About
Sometimes stories do not begin with new ideas. They begin by asking new questions.
The Traveling Coin began that way.
Hi, I’m Kevin Kirk. Thank you for being here.
This project grew from a simple curiosity: what becomes possible when one person’s meaningful contribution inspires another, and then another? Could a single act of kindness travel farther than the person who started it? Could families, classrooms, and communities become connected through one shared journey of positive impact?
Those questions became the beginning of The Traveling Coin.
The Moment That Started the Questions
In 2013, after returning home from Afghanistan, I visited my family in Bethel, Connecticut. During that visit, my brother Ryan passed away.
Ryan had a quiet way of making meaningful contributions to other people’s lives. At his service, friends and family were invited to remember him by doing an act of kindness for someone else and sharing it on a Facebook memorial page called Letters for Ryan.
The response was beautiful. People helped neighbors, supported friends, and found simple ways to contribute.
Over time, though, the activity slowed and eventually stopped.
That led to a different question:
How could that giving spirit keep moving?
Asking What Could Come Next
I began wondering how far one meaningful action could travel if people had a way to see that their contribution mattered.
What if one person’s example could continue through other people?
What if families and classrooms could work together instead of acting alone?
What if a simple object could connect actions across distance and time, allowing people to become part of one shared story?
The Traveling Coin began to take shape through those questions.
The Idea Begins to Travel
The first concept was a coin that could be passed from one person or group to another after completing an act of contribution. The idea grew when I imagined giving every coin a unique number, allowing each one to have its own trackable journey.
The coin was never meant to be the destination. It was a way for people to see that their actions matter, that one contribution can inspire another, and that teamwork can create results no individual could produce alone.
A family could begin a journey. A classroom could continue it. A community could help it grow.
Meet Gus
Gus was my family’s beloved bulldog, and he became the natural guide for the story.
He was lovable, imperfect, curious, and full of heart. He was not a superhero, which is exactly why he belonged at the center of The Traveling Coin.
Gus wonders whether someone as ordinary as he is can make a difference. Along the way, he discovers that meaningful contribution does not require being the biggest, strongest, or most important person in the room.
It begins by noticing that you have something to offer and taking the first step.
That is what I hope children recognize in Gus—and in themselves.
From an Idea to a Children’s Book
Years after the original coin idea began, I was writing simple directions to help teachers introduce the experience in their classrooms. Two lines happened to rhyme, and I suddenly saw another possibility.
Maybe the best way to introduce this idea to families and educators was through a children’s story.
That moment became the beginning of The Traveling Coin: The Journey Begins.
The book gives children an inviting way to explore contribution, teamwork, belonging, and the idea that small actions can become part of something much larger.
Our Mission
The Traveling Coin helps families and communities create meaningful experiences together.
We want people to:
- Read together.
- Talk together.
- Plan together.
- Contribute together.
- Build shared memories.
- Recognize that every person has something meaningful to offer.
- Feel part of something larger than themselves.
This is not simply a story about doing something nice.
It is about helping children understand that they belong on the team, that their contribution matters, and that positive impact grows when people work together with shared purpose.
Building the Biggest Team the World Has Ever Seen
The long-term vision is to build the biggest team the world has ever seen.
Not the biggest audience.
Not the biggest company.
A team made up of families, classrooms, schools, libraries, businesses, and communities connected through shared contribution and positive impact.
Each person adds something different. Each group helps the journey continue. Every contribution becomes part of a story no one could create alone.
I do not see myself as the coach or Ieader, I am simply the first one on the team.
The real strength of The Traveling Coin will come from everyone who chooses to join.
The Organization Behind the Story
The Traveling Coin is the primary public-facing brand bringing this mission to families, educators, and communities through books, experiences, and eventually the traveling coins themselves.
Make a Wave is the organization supporting the broader vision and helping create opportunities for the project to grow.
Join the Journey
Whether you are reading together at home, sharing the story in a classroom, introducing it through a library, supporting it through a local business, or simply looking for a meaningful way to bring people together, there is a place for you on this team.
You do not need to do something extraordinary.
You only need to bring what you have, contribute where you can, and help the journey continue.
Welcome to The Traveling Coin.
We are glad you are here, and we cannot wait to see where the story travels next.