BERLIN – A New York Times bestselling author and keynote speaker took center stage at Worcester Preparatory School last week to share the story behind her book and to encourage acts of kindness.
Over the summer, 9-12 grade students read “An Invisible Thread” by Laura Schroff and last Thursday had the opportunity to hear Schroff speak and ask questions.
“An Invisible Thread” tells the true story Schroff’s chance encounter with an 11-year-old panhandler named Maurice and the years she spent mentoring him. The book touches on the importance of small acts of kindness and the value of relationships.
Since its release in 2011, “An Invisible Thread” has received several awards and remained on The New York Times Best Seller list for 39 weeks.
Josh Bredbenner, a senior at Worcester Prep who is related to Schroff, said he introduced the book to his English teacher, Kathleen Otway, last summer.
“I gave her the book and said, ‘I thought you might like this. If you want to read it, cool. If not, that’s fine,’ and we eventually organized for her (the author) to come to the school,” he said.
Schroff introduces herself to 10th grader Korina Gjikuria.
Otway said she decided to incorporate “An Invisible Thread” into high school English classes after she read the book. From there, she and Bredbenner worked on bringing Schroff to Worcester Prep.
Otway explained the speaking engagement will be a kickoff for this year’s school theme of kindness. In addition to reading the book, Otway’s students also had to write an essay about the subject.
“Over the summer, they had to write an essay on their own invisible thread, someone they reached out to or someone that reached out to them that made a difference,” she said. “Then we will continue to focus on that throughout the school year all because Josh said, ‘Ms. Otway, I have a book for you.’”
Shroff told the students of their ability to display kindness to those around them.
“It’s crucial to not only educate the students’ minds, but also their hearts,” she said. “If fact, there is a saying that we can all be students of life … We can teach others to be kind, but we must lead by example.”
Schroff explained the book’s simple message of kindness resonates with readers and reinforces the importance of the positive impacts one person can have on another.
“It’s about opening up our eyes and hearts to those around us,” she said. “What I learned throughout my journey is we need to observe our surroundings and we can if we do that. We all have the ability to connect with others if we don’t just see but we actually observe, if we don’t just here but we actually listen, and if we don’t just ignore but we actually engage.”
Arrangements for the appearance of Schroff were made through Simon and Schuster Speakers Bureau in New York.
