One man gives 1000+ upcycled costumes away each Halloween in Austin

Published 6 days ago • 4 min read

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Welcome to today's edition of The Good – a gentle pause in your day, filled with beauty, kindness, and inspiration. Each morning, we gather little reminders of what’s good in the world and place them in your inbox.

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HOW ONE MAN TOOK THRIFT-STORE FINDS AND CREATED A COMMUNITY TRADITION

Every fall in Austin, Christophe Waggoner turns thrifted treasures into Halloween magic. As the Washington Post shares, the 62-year-old spends all year collecting, cleaning, and repairing thousands of Halloween costumes for his annual “October’s Child” event to give back to his community. Kids, adults, and even dogs can pick out free costumes that feel brand new. What began in his garage has grown into a joyful tradition that brings color, creativity, and care to families across the city.

For Waggoner, it’s about more than Halloween. It’s about dignity, imagination, and belonging. A representation that kindness can take many forms, even a hand-stitched cape or a mended dress. Through every costume he revives, he proves that generosity, like joy, is something you can make with your own two hands.

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THE COMPANY PROVING PROFIT AND PURPOSE CAN THRIVE TOGETHER

When Nick Green co-founded Thrive Market, he wasn’t chasing a business trend, he was honoring his roots. As he shared on Culture Leaders Daily, watching his mom struggle to afford healthy food became the seed for a mission: to make sustainable living accessible to everyone. That vision shaped Thrive’s non-zero-sum approach, where doing good and doing well go hand in hand through free memberships for families in need, zero-waste fulfillment centers, and carbon-neutral shipping.

A decade in, Thrive Market has become a case study in conscious capitalism, showing how purpose and profit can strengthen one another. For Green, the lesson is simple but transformative: when a company stays anchored in its “why,” culture thrives, people align, and impact becomes inevitable.

HOW TO MAKE YOUR HEALTH A DAILY ACT OF SELF-RESPECT

One of the most powerful things women can do for their long-term well-being is surprisingly simple: make themselves a priority. According to Rutgers Health, between work, caregiving, and community, it’s easy for personal health to slip down the list, but consistent, preventive care can change everything. From nourishing your body with whole foods and movement to scheduling regular screenings for cancers that often go unnoticed, intentional choices add up to protection, energy, and peace of mind.

The heart of the message is one of empowerment, not pressure. Health is about mindful awareness, self-respect, and staying connected to your own body. Whether that means a morning walk, a balanced meal, or finally booking that mammogram, caring for yourself is the foundation that allows you to care for everyone else and to thrive, not just get through the year.

THE VITAMIN SHOWING PROMISE IN HEALING THE BRAIN

Researchers in Japan may have found a way to help the brain heal itself. As reported by SciTechDaily, scientists at the Shibaura Institute of Technology have developed new vitamin K compounds that can generate neurons up to three times more effectively than the natural form. By combining vitamin K with retinoic acid, the team discovered a way to not only boost neuron growth but also help these compounds cross the blood-brain barrier, offering real potential to slow or even reverse damage from neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s.

The discovery is still in its early stages, but its promise feels profound. It suggests that the brain’s capacity for renewal may be greater than we thought, and that healing could one day come from reawakening the body’s own intelligence. Science is reminding us, yet again, of the quiet hope embedded in the natural world: sometimes the smallest molecules can spark the biggest repair.

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A PASSPORT MADE OF PAGES

For readers who dream in maps, this curated guide from Teaspoon of Adventure gathers 38 modern travel reads to fuel your wanderlust. Author Riana Ang-Canning favors books where ordinary people chase big journeys, often across multiple countries, and let us into the heart of it. The list spans around-the-world odysseys (Jen Ruiz, Jessica Nabongo), moving memoirs (Tembi Locke, Trevor Noah), delicious food-forward titles (Michelle Zauner, Stanley Tucci), family gap-year adventures, European love letters, and breezy fiction that leaves you sun-warmed and suitcase-ready.

The throughline is connection. These stories remind us that travel can start at the page, expanding our sense of possibility, nudging us toward kinder curiosity, and helping us see our own lives with fresh light. If you’re craving a spark, this booklist doubles as a flight plan.

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