Some believe there’s no greater risk in life than pursuing your passion. It’s authentic. It’s precious. It’s sexy, maybe, but most of all, it’s personal, so therefore, it’s meaningful. But what happens when you infuse humility, empathy, tenderness and kindness into the mix… passion turns to compassion, and the power of these two weaving together often manifests itself into something beautiful and sometimes memorable.

Recently, I stumbled upon such a tale. Toasted Life, a creative Bay Area lifestyle and event brand, in partnership with R.A.K.E. (Random Acts of Kindness Everywhere), a non-profit organization known for its viral exploits of doing good for the sake of goodness, jammed laughter, silliness and community together at a senior citizen and rehabilitation residence in San Francisco for a pop-up prom consisting of surprises, diabetic cookies and competitive bingo.

Sounds tame, right? Not even. Truthfully, you couldn’t tell who the kids were and where the seasoned adults went.There was a DJ, who played, of course, a little Juvenile set, encouraging listeners to back their [wheelchairs] up. This party also had Soul Train dance lines and dabbing, and I’m pretty sure there were great-granddaddies wishing that they were young men again, even if just for a few moments.

But why? As Ricky Smith, R.A.K.E. founder, suggested, there is indeed something powerful when a stranger, a person with absolutely no connections to another, steps outside their own comfort zone to make someone else’s hour or day a bit brighter with a smile — or an inflatable banjo in this case.

For Toasted Life founders Matt Tuffuor and Warren Jones, in addition to fostering good deeds, the idea of a party at a senior home was two-fold: (1) to continue their efforts to craft and promote events that interest young, savvy millennial professionals and (2) to allow their creativity to build a real sense of community for its members. Be on the lookout for similar Toasted Life events in the Bay Area, Chicago, Atlanta and other cities in the near future.

pop-up prom

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