11 Things You Should Know About Ben Kassoy

Name and pronouns?

Ben Kassoy (he/him)

Where are you from?

Bexley, Ohio

What do you do (at DoSomething)?

Editor-in-chief

1. What’s your pet cause?

Oof, tough one right off the bat. I’ll go with youth voter registration because it affects allll the causes, all the time, forever.

2. Who or what is guaranteed to make you laugh?

My sisters! Mal’s constantly changing Twitter names (Mal Gore, Paul Blart Mal Cop, etc.) are unreal. Jess sends me quotes not from Anchorman but from Will Ferrell’s interludes on the Anchorman soundtrack. And they both send me the silliest photos and videos of my nieces, Bea and Tillie. Nonstop laughter.

With my sisters and lil' niecebabies.

3. What's something that you watch, read, or listen to to make you feel inspired?

The two books that most inspire my freelance writing are Beauty Was the Case That They Gave Me by Mark Leidner and They Can’t Kill Us Until They Kill Us by Hanif Abdurraqib. I also listen to “The Climb” by Miley Cyrus. Don’t @ me.

4. What’s your guilty pleasure?

Six-hour karaoke marathons with my DoSomething coworkers...and honestly, sometimes just with Anthony.

5. What do people usually come to you for help with?

Romantic troubles for sure. Also the difference between “less” and “fewer.”

My DoSomething podmates, Anthony and Sharon...but no Valeria unforch!

6. What is your most overused emoji?

Tie between the facepalm (shame!) and the cat with the heart eyes (love!).

7. What takes up too much of your time?

Listening to The Rewatchables podcast, especially The Godfather episode, over and over.

8. What silly accomplishment or hidden talent are you most proud of?

I'm not sure I'm "proud" of this, but I once starred in a bus safety video that was (and honestly, maybe still is?) played in every public school in Ohio.

My body can no longer do this.

9. What’s something you know way too much about?

The movie Grease. I even write about my Grease conspiracy theories and have been known to hand jive for hours.

10. What's the biggest change you'd like to see in the world in the next five years?

Immediate, enormous, and systemic climate action. Also, Zion Williamson winning MVP and being named Poet Laureate.

11. What’s your favorite DoSomething memory or tradition?

Ugh, so many, but if I had to choose it’d be my first DoSomething sabbatical, in Japan. Or my second one, in Johannesburg. Or...my third one, in Nairobi.