Carol Dykstra is her real name, but acquaintances call her “Ms. Sunshine.”
This nickname precedes Dykstra’s 2021 New Year’s resolution. The Carlsbad senior citizen actually made two resolutions this year. One was to lose weight. The other was to bring a ray of sunshine into someone’s life on each day of 2021.
So far, she hasn’t lost the weight, but she has delivered the sunshine, sometimes to several people in a single day.
Dykstra delivers birthday cards and e-cards to fellow residents of her La Costa Glen retirement community on their special day and an orchid to welcome each newcomer. If someone has a “milestone” birthday, she adds a bouquet of balloons.