“Love and kindness are never wasted. They always make a difference. They bless the one who receives them, and they bless you, the giver.” —Barbara De Angelis
Every person in the world is on an eternal quest to find happiness. Sadly, happiness often eludes us as we find ourselves bogged down by life’s daily stresses. But people often forget that happiness unveils itself when we show kindness to others.
This is exactly the case for an Ohio native, Trevor Crews. Trevor fondly remembers his middle school birthday celebrations as some of the happiest moments in his life. In fact, these happy moments gave birth to an idea that would grow over the next decade and a half.
Trevor felt so special getting birthday wishes in middle school that he started to call every member of his church on their birthday. When he got to high school, he upgraded from birthday phone calls to birthday dollar bills. These dollar bills were always labeled with a person’s name, age, happy birthday greeting, and “love, Trevor.” As Trevor approached the end of his college years, he realized that he could no longer afford this hobby. After all, he had spent more than 900 dollars in his quest to make people happy. He realized he needed to get creative and came up with the next version of his birthday kindness project: birthday tokens.
Since then, Trevor has mailed approximately 25,000 birthday tokens. The idea is simple. Trevor writes happy birthday and a name on one side of the poker chip with the day on the other. He addresses it to a lucky birthday person (he has amassed a massive number of addresses over the years) and puts it in the mail. Kids and adults alike are thrilled to receive these tokens and anticipate them year after year. The reaction, especially during the pandemic lockdowns, has been overwhelmingly gracious and the Ohio community feels blessed to have such a kind citizen among them.
So, what’s Trevor’s motivation? ” I always want to do my best to make people happy in everything I do. I feel this hobby of mine brings joy and happiness to a child or an adult,” he says. Trevor’s story serves as a reminder that making others happy is the ultimate act of kindness.
Read more about Trevor’s birthday project here.
At Sheltering Grace, we realize that acts of kindness are the glue that binds a community together. Our great team of like-minded people is passionate about helping homeless mothers and babies end their devastating cycle of homelessness. Please contact us at 678-337-7858 to learn how you can help. Your one act of kindness can make all the difference to mothers and babies in need.
