“Keep your eyes open,”Caitlin Crosby said on TEDxBEND, “There are locks all around you and maybe you hold the key to someone else’s freedom.” Caitlin Crosby was raised by her entertainment manager father and her actress/model mother in Beverly Hills, Calif. Crosby herself never felt that comfortable in the entertainment world, but ended up becoming an actress and singer/songwriter.
While trying to sell her own music she started making necklaces with old keys. She would have them engraved with words like Love, Faith, Hope, Dream and Strength. She ended up selling more necklaces than CDs.
Crosby wanted there to be some sort of charitable side to her jewelry business. One day in Los Angeles, Crosby noticed a homeless couple holding a sign that said, “Ugly, broke and hungry.” Crosby decided to take the couple, Rob and Cera, to dinner and she found out that Cera likes to make jewelry. Crosby immediately had an epiphany and asked them to be part of her business. That business became “Giving Key,” and Rob and Cera started working the next day. They would eventually have enough money for a place to live and were both taking GED classes. Rob would later get a 99 on his GED exam.
The key necklaces were becoming very popular and the connection to the homeless was needed. They partnered up with The United Way and (PATH) People Assisting the Homeless, a transitional home in Los Angeles helping the homeless ready to change their lives. More employees were needed to make all the necklaces, bracelets and rings, so they reached out to a non-profit organization called Chrysalis, which helps the homeless and low-income find jobs and keep them.
They are asked all the time where the keys come from. The answer is eBay, key sourcing trips, estate sales and some donations. One woman told a story of how she lost her husband at the age of 53. He was a loved father, son, husband and volunteer to the homeless. He always kept old keys from homes they had lived in and from many rental properties. She described him as a treasure hunter. The wife decided to donate all of her husband’s keys to The Giving Keys. She said, “Keys represent doors being opened.”
The bottom line is that by employing only those transitioning out of homelessness, The Giving Keys purpose is to give people who want it, a second chance and then pass along their success in this jewelry with a message. When someone receives a giving key, they accept it knowing that one day they will give it away to someone who needs the message more. They are paying it forward.
Crosby said on the giving keys website, “In a way we are all like these keys – unique, flawed, scarred, and at risk of being discarded.” Giving Key repurpose keys just like the lives of the homeless.
The Giving Key’s are available in over 500 retail stores in the United States. You can visit their website and find a store near you or order online. You can also visit the website to read the success stories of the homeless and the touching pay it forward stories.
@amy_held93
