The internet last Wednesday was flooded with positivity and goodness as people took to the streets to do random acts of kindness in memory of Pascal Weisberger. Weisberger, 14, a student at Treasure Village Montessori Charter School, who passed away from a violent tragedy on May 7.
As the community grappled with how to honor his legacy, TVM Principal Kelly Mangel announced May 13 as the first annual Pascal Weisberger Day of Service.
Clean up the shoreline, donate blood, write a letter to an elderly neighbor or rake their leaves, Mangel urged her students and the community. Do things that Pascal did to make the world better, and get creative and do more, to honor his memory, she said.
People up and down the Keys answered her call, with acts of service reported from Key West all the way to Ocean Reef.
“I was overwhelmed with emotions at the response to our first Day of Service,” Mangel told the Weekly. “It was amazing how our community rallied together to show support for Pascal.”
Mangel donated blood at the TVM-organized blood drive and did a local cleanup with her daughters. Weisberger’s classmates brought food to first responders, volunteered at animal shelters and cleaned up some of his favorite spots. His fellow Boy Scouts from Troops 912 and 914 cleaned up local shorelines and wrote chalk reminders to “Be Kind! #PascalsWay.” Even the dolphins and crocodiles at Theatre of the Sea took part, holding up signs urging kindness.
“I knew he was an inspiring soul, but it wasn’t until I saw so much good happening in celebration of him that I truly realized the scope of his influence,” Mangel said. “Pascal would be so proud, honored and, I am sure, humbled by the response.
The Day of Service will repeat annually on Weisberger’s birthday, Feb. 2.
Visit https://pascalsway.org/ for a longer-term way to connect and do kind acts in Weisberger’s memory.
Mangel concluded, “I don’t think I will ever stop mourning him, but now at least I can say that I have also found ways to celebrate him.”
