We’re excited to announce the winner of our September, 2026 Matt Kurtz Kindness Grant for his wonderful kindness project. The grant was given by Matt’s Kindness Ripples On (MKRO), an organization that encourages acts of kindness by helping people who have ideas for kindness projects but lack the funding to follow through on those ideas.
Congratulations to Samuel Kim!
He will receive a grant to help fund his acts of kindness project!
One Arrow at a Time
I’m always amazed at the incredibly creative ways people choose to make a difference. Some organize food drives. Some build wheelchair ramps. Some make blankets for children in hospitals. And then every once in a while, someone surprises me with an idea I never would have imagined.
Meet Samuel Kim (Englewood Cliffs, NJ). A high school student, but don’t let that fact fool you. He has a vision, a huge heart and a perspective on connection we can all learn from.
Samuel looked at a bow and arrow and saw something far beyond a sport. He saw a way to bring joy, confidence and connection back into the lives of older adults.
The idea was born, as so many wonderful things are, from love. Samuel watched his beloved grandmother struggle with the isolation and fog that comes with cognitive decline. He saw how much a calm, social, hands-on activity could lift her spirit and help her engage with the world around her.
That experience planted a seed. Instead of simply wishing there were more activities available for seniors, Samuel created one. He founded Aim for Unity, a student-led nonprofit that brings free archery-based wellness workshops to senior centers throughout New Jersey.
At first, I have to admit, I wondered, “Seniors…and archery?” But then I learned more. The arrows aren’t traditional arrows; they’re tipped with Velcro, making the activity fun and safe. More importantly, archery isn’t just about hitting a target; it’s a form of active meditation. It requires you to slow down, take a deep breath, steady your hands, focus your mind and believe you can do it.
Can you imagine being in your eighties or nineties, drawing back a bow, releasing the arrow and hearing it hit the target? I imagine there are a lot of smiles in those rooms. Samuel certainly does everything he can to make sure of it.
What makes Aim for Unity so special is how they meet seniors where they are. They bring the experience right into New Jersey senior centers, all the portable targets, bows and even specialized resistance bands to help loosen stiff joints. They provide arm guards that protect the thinner, more fragile skin of older adults from the bowstring. This helps participants feel safe and confident trying something completely new.
Every detail has been thoughtfully considered. What makes this program special isn’t the bows or the targets—it’s the confidence it builds, the smiles it creates and the unexpected connections that grow between teenagers and older adults.
When we talk about “kindness ripples,” this is exactly what it looks like. As Samuel says, the ripple flows both ways: the seniors gain confidence, movement and a social network, while the student-volunteers learn what it means to truly show up for the generation before them.
Sometimes we talk about bridging generations as though it requires some grand solution. Samuel reminds us that sometimes all it takes is a shared activity and people willing to spend time together.
Since launching the program, Samuel and his team of 19 trained student volunteers have already led more than 30 workshops, serving over 600 seniors across 12 New Jersey senior centers.
Who would have thought that a bow, a Velcro-tipped arrow and a group of caring students could help reduce loneliness?
Samuel did.
This grant is given in honor of Matt Kurtz, (1985-2017), a young man whose personal philosophy was to live an honorable, compassionate and non-judgmental life. To give for the sake of giving, to expect nothing in return, to be aware of the world around him and to step in to help others without being asked whenever he saw the need. Matt believed in the ripple effect of a simple act of kindness – like a pebble dropped in water, it goes on and on. You can find out more about how Matt lived his life, examples of his many acts of kindness, big and small, and why this grant was created on MattsKindnessRipplesOn.com.
