Mindful Littles, founded by Orinda’s Tanuka Gordon 10 years ago, gets children in the habit of volunteering at a young age – and here, Orinda kids have traveled to the North State Food Bank in Butte County to get hands-on experience in tackling food insecurity.
For Orinda mother of two Tanuka Gordon, the seed that eventually grew into Mindful Littles was planted while she was working in the tech and user experience sector nearly a decade ago.
“I’d become a sponge for the research on child development and the research behind how you equip children with the tools and skills to become more confident, stronger humans,” said Gordon. “And there was tons of research, not only around mindfulness and social-emotional learning, but also around service, and service learning.”
When Gordon sought volunteering opportunities with her two young daughters, then five- and two-years-old, and found that not only were they “extremely challenging to find for young children,” but they were also difficult to manage for the non-profits who ran them.
Gordon also noticed a gap in volunteering options for elementary age children, an issue also touched upon in the research she’d read.
“My whole mission was, I wanted service to be part of our everyday life,” she said. “You carve those neural circuits from that early age, and the outcomes will lead to not just social, emotional and mental health success in our children, but academic success, community success.”
Gordon realized the untapped potential of engaging children’s natural and authentic playfulness and delight in age-appropriate, accessible situations brought “right to your school, right to your backyard, right to your church.”
The non-profit Mindful Littles has established mutually beneficial partnerships with food banks, children’s hospitals and more, presenting educational video content about issues such as food insecurity that are easily integrated into schools and other child-centered environments.
“When you are learning about food insecurity, it’s ‘one out of five families are food insecure’,” explained Gordon. “Children will get math. They’ll get to learn about fractions; they’ll get to learn about decimals.”
Then children get to employ self-agency, along with what they’ve picked up through the Mindful Littles’ learning platform, to participate in hands-on service projects.
One of those projects was diaper-bundling for families in need, held on Dec. 5 at Orinda Community Center before the city’s Winterfest. Ninety-six hundred diapers went out to three agencies, thanks to a project that Gordon says was perfectly age-appropriate for the kids
participating.
Mindful Littles has also tackled an issue with a larger scope: The aftermath of the Camp Fire, the deadliest in California’s history.
The Peace Kits for Paradise project, administered through the Orinda Union School District, provided 1,800 kits, containing stress-easing items such as gratitude journals and weighted eye pillows, to local children in the fire-devastated town of Paradise. Orinda children hand-delivered the kits during a field trip to the recovering community.
It was a support effort that continued despite the pandemic, and one that has come full circle, as Gordon shared that team leaders who participated in the Paradise project, fifth graders at the time, went on to launch the first Mindful Littles Club at Miramonte High School.
It’s the connections and impact made through addressing both local and larger scale need that perpetuates the feel-good, do-good loop, says Gordon. She spoke of Mindful Littles’ corporate programs, which involve collaboration with companies, big or small, on projects that further Mindful Littles’ mission and goals.
A partnership with a large manufacturing company, for instance, has allowed the organization to donate dozens of hand-built, redwood “buddy benches” to Lamorinda area schools, as well as schools in Mount Diablo Unified, San Francisco, Oakland and even Paradise.
“We’ve been collaborating with Tanuka and Mindful Littles for a few years now,” said Todd Trimble, Director of Orinda Parks and Recreation. The successful partnership and the common goal shared by the organization and Parks & Rec help ensure the support and growth of the youngest members of the community.
“Their interactive carnival-style games and activities have been very well received during events such as our summer concerts in the park and the annual Orinda Action Day event,” said Trimble. “They have also collaborated with our Orinda Teen Advisory Council by providing teen support for both Parks & Rec and Mindful Little activities and events.”
Looking forward, Gordon is currently working on outreach to schools and expressed her intention to make sure that Mindful Littles sticks around for the long term. She also highlighted the importance of coaching teachers, parent leaders and teens in supporting the sustainability of the organization.
“I’ve always said it’s a marathon,” she said.
