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National Making Life Beautiful Day

A U.S. observance on June 11 encouraging acts of kindness, community beautification, and recognition of the people and practices that improve daily life.

Thursday

June 2026

Last updated March 18, 2026 · by the Holiday Calendar Team

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YEARLY DATEJune 11

OBSERVED INUnited States

CATEGORYAwareness

SUBCATEGORYValues

ORIGIN

Corporate Initiative

FOUNDING ENTITY

Apriori Beauty

FIRST OBSERVED

2015

HOW THE HOLIDAY CAME TO BE

Apriori Beauty, a California-based skincare company founded by Elizabeth Vervynck and Susan Twellman, registered National Making Life Beautiful Day through the National Day Calendar in 2015. The June 11 date matches the company's own founding anniversary in 2009.

INTRO

Introduction

PHOTO

A 2022 meta-analysis published in Psychological Bulletin found that performing acts of kindness produces a measurable increase in the well-being of the person doing them, with effects on both happiness and reduced depressive symptoms. National Making Life Beautiful Day channels that research into practice, framing June 11 as a day to recognize the people, habits, and environments that improve everyday life.

The holiday was created by a skincare company, but its observance has expanded well beyond the beauty industry. Community groups, educators, and individuals use the date to organize neighborhood cleanups, write thank-you notes, and share acts of generosity, borrowing from a broader American tradition of beautification and civic improvement that dates back decades.

ORIGINS

Making Life Beautiful Day history

INTRODUCTION

The idea of organized community beautification in the United States has roots that stretch back well before any holiday formalized it. In 1953, a coalition of businesses, nonprofits, and government agencies formed Keep America Beautiful, initially focused on reducing litter along highways and in public spaces. The organization grew into a network of more than 700 local affiliates coordinating cleanups, tree plantings, and recycling programs across the country.

The theoretical case for beautification gained academic backing in 1982, when criminologist James Q. Wilson and social scientist George L. Kelling published their "broken windows" theory. Their argument, that visible disorder like graffiti and litter signals neglect and invites further decline, gave community improvement efforts a framework grounded in social science rather than aesthetics alone.

CHAPTER 01

Kindness as a movement

Parallel to the environmental beautification movement, a growing body of research began documenting the psychological effects of prosocial behavior. The Random Acts of Kindness Foundation, established in 1995, began providing schools and community groups with structured resources for organizing kindness-focused events. Studies published in the following decades consistently found that people who perform acts of kindness experience increases in happiness and reductions in anxiety, with benefits extending to both the person giving and the person receiving.

CHAPTER 02

A corporate holiday with broader reach

In 2009, Elizabeth Vervynck and Susan Twellman founded Apriori Beauty in Laguna Hills, California, building a skincare company around the concept of helping people feel beautiful. Six years later, the company registered National Making Life Beautiful Day through the National Day Calendar, choosing their own founding date of June 11 as the observance. While the holiday originated as a branding initiative, its message of recognizing beauty in kindness, community, and personal connections has resonated beyond the company's customer base. The observance now prompts neighborhood improvement projects, gratitude practices, and social media campaigns encouraging people to acknowledge those who make their lives better.

TIMELINE

National Making Life Beautiful Day Timeline

Keep America Beautiful is founded

Keep America Beautiful launched as a nonprofit to reduce litter and improve community environments. It grew into the largest community improvement organization in the U.S., with more than 700 affiliates coordinating cleanups and beautification projects.

Broken windows theory published

James Q. Wilson and George L. Kelling published their influential 'broken windows' article in The Atlantic, arguing that visible signs of disorder like litter and graffiti encourage further neglect and establishing a theoretical case for community beautification.

Random Acts of Kindness Foundation established

The Random Acts of Kindness Foundation was established in Denver, Colorado, to inspire and resource kindness in communities and schools. The organization provides free educational materials and annual event guides.

Apriori Beauty founded in California

Elizabeth Vervynck and Susan Twellman founded Apriori Beauty in Laguna Hills, California, specializing in skincare products. The company's June 11 founding date would later become the basis for the holiday.

National Day Calendar launches

The National Day Calendar was founded as a registry for observance days in the United States, creating the platform through which Apriori Beauty would later register Making Life Beautiful Day.

National Making Life Beautiful Day proclaimed

Apriori Beauty registered National Making Life Beautiful Day through the National Day Calendar, with the Registrar proclaiming June 11 as the annual observance date.

GET INVOLVED

How to Celebrate National Making Life Beautiful Day

Organize a neighborhood cleanup

Gather a few neighbors and spend an hour picking up litter, pulling weeds from public spaces, or planting flowers in a neglected area. Keep America Beautiful connects you with local affiliate organizations that provide supplies and coordination.

WRITE

Write three thank-you notes

Choose three people who have made your life better and write them short, specific notes explaining what they did and why it mattered. Research shows that recipients of gratitude letters report increased happiness for weeks after receiving them.

PERFORM

Perform a random act of kindness for a stranger

Pay for the next person's coffee, leave a positive note on a coworker's desk, or donate to a cause someone cares about. The Random Acts of Kindness Foundation offers a curated list of ideas organized by setting and effort level.

BEAUTIFY

Beautify your own space

Rearrange a room, add a plant, or declutter a workspace. Environmental psychology research shows that people in organized, aesthetically pleasing environments report lower stress and higher productivity.

VOLUNTEER

Volunteer with a community improvement project

Search for local beautification or improvement projects on Idealist to find opportunities like mural painting, garden restoration, or public space maintenance in your area.

WHY THIS DAY MATTERS

Why We Love National Making Life Beautiful Day

Gratitude practices strengthen social bonds

Psychological research consistently links gratitude expression to stronger interpersonal relationships and increased life satisfaction. Writing a thank-you note or verbally acknowledging someone's contribution activates reward circuits in the brain and reinforces the social connection between giver and recipient.

Acts of kindness produce measurable well-being effects

Research published by the American Psychological Association shows that performing kind acts increases happiness and reduces anxiety in the person doing them. A 2022 meta-analysis confirmed a small-to-medium positive effect on well-being, meaning the benefits are consistent and replicable across studies.

Community beautification reduces perceptions of disorder

The broken windows theory, first published in 1982, established that visible environmental improvements like removing litter and planting greenery reduce perceptions of neglect and disorder. Keep America Beautiful's network of over 700 affiliates applies this principle through organized cleanups and public space improvements nationwide.

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