A woman at a Starbucks’ drive-thru in Seattle offered to buy the drink for the customer in-line behind her, leaving behind a simple “happy holidays” wish before she sped off quickly down the street. From this first random act of kindness at 8:00am on Wednesday began a chain of 489 more until 8:00am the next morning.
Stranger after stranger, doing their part to spread good ol’ kindness in the drive-thru and inside lobby line-ups. Together, they set the unofficial world “Pay It Backward” record of 490 within a 24 hour period.
World Records are Meant to Fall
Andrew said it best in the introductory post, “Records are set so that someone might one day aspire to beat them.”
This record in particular inspires us to push ourselves and the people around us - that means you - just a little more to showcase our Toronto. In fact, we think it will warrant us the title of the ‘Do Good’ Capital of the World.
All We Need is 490, +1. No oddities, no questions, and no spins.
It’s more than buying the person behind you a coffee. It’s putting a smile on their face. It’s saying hello. It’s doing something kind.
To Recap the Deets
What: A record-breaking day for good deeds (more than 500 “pay it backward” coffee buys). When: April 4th @ 1 p.m. (the festivities will kickoff at noon and we will be storming the gates at 1 p.m. sharp). Where: Second Cup at the corner of Queen St. & John St. in Toronto (beside MuchMusic). View Larger Map
How: Add your name here to confirm your attendance and get the latest news on “pibTO” as it comes available. Why: Because doing some good feels pretty freakin’… well… GOOD!
Every historic moment needs a soundtrack. Pay it Backward Day is no exception which is why we’re thrilled to have FLOW 93.5 on board as #pibTO’s official Entertainment Sponsor!
This Saturday (oh my are we close), FLOW will be setting up shop with their always-entertaining goodies (music + personalities) at the Second Cup on the corner of Queen & John St. I was going to write “be sure to stop by the FLOW tent”, but knowing that crew, they’ll be hard to miss.
For those still asking about start times, FLOW will be curing hangovers beginning at noon and, as we’ve said all along, the first backward coffee buy will be happening at 1:00:01 pm.
Not sure about you, but I’m stoked with all kinds of awesomesauce!
With Pay It Backward Day only 10 days away now, we wanted to make sure you had access to all of the wonderful things available for you to help spread the word.
I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again - it’s the one thing that geeks and girl scouts have in common… badges! Thanks to the great work of designer Tiffany Shum and our own Verne Ho, we’ve now got lots of badges for you to download. You’ll also notice they’ve given the event a snazzy looking new logo.
You may also have come across our Facebook event page. We’re doing the official RSVP for the event through Facebook, so be sure you’ve added yourself to it. You can also use it to post any questions or comments, as well as invite your friends and family to the April 4 event! Click here to see the Facebook event!
Let us know if you have any other ideas or requests.
A couple months back I was presented with an opportunity to organize a great charity event in Toronto called TwestivalTO. The first “Twestival”, or “Twitter festival”, was held in London, England this past September. The party raised money for a local charity, and was such a success that the organizers decided to do it on a global scale. On February 12th, 2009, cities all around the world held their Twestivals for charity: water (the charity of choice), with global sponsors like Amiando and TipJoy as well as organizers in cities from NYC to Paris to Toronto. Sarah Prevette and I were lucky enough to play a leading role in Toronto’s participation and the experience was something I’ll never forget.
In the end, Twestival went down on February 12th in over 120 cities around the world. The Toronto event was a huge success – nearly 600 people attended and we raised over $10,000 for charity: water. Suffice it to say that I saw, first-hand, how a great event for a great cause can move Torontonians to care for, give to, and help the people around them. When I was presented with the opportunity to get involved with Pay It Backward Day, naturally, I said yes!
You can expect some of the same magic that we saw from TwestivalTO, back again with Pay It Backward TO. I’ve managed to wrangle in a few of the magicians from Twestival (@casiestewart and @skanwar) and recruit a few more of my favourite web personalities. Toronto has pulled off events like this before (TwestivalTO for example) and I’m really hoping that with Pay It Backward Day, we can solidify this city as one of the world’s most active and kind.
I think it’s fair to say that most people have heard of “paying it forward”. Well, “paying it backward” isn’t as big a stretch as you might have guessed. At the end of the day, it’s still about sending good deeds to random people for no other reason than the hope they might pass it onwards.
That being said… we had a few logistical questions that came up in conversation and we thought it best to put them down on paper.
Our Top 3 FAQs…
Does it have to be 500 (+) coffee buys in a row? You bet it does! A good deed is a good deed with or without a world record, but since we’re shooting for the record, we’re hoping to have over 500 consecutive coffee buys without interruption.
Does it have to be coffee? No. If you’re craving a caramel macchiato (I do not pretend to know what that means), you’re welcome to it. If the person if front of you only brought a twoonie, well let’s just say - Daily Challenge will help with the whip cream.
Seriously, what time does it ACTUALLY start? We’re storming the doors at the stroke of 1pm. That being said, there will be plenty of action in the hour leading up to our first coffee buy. Rest assured, if you’re there at noon you’ll be entertained. For goodness sake though - don’t aim to be later than 1! Consecutive coffee buys are a tough gig when we’re all fashionably late!
If there are any other lingering questions (I’m sure there are), feel free to write them in the comments and we’ll be sure to explain them the best we can.
Recently, a world record was set in Mexico City. Nearly 40,000 people gathered in the city’s huge central plaza to lock lips in the name of peace this past Valentine’s Day. At first, it had been an act organized in response to the rising drug violence in Mexico that claimed over 6000 lives last year - although the tipping point may have been when the local mayor tried to ban kissing in the public square.
Whatever way you slice it - there were reasons abound propelling this record to fall. And fall it did. Previously, the record had been set in Britain when 32,648 kissed simultaneously in a seaside town West of London.
Two Saturdays from now - Toronto will have the same kind of opportunity. Pay It Backward Toronto isn’t about driving coffee sales and believe it or not, it isn’t just about world records. It’s about being kind. What I’m looking forward to the most, are the hundreds of moments where one person will turn to the next and say “May I get this for you?”
Daily Challenge member, Jenny Foster, wrote us and expressed her enthusiasm for Pay It Backward Day; and being a dedicated and forward-thinking Do Gooder, also voiced her concern about the possible environmental impact of the event. Thank you, Jenny!
So let’s hear everyone’s ideas in how we can make PIB Day a green event! Here are some of the more obvious options:
Bring a reusable cup.
If you don’t have a washable takeout mug, recycle.
Carpool with friends.
Take transit.
Please share how you plan to reduce your carbon footprint for the PIB Day event!
For all of us social media junkies out there - it’s that time - the time for everything-you-could-ever-need-to-know-about Pay It Backward Day!
We’re quite sure that all y’all will snap away with cameras and tag whatever you please, but if you’d be kind enough to include “pibTO” among those tags, we’d be ever so grateful.
For the Twitterverse - you can follow @doonegood for real time updates and subscribe to the #pibTO feed to get all the good stuff in one spot.
For the social networkers among us (I suppose in 2009, we’re all just known as “people” by now), the event attendance and updates are being conducted on Facebook right about… here.
And for the very thorough… you can find the Daily Challenge Video Archives here and the Photo Gallery here.
If you have some additional places where you like to hide things, don’t hesitate to leave us a comment and a map to get there.
It’s true. Records are set so that we might aspire to do better. So that we have a threshold worth crossing. To inspire us to do a little more, be a little greater, and etch our legacy a little deeper into history.
At Daily Challenge we understand that we’re lucky. We have a network of people within earshot - all of whom have something propelling them to do such things as break a world record. So that’s just what we’re going to do!
It’s official now. On April 4th at 1 p.m.sharp, the single longest “pay it backward” coffee line will begin at Second Cup on Queen and John Streets in Toronto. If you’re wondering “what in the heck is a ‘pay it backward’ coffee line?” then you may want to check out the first daily challenge we ever released.
Partners & Sponsors
We’re also pleased to announce that the Second Cup franchise, where we’ll be hosting the event, will be donating 50% of all proceeds to the SickKids Foundation! We couldn’t be happier to have found a business willing to match the compassion of our “Do Gooder” network, and to have the beneficiary be a local charity. We’re also excited to have the Freestyle Soccer team on board and will keep you posted as more day-of entertainment rolls in (stay tuned to our events page).
Back to the record for a moment. Our team of dedicated researchers (i.e. the google) has discovered a world record of 490 “pay it backward” coffee buys. Please make sure you come out and help put Toronto in the books for good (I love puns!). You can confirm your attendance through our Facebook event and get the latest news on our event page.
To recap all the need-to-knows…
What: A record-breaking day for good deeds (more than 500 “pay it backward” coffee buys). When: April 4th @ 1 p.m. (the festivities will kickoff at noon and we will be storming the gates at 1 p.m. sharp). Where: Second Cup at the corner of Queen St. & John St. in Toronto (beside MuchMusic). View Larger Map
How: Add your name here to confirm your attendance and get the latest news on “pibTO” as it comes available. Why: Because doing some good feels pretty freakin’… well… GOOD!
This is the official blog for Do Gooders. It is the vehicle for the Daily Challenge story and the tool to get you directly involved in the project so you can become part of the story, too.
Daily Challenge member, 
