Tikkun Tokens
Donation protected
“When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, "Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.”
― Fred Rogers
*UPDATE: over 16,000 tokens are now in circulation!*
What is a Tikkun Token?
Tikkun Tokens are free tokens to give to people who are seen doing something kind or thoughtful.
What "Tikkun" Means
Tikkun means “to repair” in Hebrew. Tikkun Tokens are based on the Jewish idea of “Tikkun Olam”, or “repair of the world”. Tikkun Olam is the idea that our purpose on the planet is to repair it and to make it better than it was when we got here. Acts of kindness, particularly between strangers, and recognizing those acts, is one small way that can we repair the world.
Background
When our son Simon was an infant, he became very sick. We spent 4 months in the ICU while he was gravely ill and a number of years nearly house-bound once he was released.
One thing I remember most vividly about that time was how much even the smallest acts of kindness, including help from people we had never even met, meant to me. These moments of connection helped me get through one of the hardest experiences of my life.
Over the last few years, I have tried to pay it forward by doing Random Acts of Kindness whenever I can, but sometimes I’m just too overwhelmed to come up with creative ways to do them.
I recently visited a friend in Tuscon, AZ and as we were packing up to take me to the airport to fly home, she gave me a Ben's Bells token.
I gave my token to someone I saw helping a mother travelling alone with a small child as we went through security at the airport. I was so inspired by his response and my own joy at the exchange that I started sketching out my own project on the flight home.
I loved the idea of a simple tool people could use to recognize another person's act of kindness and that can be used as a small act of kindness in itself. I wanted to root this project in the value I hold most dear, "Tikkun Olam", or repair of the world.
It is my most core belief that we can all be ambassadors of goodness and repair as we walk through the world. My hope is that these tokens help people do that work.
Benefits of Tikkun Tokens
Research shows that doing and witnessing acts of kindness not only helps our world, it can also help our brains.
Tikkun Tokens accomplish three goals:
REINFORCE: Tikkun Tokens reinforce the kind and thoughtful behaviors we all want to see more of.
REWIRE: Most of us are overwhelmed with constant news about bad things and it has a negative effect on our brains. Encouraging people to look for the goodness happening around them can actually help re-wire our brains by strengthening the connections related to happiness.
RECONNECT: Humans are born wanting to connect with each other. Just watch most children on a playground and time how long it takes them to make a new friend. Tikkun Tokens give people a tool to remember how easy it can be to connect with someone we don't know yet.
What will the money go towards?
The money generated by this campaign will be used to pay for:
-The cost of the tokens
-Shipping materials and postage to get Tikkun Tokens to anyone who wants to begin sharing them in their own community.
Any amount will help!
― Fred Rogers
*UPDATE: over 16,000 tokens are now in circulation!*
What is a Tikkun Token?
Tikkun Tokens are free tokens to give to people who are seen doing something kind or thoughtful.
What "Tikkun" Means
Tikkun means “to repair” in Hebrew. Tikkun Tokens are based on the Jewish idea of “Tikkun Olam”, or “repair of the world”. Tikkun Olam is the idea that our purpose on the planet is to repair it and to make it better than it was when we got here. Acts of kindness, particularly between strangers, and recognizing those acts, is one small way that can we repair the world.
Background
When our son Simon was an infant, he became very sick. We spent 4 months in the ICU while he was gravely ill and a number of years nearly house-bound once he was released.
One thing I remember most vividly about that time was how much even the smallest acts of kindness, including help from people we had never even met, meant to me. These moments of connection helped me get through one of the hardest experiences of my life.
Over the last few years, I have tried to pay it forward by doing Random Acts of Kindness whenever I can, but sometimes I’m just too overwhelmed to come up with creative ways to do them.
I recently visited a friend in Tuscon, AZ and as we were packing up to take me to the airport to fly home, she gave me a Ben's Bells token.
I gave my token to someone I saw helping a mother travelling alone with a small child as we went through security at the airport. I was so inspired by his response and my own joy at the exchange that I started sketching out my own project on the flight home.
I loved the idea of a simple tool people could use to recognize another person's act of kindness and that can be used as a small act of kindness in itself. I wanted to root this project in the value I hold most dear, "Tikkun Olam", or repair of the world.
It is my most core belief that we can all be ambassadors of goodness and repair as we walk through the world. My hope is that these tokens help people do that work.
Benefits of Tikkun Tokens
Research shows that doing and witnessing acts of kindness not only helps our world, it can also help our brains.
Tikkun Tokens accomplish three goals:
REINFORCE: Tikkun Tokens reinforce the kind and thoughtful behaviors we all want to see more of.
REWIRE: Most of us are overwhelmed with constant news about bad things and it has a negative effect on our brains. Encouraging people to look for the goodness happening around them can actually help re-wire our brains by strengthening the connections related to happiness.
RECONNECT: Humans are born wanting to connect with each other. Just watch most children on a playground and time how long it takes them to make a new friend. Tikkun Tokens give people a tool to remember how easy it can be to connect with someone we don't know yet.
What will the money go towards?
The money generated by this campaign will be used to pay for:
-The cost of the tokens
-Shipping materials and postage to get Tikkun Tokens to anyone who wants to begin sharing them in their own community.
Any amount will help!
Organizer
Jaime Jenett
Organizer
Oakland, CA
