Nonprofit is Spreading Joy Through Simple Gestures

Writer: Jon Shoulders
Photographer / Lauren Spillman

Sometimes it’s the simple ideas that can be the most effective.

That certainly seems to be the case with Make America Smile (MAS), the nonprofit, nonpartisan passion project of Zionsville-based Karin Glass.

 

Glass, a former product developer for toys and knickknacks often found at carnivals and festivals, was contacted by a lady in Georgia in 2017 whose nephew needed some unique assistance.   

“His dad had died four years ago and his mom had just died, and he was living with the lady that reached out to me,” Glass recalls. “He was feeling down and just wanted to give something out to make people smile. I sent 600 little trinkets to her, and he gave them out in his small town on a street corner. He also gave people hugs and smiles, and the reaction was amazing.”

Inspired by one kid’s ability to bring joy to people around him through such simple means, Glass promptly purchased the domain name MakeAmericaSmile.org and decided to form a nonprofit organization through which groups of any age could bring happiness to the lives of others.

Here’s how it works: Anyone interested in joining enlists nine other people and groups of 10 find ways to generate smiles on the people around them through whatever means they wish – volunteering, organizing a community event or even simply striking up a conversation with someone else while standing in line at the grocery store. Group leaders get a gold MAS lapel pin, and groups can submit stories and photos of their smile successes to be featured on the official site.

“The group can find anyone they want to make smile, whether it’s kids or anyone else,” says Glass, owner of Serenity Cafe & Tea Room in Zionsville. “We’re not here to compete with Big Brothers Big Sisters or anything but just to start a movement. All you have to do is make a pledge to make some kind of difference, however small, however you want.”

Groups do not need to form or meet physically, and individuals can recruit friends, family and colleagues all over the country through email and social media. There are no constraints on what each group of 10 can do to help brighten the days of those around them, and Glass says so far the diversity of MAS projects have been vast.

“We have people composing songs, we have Zionsville Meadows nursing home that will be making personalized postcards that people can buy, and there’s a lady in Carmel that is doing a bakery for her autistic son and hired all autistic kids,” Glass says. “The response has been great.”

Glass also started a licensing program whereby interested parties can use the trademarked MAS smiling face logo for a fee, and the proceeds will be used toward grants for MAS projects. Grant requests can be submitted through the official site.

Despite still getting MAS on its feet, Glass has already seen interest from several areas statewide including Carmel and Columbus and has even heard from groups in Canada. She feels the simplistic yet profound concept of doing good for its own sake is the reason MAS has struck a chord so far.

“It’s just about doing something nice, even something small, and sharing it around,” she says. “Things have gotten so impersonal, with social media and staring at our phones all through the day, and this is aimed at getting back to what’s real.”

Lisa Cox, a former guidance counselor with the Zionsville school system, heard about MAS from Glass late last year while dining at Serenity and has been contributing to the organization ever since. She’s written several blog posts about her experiences helping others, including her involvement with First Punch, a local program formed to help kids overcome physical and mental challenges through a physical training program based on non-contact boxing skills.

Cox feels one of MAS’s strengths lies in its group-oriented format.

“When we form a group for the purpose of doing kind acts and making people smile, we talk about it, we become intentional and we hold each other accountable,” Cox says. “Plus, it’s just more fun. If we all just look around and start being aware of the people around us who need us in small ways, our actions, words, gestures and smiles can be life-changing.”

For more information on Make America Smile, call 317-796-6700 or visit makeamericasmile.org.

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