Hunt For Good 2021

START AS A FAN

The Simple Good (TSG) was founded by a rockstar of a woman named Priya Shah. Priya’s passion for social entrepreneurship and philanthropy has led her and TSG to the spotlight since it’s founding in 2011. Priya has also been recognized as a Forbes 30 U 30 finalist, TEDx Speaker, model, artist, and more. TSG is based here in Chicago, but has a reach worldwide through a language we can all appreciate and relate to in our own way: art. TSG embraces the mission of connecting the meaning of “good” from around the world to empower youth to bring positivity into communities through art and discussion. Through social emotional learning and mindfulness based youth art programming and public art projects, TSG transcends the message that no matter where you go in the world, good means the same to all of us – and that is what connects us as human beings. Boom, mic drop.
TSG partners with schools and students all around Chicago with their Art Residency Program that combines mediation, self-awareness, global consciousness, art expression and relationship building to foster positivity within these students, empowering them to become change makers and mindful leaders in the future. What an incredible concept. We, your Reach community, have engaged with TSG over the years by going to art showcases to listen to these kids and experience their artwork. We are increasingly convinced of the power of this outlet for students to express themselves and make commitments to themselves and their classmates in such a positive light, and we, your Reach community, are big, big fans.

DO WHAT YOU CAN

Every June, TSG organized their Annual Hunt For Good. This fundraiser is SUCH A BLAST! What a cool city Chicago is…but with all the hustle and bustle this city introduces to our lives, we sometimes miss chances to appreciate the culture and expression every corner of every block really has. This fundraiser does exactly that in the best way. We all gather together in small groups and are tasked with a scavenger hunt for art around Chicago. Art takes many forms as we all know, and each year this Hunt For Good embraces many of them: from physical art work to graffiti to murals, from doing good deeds for strangers to doing your best yoga pose to looking up at the shapes of the clouds. We always complete the Hunt for Good feeling refreshed, energized and inspired as music and good times are always thrown into the mix, and with a leader like Priya leading the way reminding us the greater purpose here, it’s an event we really rev up for each year.
I personally appreciate the goal of this fundraiser, that really hits home the overall mission of TSG. Growing up, my dad always encouraged me to “do something good for somebody today” as I ran off to school each day. I never appreciated that enough at the time, how powerful a mindset like that can be for the world around us. Especially now, stepping beyond the past year of trying times with COVID, social unrest, the battle of inequalities…it has been a time easy to find hate, anger, sadness and frustration with the hand the world is dealing us, and how we as communities around the world are responding to it. As a Reach team, we continuously remind ourselves though, that we all need to do what we can to push for good, acknowledge the positivity, and latch on to those being a part of the solution rather than a part of the problem. Easier said than done, but it’s important to admit that none of us can do it all – we all pick and choose with whom and where we focus our time, treasure and talent every day. Our commitment as the Reach community is that we just do what we can. This could be as simple as listening and allowing our perspective to expand, which frankly might be the most underrated quality I’ve learned recently. Incredibly valuable! Or maybe we jump in and attend Hunt For Good to support TSG’s awesome mission. Who knows, maybe some of us push on and join some of these nonprofit associate boards and directly impact to day to day successes of these sweet organizations. Whatever our choices bring us, we should keep challenging ourselves to do what we can.
 

Our IMPACT WILL EXPAND

TSG mission and impact continues to expand, yes with a lot of hard work, but also by allowing all of those involved or in support of this mission of bringing more good and positivity to the world to grow. We all like to do good. It helps others, it helps ourselves, and it helps our community be better than we found it. This Hunt for Good has grown over the years and the impact of the fundraiser, and TSG as a whole has continued to spread its wings. We see TSG traveling worldwide to spread good all over the country, and all over the world, through art and through students in need of this outlet. For kids to have the opportunity to safely and positively reflect on their lives and hardships through art and discussion is a true gift. For those that have participated in one of TSG art showcases to engage with these students, you’ve experienced this first hand. For those that have not, I highly recommend you join us next time to check this out.

The power of kindness and joy sounds cheesy when we talk about it, but it just never fails. Everyone wants to be heard, everyone wants to matter, and everyone wants to be included. Through listening, through volunteering, through attending a fundraiser or event…we all jump into the joy and kindness that nonprofits like TSG derive. It’s electric and contagious. I personally get my energy, joy, and happiness through my people, though. So rather than just me deciding to volunteer, join a fundraiser or event, I like to loop in my people: my family, my friends, my friends’ friends, and on it goes. The more cool people I get to expose to a broadened perspective of Chicago, give their time, treasure and talent to making our Chicago better…that’s a big Win because that’s a heck of a lot more impact than I could ever accomplish on my own.
That’s the name of the game friends, and that’s the whole point of why we all jump in through Chicago Reach. Learn, start as a fan, do whatever is it that we can, and bring our people together as collectively our impact expands. TSG does exactly that through fundraisers like Hunt for Good, and we love to be a support system for them in carrying out their mission. Hunt for Good raised thousands and thousands of dollars, all going to giving these students the means to express themselves and the good in their lives through art and discussion. That’s a cool thing TSG just did this past weekend, and we were a part of that. WE DID THAT. That was cool. On to today 🙂
Your dear friend,

Charlie Hoover
Founder, Chicago Reach