About Us

Our story

Connecting people in need directly with donors — and removing the middle man.

Our story

From a public-health ethics paper to a global platform

kindMANkind was conceived in Boston in 2018 as a final term paper for a public-health ethics class on individual and social responsibility for health. It outlined a strategy for global humanitarian aid that didn’t require a middle man — connecting those most in need directly with donors through online profiles and a network of trackable, refillable, encrypted donation cards, leveraging ever-improving global internet access and cell-phone ownership.

It came to life in Atlanta in 2019. Working downtown, co-founder Dr. Hess saw patients unable to finish cancer treatment because of relatively inexpensive social barriers — transportation, medication costs, or homelessness — and saw the benefit of a platform for peer-to-peer, trackable aid. By making charity part of the shared digital economy, kindMANkind empowers charities and charitable individuals to aim their aid and follow the progress of those they help.

kindMANkind in the field
Our team

The people behind kindMANkind

Clay Hess

Clay Hess

Co-Founder & President

kindMANkind hopes to change humanitarian aid as we know it — bringing it into the shared economy, removing the middle man, and linking people in need directly to individuals who want to help and to know the impact of their charity.

Bachelor of HumanitiesMaster of Public HealthDoctor of MedicineOncology · Global Health
San Francisco
Sarah Jung Hess

Sarah Jung Hess

Co-Founder · Marketing & Brand Strategy

kindMANkind reminds us that through our collective humanity we can help anyone — near or far — and that our mutual stories connect us all.

Bachelor of PsychologyMaster of Race TheoryCorporate PhilanthropyYouth Homelessness · Brand Strategy
Boston, California & Atlanta
Ed Park

Ed Park

Director, Finance & Business Strategy

kindMANkind uniquely addresses sustainability and scalability challenges in homelessness — giving anyone the opportunity to work toward a job, a meal, and a place to stay.

Bachelor of Applied MathMaster of Business AdministrationCorporate & Product DevelopmentStrategic Planning
Boston
Ilbum Kwak

Ilbum Kwak

Director, Technology

kindMANkind is a tool for anyone — or any non-profit, shelter, or church — to simply aid their at-risk populations and improve retention and involvement of the processes they already have in place.

Bachelor of PhilosophyChief Technology OfficerPoverty & Homeless AdvocateMachine Learning · Data Science
San Francisco
Ryan Barrett

Ryan Barrett

Director, Media & Photography

By innovating and leveraging technology, kindMANkind strengthens connections in the community to strategically drive action.

Bachelor of ScienceEnvironmental StudiesMaster of GeoscienceGeospatial · Urban Planning
Atlanta
The organization

Originally AccessHUMANITY

kindMANkind offers peer-to-peer crowdfunding humanitarian aid services that raise, distribute, target, and track individual aid and impact. Originally AccessHUMANITY, a non-profit incorporated in Atlanta, the charity is now kindMANkind, based in the San Francisco Bay Area, with 501(c)(3) IRS tax-exempt status filing in process.

Help us change how humanitarian aid works

Give aid you can track, get the support you need, or join the team building it.