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Supernatural’s Misha Collins: Kindness is Infectious
Misha Collins isn’t an angel, but he plays one on TV. For the last two seasons, he’s played Castiel, an angel sent down to Earth to help the Winchester brothers in their fight to stop the apocalypse on the CW series Supernatural. When he steps out from in front of the cameras Misha becomes a different kind of angel – the kind that gives his time, money and creativity to help those in need.
Now, we know that lots of celebs give to charity, but what’s particularly interesting about Misha’s quest is the way he has rallied his “minions,” aka, the fans of Supernatural. What started out as a joke on Twitter has grown into a true non-profit organization that has already built orphanages in Haiti and blessed many more people with random acts of kindness. Even Misha admits, he never saw it coming.
“I knew that there were a lot of intelligent, creative people with a lot of resources following me on Twitter just based on the responses that I got and websites that they would set up, the projects they would undertake. I mean, there was a lot of kind of enthusiasm and creative energy and so I knew I wanted to kind of play with that in some way and I had no idea how it was going to play out. I’m actually shocked that Random Acts has taken on such a coherent level of organization and structure, and it’s so official. We’re actually a proper 501, fee-free, non-profit, tax exempt organization and all that. It actually is quite an inspiration to me and far more than I expected to have happen in such a short period of time.”
They say that something good always comes out of something bad, and that was the case with the earthquake in Haiti. After it happened, Misha reached out to his fans on Twitter and asked them to donate to the cause. They raised $30,000 dollars which they used to help house and care for some of the more than 380,000 orphans in Haiti.
“I spent some time in Haiti and I know that it’s a place that is really, really, bad off. I have been in a lot of countries around the world, and from an economic standpoint, I’ve never seen the destitution that I’ve seen in Haiti anywhere else. And we also happen to have contacts with people who run these three orphanages there so it seemed like a good fit to keep on supporting them.”
But disasters continue to happen around the world, and so Misha and his crew have moved on to raising money to aide Pakistan.
Going The Distance
“I’m running to raise money. Its kind of old fashioned, collecting pledges. I’ve always liked the whole [idea]. I don’t like the dynamic aspect of not knowing quite how far I’m going to make it. It sort of puts a little more pressure on me to keep on hauling ass out there, so yeah I’m going to be doing a run on Sunday [September] fifth and I’m going to go as far as I can. I’m capping it at a measly 100 km so, I mean, I may keep running after that, knowing me I’ll probably do you know 200-250 km something like that but … umm that’s a lie. I’ve never run anywhere near [this distance]. I’ve run marathons and that’s it, so we’ll see how far I make it.”
We have no doubt that Misha will make it to the end of the race because he’s a guy who can’t stand to let a challenge lie there unaccepted. He made it to The White House as an intern and now he’s co-starring on a hit TV series. You wouldn’t know it to look at him but, as a child, Misha Collins was homeless.
“I have an amazing mother, but when I was growing up she didn’t always have a tremendous amount of material resources at her disposal. We were on welfare and very poor for some time and we were homeless for a while. When I was eleven, we were taken in by [friends who let us live on their] farm for several months. They were unbelievably generous with us. They gave us essentially room and board for months because they knew we didn’t have a place to go, and they enabled us to feel like we weren’t a burden there, by allowing me to work on the farm and to earn my keep. Of course at eleven, I was completely useless and probably more in the way than anything, but it was just like an extension of their kind act to allow me to think that I wasn’t a burden there, and so I would go out in the field and transplant leeks and rake hay into rows and things like that. It’s something that has stuck with me and there are other incidences in my childhood that have stuck with me, you know, a woman that gave my mother $100 when I was six so that she could buy me and my brother Christmas presents that year. I didn’t even know who she was, it was just this really generous act that made a huge difference in these small children’s’ lives and to my mother as well.”
“Thirty years later I still remember that, and it still impacts on how I behave, not always . . . (laughs), but when it comes to my mind it affects how I behave and I think that that is kind of what I am getting at. It can be infectious and exponential. I mean, I probably wouldn’t be trying to do this random acts project if somebody hadn’t demonstrated that kind of kindness to me when I was young and likewise people who receive, who are the recipients of the random acts that we do now, will probably carry on that tradition later.”
The Random Acts program is something that’s just getting rolling for Misha and his minions, so it isn’t as well organized as some of their earlier efforts.
We’re All In This Together
“Anybody who wants to be involved can be involved in the process of identifying recipients of random acts of kindness from our organization, so it’s very much a collective process. People wrote in suggestions and then we collectively made a decision on which ones to enact, and you know what we’ve done so far was very hasty and very poorly funded, it was just from money that I took out of my pocket. But moving forward I think that we will have a little bit more time and a little bit more resources at our disposal and it’ll be interesting to see how it evolves.”
In wrapping up my call with Misha Collins, I mentioned that we have a section on GlobalShift called ‘One Person, Big Difference.’ What do you think of that philosophy, I asked.
“Oh I don’t think one person can do anything, really. . . no, I’m just kidding, wouldn’t that be an awful answer? Yes! I can actually say that’s a big part of why I wanted to do random acts in particular, because I happen to very strongly agree with that idea that one person can make a big difference. I think that kindness and generosity are infectious qualities, that when you carry them out, you often inspire others to do the same, and that one small act can actually have an exponential effect. And this isn’t something that’s just the purview of statesmen and religious leaders. I think that it really can happen in very small and everyday ways, and still have a big impact.”
If you would like to pledge money for Misha’s run or get involved in his Random Acts program, visit the website at http://www.therandomact.org and tell them GlobalShift sent you.
Photo: Misha Collins as Castiel in SUPERNATURAL on The CW. Photo: Jack Rowand/The CW ©2009 The CW Network, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
September is Small Moves Month on GlobalShift
Every day here on GlobalShift, we talk about finding solutions to some of the world’s biggest problems; the environment, poverty, hunger, discrimination, crime and the aftermath of natural disasters. It can be overwhelming and discouraging, leaving all of us wondering if anything we’re doing will make a difference in our lifetime. That’s why we decided to try something a little different.
You see, we figure that in order to save the world, we have to save ourselves first. We have to clear our minds of negativity. We have to get healthy and we have to experience joy. So this month, we’ll be focusing on the small things, the “people” things that might only make a difference to the person behind you at the coffee shop or a stranger who will never know that it was you who cared. The phrase “random acts of kindness” may have become a bit of a cliche, but we believe in what it stands for. We believe that random acts of kindness not only bless others but performing them make us better people, too.
Throughout September we’ll be offering up inspiration and talking with people who are making a difference one person at a time. We’ll also be posting a new Random Act idea on our Twitter account each day, so make sure you’re following us @globalshiftorg. No, really. Click now. We’ll wait.
To kick off our event, we have an interview with an actor who is raising Random Acts to a fine art. He’s Misha Collins of Supernatural and he’s turned his fan following into a human charity machine. We’ll be posting our interview with him tomorrow, but in the meantime, watch this video. If the bouncing is a little much for you, skip to the 1 minute mark and at least listen, it’s pretty cool stuff.
Finally, let me say that we can’t do this without. We’d love to hear your stories of random acts of kindness, or maybe you can point us toward someone you think we should write about. The idea here is to inspire everyone to be just a little bit better on September 30 than they were on September 1. If we can do that, then it’s mission accomplished.
Small Moves Equal a Big Shift – that’s our motto at GlobalShift.
Photo: ywel
George Clooney Sums it Up at the Emmys
Last night on the Emmy’s, George Clooney was awarded the Bob Hope Humanitarian Award for his work on a variety of charity projects. He stepped out on to the stage, humbled and so charming and his short speech was inspiring and a real call to arms.
Here is a transcript of his speech along with a video. We hope you’ll all take his words to heart.
It’s important to remember how much good can get done, because we live in such strange times where bad behavior sucks up all the attention and press. And the people who really need the spotlight: the Haitians, the Sudanese, people in the Gulf Coast on the five year anniversary.. Pakistan, they can’t get any.
I thought maybe there was a way to combine the two. I have offered to go to the south Sudan and have a wardrobe malfunction, but it was pointed out to me that I’m 49 and the consensus was that it would just be upsetting and kind of sad.
The truth is, when the disaster happens, everybody wants to help, everybody in this room wants to help, everybody at home wants to help. The hard part is seven months later, five years later, when we’re on to a new story. Honestly, we fail at that, most of the time. That’s the facts.
I fail at that.
So here’s hoping that some very bright person right here in the room or at home watching can help find a way to keep the spotlight burning on these heartbreaking situations that continue to be heartbreaking long after the cameras go away. That would be an impressive accomplishment.
Thank you.
Whatever Happened to the Hybrid Car?
Four days ago, USA Today ran an article questioning, “As sales fall, is the hybrid car fad over?” Humorously comparing the hybrid car to bell-bottom pants, the article nevertheless delivers some sobering statistics, including a noticeable decline in interest of key sales areas such as the San Francisco Bay Area. After peaking in 2007, sales fell a staggering 36 percent last year alone and it isn’t likely that amount is going to revive anytime soon.
So, has the hybrid car craze officially run out of gas?
The figures would certainly seem to indicate so. According to The Wall Street Journal, registration of new hybrid cars is down exponentially in the Bay Area, from 27,292 two years ago to just 17,575 last year. The national trend mirrors the grim outlook from the Bay Area as well; registration of hybrid cars plummeted from a healthy 350,701 in 2007 to just 288,952 in 2009. The indication is that the market for hybrids is experiencing a chill, if not an outright freeze.
Sign of the Times
Admittedly, the change in response to the hybrid car is somewhat surprising. Mintel, a market intelligence company, reported in March that nearly one-third of Americans are willing to pay more for products that are environmentally beneficial, or at least more eco-friendly. But the study narrowed the results to personal care products and food items, and a separate Gallup poll found that the concern among Americans for the environment had hit a 20-year low. Of particular interest is that Americans are not only less concerned about the environment, but air pollution in particular has seen a sharp decline in concern.
Gallup concludes that the reason isn’t apathy regarding environmental issues, but a surge of optimism from the perception that environmental concerns are being addressed. However, while it’s still too soon to fully determine how incidents like the recent Gulf oil spill may have undermined that confidence, it remains likely that Americans will continue to have their larger-ticket green choices regulated by other factors, like cost.
Though the government offers a considerable number of financial incentives and tax credits for the purchase of new hybrids, the hefty price tag will deter households that are barely surviving the current economic state of affairs as it is. The highly-anticipated Chevrolet Volt, the new plug-in electric hybrid car from General Motors, will cost $41,000. Even with the $7,500 tax incentive, the leftover amount prices it right out of the affordability of the average American car buyer, according to Charles Lane at Slate. Lane, citing figures from Deloitte Consulting, asserts that for the next decade, only individuals from households earning $200,000 or more a year would be interested in new hybrids or all-electric calls. Specifically, hybrids are a commercial reality for the moderate to very wealthy, like celebrities.
“And that’s my problem with the Obama administration’s energy policy, or at least with his lavish subsidies for the Volt, Nissan’s all-electric Leaf (likely sticker price $33,000), and Tesla’s $100,000 all-electric Roadster: Where does the federal government get off spending the average person’s tax dollars to help better-off-than-average Americans buy expensive new cars?” Lane blasts on July 31.
It’s Not Easy Being Green
Cost is playing another role in keeping consumers from stocking up on hybrid cars. The same stagnant economy leading buyers to tight fist their dollars and cents has also stabilized gasoline prices. With the average pump price being just under $3 a gallon, fuel cost isn’t nearly as much of a priority as during the oil shock days of the Bush administration. Interestingly, as long as the economic recovery remains sluggish, gas prices are likely to remain balanced.
“Consumers continue to benefit from a remarkable pattern of price stability at the retail level,” Chris Plaushin, director of federal relations for AAA, tells the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on Aug. 19. “The drop in crude prices is directly attributable to less than favorable economic news from the U.S. and abroad.”
Even the increase of competition among hybrid cars are not likely to deter the high sticker. While the Toyota Prius once dominated the market, Chevy, Hyundai and Infiniti are all set to introduce their hybrid vehicles in the next year, but will likely be passed over without much fanfare. The biggest roadblock that has yet to be addressed by the countless loans and subsidies given to auto manufacturers is, of course, the battery. Lobbying for support in Michigan, President Barack Obama insisted that advances in technology will drive the cost of batteries down by 70 percent in the coming years. Though other technological breakthroughs, including cellphones and laptop computers, have proven the wisdom behind this claim, Lane is quick to point out there’s a difference between the mass manufacturing of cellphone batters and those for cars.
“But the technical challenges of mass-producing cell phone batteries are relatively modest compared to mass-producing batteries for cars, and for the most part, cell phone and computer industries grew with private, not public, capital at risk,” he writes. “Cutting through the hype and bias that plagues official advanced-battery cost forecasting, a recent study by Boston Consulting Group projects a 60 percent to 65 percent reduction in the cost of batteries to car manufacturers by 2020—smaller and later than Obama’s bullish claim.”
Is Extinction Ahead?
Regardless, the reduction of cost may not be enough to save hybrid cars. Already, people in their 20’s (the key demographic for hybrids) are exploring alternative methods of transportation. A recent survey by the Department of Transportation found that people between the ages of 21 and 30 accounted for just 13.7 of the nation’s total vehicle miles in 2009, marking a decline of over 20 percent since 1995. This, despite the growing number of individuals aging into the demographic, rather than aging out.
This could be the death knell for hybrid cars, which have long catered to two fundamental demands from the 21-30 demographic: technology, and environmental consumerism. As more young people find themselves without gainful employment, economic concerns are likely to overshadow eco-consciousness, making public transportation a more acceptable option than it would have been three years ago.
And the technology is starting to date itself, too. Tom Gillis, a Cisco Systems Inc. executive who lives in Los Altos, earlier this year decided against a hybrid and went for a Roadster by electric-car maker Tesla Motors Inc., according to The Wall Street Journal. The latest development in alternative fuel cost the 45-year-old more than $100,000.
“Hybrids are boring,” Gillis tells the publication. “Electric cars are so exciting. It’s like taking a roller-coaster to work.”
TROTT Trains Racehorses Off the Track
Bonnie Adams knows what happens to racehorses who lose their place in the stable. They could be given to friends who can’t really afford them, put in a pasture, sent to a cheap track to run despite any injuries or, even worse, sent to Mexican slaughterhouses. So Adams founded TROTT, or Training Racehorses Off the Track — an organization that takes thoroughbreds directly from the track into training, later sending them to loving homes.
Take Afleet Eagle, a thoroughbred racehorse who won $112,800 in the Oceanside Stakes at the Del Mar racetrack. With such a promising start, it came as a shock when he suffered an injury in the next race he ran. The injury was minor, but that was the end of his career. Like 37,000 other ex-racehorses, Afleet Eagle needed a home.
TROTT works differently then the typical horse rescue groups that stand at horse auctions and buy as many off the track racehorses (OTTRs) as they can afford. Bonnie spends much of her time at the race track, talking with owners and jockeys and being a constant reminder that there is a place they can bring their non-competitive and injured horses. The thoroughbreds who come under her care are only two to six years old. For most of their lives, they’ve been kept in a small stall (so they can’t injure themselves) with a little window, and are only let out to run. Running is all they’ve been trained to do.
When they come off the track, then, they need a new job and a whole new set of skills.
Afleet Eagle was one of those horses. He had the heart to win, and he would run all day. In fact, he won 3/5 races before he became injured. Most people, even those who have grown up with horses, would assume that such a high-powered energetic animal would be Hell on hooves to ride – that would be my assumption, and I spent my formative years working with wild mustangs. But even a highly competitive runner calms down once fed normal food (not high-octane grain), treated like a normal horse, let out in stalls where they can see everything going on around them, and trained to ride.
“People have the preconception that racehorses are high strung, but they’re just not like that,” says Bonnie.
Since coming to TROTT, Afleet Eagle has been on trails, crossed water, and has even had kids on his back. Like many off the track horses, he has incredible endurance. In fact, the horses that went to the Beijing Olympics were OTT thoroughbreds for precisely that reason.
Eventers love these horses, as do endurance riders, and hunter/jumpers. OTT thoroughbreds are the star athletes of the horse world, but Bonnie maintains that their will to please is so great that they will do any job you train them to do.
“Their personality is so happy to work. No catching necessary – they see you coming and they’re coming to you. There is no heart like the heart of a thoroughbred. They truly love people.”
At TROTT, the horses are trained to be ridden according to the things they naturally enjoy doing. Some may be built for slower Western Pleasure or dressage, others love to jump, and some make great children’s horses. The volunteer trainers play matchmaker, choosing just the right owner for just the right horse. The process to becoming an owner, however, is not easy. To ensure these horses are protected and cared for, TROTT requires an extensive screening process for potential buyers.
Why would anyone jump through hoops and pay between $1,500 to $3,500 for an OTT horse? Because these are some of the best bred horses in the country, and because Bonnie is an honest saleswoman – a rare thing in the horse world. If there are any problems or issues with the horse, she lets the owners know. She’s not in the horse-selling business, she is there to protect them, and that means owners need to know everything.
How to Help a Horse
TROTT runs through donations of money and of time. Experienced riders can volunteer to train and tame the animals, and those who don’t ride can help with fundraisers and grooming. Anyone can sponsor a horse through the TROTT website for $10, $25 or $50 per month. Bonnie explains, “Our only limit is the funding – we can’t take the horses if we don’t have the money to feed and care for them.”
And – Afleet Eagle is still up for adoption.
Singer A.J. Green Made a Wish, and the Stars and Producers Aligned
When asked what he did on his summer vacation, 18-year old Anthony “A.J.” Green’s response was unlike anything one might read in a first day of school essay: “I graduated high school, worked on my album that’s coming out in a week – Oh, and I sang for two Presidents. I almost forgot about that.”
The chancellor of A.J.’s high school, the Agassi Preparatory Academy in Las Vegas, Nevada, asked him to sing the National Anthem at the political rally for Senator Harry Reid being held at the school in June. Delivering the anthem with passion and confidence – though A.J. says the most important part of singing the anthem is “don’t forget the words” –won A.J. many admirers, including President Bill Clinton who quietly sang along. It also won A.J. the chance to sing for President Obama at another rally two weeks later.
However, after hearing about his whirlwind last two years, momentarily forgetting about singing the National Anthem for two Presidents is understandable. This kid works non-stop. At a recent L.A. Sparks game at the Staples Center, A.J. performed with several other acts, but the reaction of the 18,000 pre-teens was very different when he took the stage. Thousands of kids sitting in stands and waiting for acts to appear is a tough audience – they wiggle, they play, they make noise. Within two bars of A.J.’s first song, all 18,000 kids went quiet, their attention was focused on him. When he appeared at the end of the show to sing the National Anthem before the game, the audience thundered screams and applause.
Even though A.J. has been singing since he was a toddler, his story really began in 2008, when his doctor recommended him to the Make-A-Wish Foundation, best known for its work in making dreams come true for children with life-threatening illnesses. A.J. has Sickle Cell Disease. As he explains it, “A regular person’s blood cells look like a donut, but sickle cells have a crescent shape that makes them get caught in certain parts of the body.” When the blood cells get “caught,” the affected part of the body – the chest, legs, or arms – becomes very painful. “Imagine that as we sit here talking that someone is taking a sledgehammer and swinging as hard as they can at your arms and legs the whole time,” A.J. explains.
The Make-A-Wish Foundation accepted his application and went to work granting his wish – to spend a night in a Fantasy Suite at The Palms resort and casino in Las Vegas. Making a hotel reservation turned out to be an impossible wish to grant since the suites are reserved for years in advance. A.J. had to make another wish.
Growing up singing in his church choir and listening to gospel music with his family, A.J.’s second wish was to record two songs with legendary gospel music producer Steven Ford. While putting that project in motion, Make-A-Wish representatives heard A.J. sing and were so impressed with his talent and poise that they asked him to perform on the Foundation’s behalf at a number of events and showcases. After his second wish was granted, A.J. wanted to contribute to the Make-A-Wish cause and readily volunteered to sing at everything from fundraisers to board meetings. During one of these performances in 2009, a Hollywood talent agent in the audience spotted him.
The talent agent recommended AJ to her friend, music manager Steve Curliss, showing him a video of A.J. singing one song all the way through without even a microphone. It was a rough tape, but Curliss remembers “he sang Get Here if You Can flawlessly, just perfect.” Curliss sent the video to a few of his music industry connections and “within an hour, producers I had asked about other artists for months and months were emailing me back, telling me ‘whatever you need, we’ll do it.’ You know you have a hit on your hands when everything you have to work so hard for with other artists just happens easily.”
One of the producers Curliss approached with the project was Rob Chiarelli, one of the most sought-after mixing engineers and producers in the music business. According to Pam Green, A.J.’s mom, as soon as Rob Chiarelli heard A.J., “he was on the A.J. project.” Chiarelli has worked with superstars from Madonna to Ray Charles, and has contributed to dozens of gold and platinum albums and Grammy-winning motion picture soundtracks. But he wasn’t the only big name to volunteer to be part of the team.
With no record label or advertisers to restrict creativity, Curliss presented A.J.’s album as a chance for writers and musicians to stretch their talents, to do the songs they’ve been wanting to do, and create a sound on the cutting edge of the music scene – all while donating their time and work to help a talented young man enter the music industry. Producer Micah Wilshire (U.S. Top 20 Billboard Hit “Special”), Writer/Producer Jamie Houston (soundtracks for High School Musical, Bridge to Terabithia, What a Girl Wants), Writer/Producer Jaime Kyle (Faith Hill, Amy Grant, Journey, Heart), Jay King (Active Boys, Club Nouveau, Frost), Ron Harris of Talent Bootcamp, and world-famous string arranger Paul Buckmaster (David Bowie, Miles Davis, Elton John, Rolling Stones, and Celine Dion) all came on board for the project. One by one, they all said the same thing: “Whatever you need, count me in.”
Between Curliss and Chiarelli’s help and contacts, A.J. was able to go far beyond recording a couple of songs – they created an entire album that combines R&B, Pop, Rock, and contemporary Christian styles. “When people in the music business push the play button, they don’t expect to hear what comes out of the speakers. You don’t expect to hear an eighteen year old singing like this – the quality of the songs, the type of songs and medleys – it’s not being done in the music industry right now,” says Curliss. They titled A.J.’s debut album Whatever You Need.
Whatever You Need, is soon to be released online and through an exclusive retail campaign with WalMart. But, even when all the stars – and producers – align, making an album isn’t easy. A.J.’s Sickle Cell disease caused an attack, called a crisis, the night before he was to record the last song.
“I got a crisis the night before a studio session, so I had to sing through all that pain and medication. But I still pulled through. After I left the studio, I went to the hospital. It can last from weeks to months, and I never know when it’s going to happen.”
A.J. says his determination to succeed is what makes him fight to keep going, even singing through intense pain. His ultimate dream is to win a Grammy, but in the near future:
“I want to sit in my car, turn on the radio and be like, ‘that’s me!’”
It looks like A.J.’s third wish just might be granted, very soon.
