Mister Rogers Week of Kindness Logo
David Newell, “Mr. McFeely”
Buena Vista Events & Management logo
A Week of Rogers-Inspired Activities Planned for Central Florida
ORLANDO, FLORIDA, USA, December 1, 2022 /EINPresswire.com/ — Mister Rogers’ Week of Kindness, a week-long series of educational and public events inspired by the nationally known children’s television host and American icon, will take place in March 2023 throughout the Orlando area. The slate of activities was announced yesterday at a press event in Winter Park, Florida, just north of Orlando by local family-owned Buena Vista Events & Management (BVEM), who will also manage the series of events.
“Fred McFeely Rogers devoted his entire life to reminding us of some of the most important ideas of what it means to be human among humans: love, respect and kindness,” explained BVEM President & CEO Rich Bradley. “Many of us find that nearly 20 years after Fred’s passing, it is important to focus on his teachings once again, perhaps now more than ever. This is a week to re-engage with his massive body of work for some folks, and to introduce his legacy to others.”
Mister Rogers’ Week of Kindness begins March 20, 2023, the date which would have been Fred’s 95th birthday, and concludes on Saturday, March 26 with the Red Sweater Soiree, a community dinner to recognize ten ordinary members of the community who inspire and exemplify the affinity that Fred Rogers had for showing kindness to our “Neighbors”.
Multiple activities are planned for the week, both throughout the region regarding early childhood education activities and faculty training, as well as a series of “Neighborhood” events which are open to the public.
“The events will be offered free or at low cost,” continued Bradley. “This week-long celebration is not a series of fundraisers, but rather about once again remembering and sharing some of the great work that Fred Rogers created, not only in early childhood education, but in reminding us that we are all part of one big ‘neighborhood’. Fred taught us the importance of accepting our Neighbors just the way they are and engaging in kindness with our interactions. I can’t think of another period in my lifetime where we needed to reflect on those messages again more than today.”
“There are three ways to ultimate success,” Fred Rogers was once quoted as saying. “The first way is to be kind. The second way is to be kind. The third way is to be kind. Imagine what our neighborhoods would be like if each of us offered, as a matter of course, just one kind word to another person.”
Many of the activities of Mister Rogers’ Week of Kindness will be attended by several members of the cast and crew of Mister Rogers Neighborhood, Fred’s most famous television show which ran from 1968 – 1975, and again from 1979 – 2001.
“He was probably the kindest person I ever knew,” shared David Newell, a close friend to Fred, and more famously known as the actor who portrayed Mr. McFeely. “He was kind; he was thoughtful. He practiced that every day. He was that way with everyone.”
Newell as well as longtime Rogers consultant Hedda Sharapan and Mister Rogers Neighborhood producer Margy Whitmer are among those cast and crew veterans expected to be in Orlando.
Unbeknownst to even some locals, Central Florida was a major part of Fred Rogers’ life. He took to the area immediately in 1948 when he transferred from Dartmouth College to Rollins College in Winter Park. He met the love of his life and future spouse Sara Joanne Byrd on the tarmac of what is now the Orlando Executive Airport. His sister (Elaine) and one of his sons (John) attended Rollins, as did his nephew Dan Crozier, who has served on the school’s music faculty for many years.
Most importantly, at a point in his career, Fred and Joanne returned to Winter Park annually, where he used his time in Central Florida to write many of the 895 scripts and over 200 pieces of original music for the TV program, Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood. The Orlando region is truly Mister Rogers’ real neighborhood.
Mister Rogers’ Week of Kindness is being held under the auspices of the McFeely-Rogers Foundation, the Fred Rogers Institute and Fred Rogers Productions. Details regarding the specific activities and venues , including free tours of Mister Rogers’ Florida neighborhood by Original Orlando Tours, will be released over the next few weeks.
For more information on the events, please visit https://www.BuenaVistaEvents.com or https://www.MisterRogersWeekofKindness.com.
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Buena Vista Events & Management is multi-faceted event and association management firm, and part of the BBM America Corporation family of companies which includes CX Orlando Research and Revenue Architects, Original Orlando Tours, Social Radar 24/7, AmeriVoices, Tell Our Team, Sunny Perks Rewards, and Realign Web Design.
Rich Bradley
Buena Vista Events & Management
+1 407-315-2000
rbradley@buenavistaevents.com
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