Pennsylvania teacher honors sister's memory by giving students $20 but it came with one surprising condition

When Kristina Ulmer lost her younger sister Katie Ulmer in a tragic car accident, she was left with a purse filled with tip money Katie had earned that morning. She did not realize that that moment would eventually lead Kristina to start a classroom challenge, impacting hundreds of students and strangers alike. Kristina, an English teacher at Hatboro-Horsham High School in Pennsylvania, was called to the accident scene along with her parents, reported 6abc Philadelphia. In the wreckage, she asked an officer to retrieve Katie’s purse, which still held over $100 in cash, as reported by The Washington Post.

"I pulled it out of her purse and I thought, 'What am I going to do with this money?' and I knew she would want to do something good with it," Kristina said. For a long time, she kept the purse tucked away in her cabinet, unsure of how to use the money to honor her sister’s generous spirit. In 2018, she found the answer while teaching "Fahrenheit 451" by Ray Bradbury, a novel that explores a world where people are consumed by screens and disconnected from real life. She wanted her students to understand the importance of empathy and human connection. That was when she decided to take her sister’s tip money, exchange it for $20 bills, and hand one to each student, asking them to perform an act of kindness and document their experience.

The project, which became known as the $20 Kindness Challenge, gained momentum. Students found unique ways to use the money, from donating to homeless shelters to leaving generous tips for restaurant servers. Some made homemade treats for animals at a local shelter, while others bought toiletries and food for unhoused people. One student, while visiting family in the Midwest, bought doughnuts and handed them out to strangers on a street corner. The experience was so meaningful that she has continued the tradition every year. After the first semester, word of the challenge spread beyond the classroom.

More people started hearing about it, and soon, community members began donating to help keep the project going. Kristina would arrive at school to find $20 bills left in her mailbox from anonymous supporters. Since its inception, her students have completed more than 350 acts of kindness in Katie’s memory, and the school has now set up a fund to accept donations. Kristina compiles students’ video reflections into a montage so they can see how their small efforts have made a difference, as shared by Hatboro-Horsham School District. The experience has changed the way many students think about kindness. 

Sydney Cassel, 16, who has now taken part five times, said, "The first time I participated in the challenge, I didn’t think it would be possible to make a difference with $20, but I learned that’s really not true. You don’t have to have millions. Anyone can make a difference." Sophomore Rachel Jasner, who made bookmarks for a local library and fleece blankets for dogs, said that taking part in two kindness projects was the highlight of her freshman year. She said, "It doesn’t take that much time, and it’s really rewarding and addicting to help." For Kristina, watching her students embrace the project year after year keeps her sister’s legacy alive. "I believe she’d be ecstatic about how I used her tip money. It’s almost like she’s here with me every semester when I do this." Moreover, the school has now set up a PledgeCents campaign to accept donations.