Center.