Woman Turns Chronic Illness Into 1,000 Cards of Kindness

Alicia McLeod knows what it feels like to be stuck inside while the world moves on without you. This winter, as her chronic illnesses kept her homebound in Orillia, Ontario, she had a thought that changed everything: if she felt this isolated, how many others did too?

The 32-year-old lives with multiple chronic conditions including Chiari malformation, syringomyelia, and endometriosis. Winter is especially hard because she can't risk going out and falling on ice.

Instead of dwelling on her situation, McLeod grabbed some card stock and started writing. She created templates with messages she wished someone would tell her on hard days: "You are seen, you are valued, and you are enough."

She timed her project to launch around Random Acts of Kindness Day on February 17. The goal was simple: remind people facing illness, grief, or loneliness that someone is thinking of them.

McLeod wasn't new to kindness work. She previously volunteered with Uplifting Blessings, a local nonprofit that created care packages for vulnerable people. When that organization closed in late 2024 after losing its headquarters, McLeod felt lost at first.

But she decided to channel that disappointment into something new. "Now I'm just getting creative and branching out with my own grassroots initiative to try and spread kindness because it's definitely needed," she said.

The cards have already reached Hospice Orillia, Mariposa House Hospice, SickKids Hospital in Toronto, and Tiny Tiny Homes. McLeod has also sent cards to paramedics and healthcare providers who've cared for her during her medical journey.

She mails most cards herself, though local businesses and volunteers help with drop-offs to cut costs. The project has become bigger than she imagined, with friends and community members joining in.

Sunny's Take

McLeod has already helped create more than 400 cards, and she estimates the total will hit a thousand by the end of February. For her, making the cards isn't just about helping others. It's how she copes with her own chronic pain, using coloring and creativity to turn something difficult into something beautiful.

She hopes to expand the project into community coloring sessions where organizations can host card-making events. People who want to join can find her on social media through Resilient Roots.

One woman turned her toughest days into a thousand reasons for strangers to keep going.