King of Kindness, Misha Collins turns 45 today! What better way to celebrate than to share all the reasons you should love him too. Check out our staff list below and add your own comments to honor this angel of a man.
GISH
Just in case you didn’t know, Misha is the creator of GISH, The Great International Scavenger Hunt – Formerly GISHWHES, Greatest International Scavenger Hunt the World Has Ever Seen. GISH began in 2011 and serves as a way to raise money for charitable causes while prompting participants to perform wild stunts all in the name of sharing kindness with the world. You can find more information about GISH on their website.
- Misha has used his platform to change the world. GISH is just one example of how he’s helped to change the world for the better.
- The things he has given people by creating GISH are amazing. For myself and many others, GISH was an opportunity to get creative, get back to crafting, painting and of course to finding new ways to get involved with the community. – Conny
- Through GISH he helps inspire others to test and push their own personal limitations of what is possible. Every year I have accomplished at least one thing that I didn’t think I had the ability or talent to try. – Suzette
Random Acts
Random Acts is a charity co-founded by Misha and directed by the incredible Rachel Miner. According to the website, “Random Acts inspires many amazing things around the world every day — from small acts of kindness, such as inspiring someone to buy a stranger a cup of coffee, to much bigger acts of kindness like building a school in San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua.” The school is just one of the many ways Random Acts has made the world a better place.
- Misha is easily one of the kindest celebrities (and humans) out there. He is constantly talking about one philanthropic cause or another, tweets about how best the “average citizen” can get involved, and created Random Acts – his own charity. Misha’s selflessness inspires me every day to strive to be a little bit better, and a little bit kinder to those around me. – Brianna
- Random Acts has shown me and many others that you don’t need to donate a ton of money to charity to do good things, but to find new ways to contribute and give back. By living “one act of kindness” at the time, life has become so much more joyful. – Conny
- Random Acts works in conjunction with IMAlive.org – A virtual crisis support center – and has assisted with recruiting and training volunteer crisis responders who have helped people in crisis around the world. -Amanda B.
Treatment of Others
Misha lives by the idea that kindness makes a difference and his treatment of others reflects that. He has come to be a champion for the underrepresented and goes out of his way to show love to those around him. That’s not to say his humor and utter ridiculousness isn’t lovable too!
- He’s unpredictable, in a great way. He can switch from being absolutely sarcastic to being genuine and warm within seconds. At Meet & Greets with him, I’ve seen him so sincere and so funny at the same time, I really love that about him. – Conny
- Misha has shared so many amazing stories from his life that I never get bored listening to his adventures, but also his tales of overcoming hardship and finding silver linings where they might be difficult to see sometimes are inspiring. – Conny
- His complete lack of elitism. He appreciates people for who they are and their will to help others. He will appreciate you just for being you. – Emelie
- He instantly connects with people, it doesn’t matter if it’s through his cheeky humor or his plethora of life’s stories. It’s as if you’ve known him for years. – Rachel F
- He has a positive outlook on life. When things seem glum, he can usually find a silver lining. – Emelie
- Misha is unapologetically himself. In a world where so many people of varying ages and situations struggle to fit in and relate to each other, Misha leads by example just by being genuine. Being in his presence or listening to him speak just makes you want to believe that, of course, you can find your place in the world and your people are out there. Are you weird? Good, because all the best people are. – Nicki
- Misha’s love for his wife, Vicki. They have an amazing relationship and the fact that they have been together since high school tells you a lot about his loyalty and the love he has for Vicki. Their relationship is the foundation for everything Misha has accomplished and it is something other couples should try to emulate. – Michelle M.
- He has a great sense of humor. Even when he is the butt of the joke, Misha seems to enjoy making people laugh. – Suzette
- His refusal to follow someone blindly. If he doesn’t want to do something, there is nothing in the world that can making him do that thing. In a world where people work so hard to fit in, it is so refreshing to see him go his own way. – Emelie
- His openness. Misha’s willingness to welcome fans into his personal world always amazes me. He has shared stories about various adventures with Vicki, and some of the funny (and insightful) things from his children, West and Maison. To this day, his story about Maison’s “I wish for this” moment with a dandelion still inspires me to appreciate the little moments. -Brianna
- He makes it cool to be weird. It helps give the rest of us weirdos a place to belong. -Amanda B.
Political Activism
Misha is a fierce political activist and has no problem calling leaders out when they’re wrong and showing appreciation when they do what’s right. He’s inspired many to do the same.
- He’s not afraid to speak up on issues that are hard to talk about, simply take a gander through his Twitter page and you’ll find a rant on a political matter. He doesn’t stop there though, all that talk sparks action. – Rachel F
- His support of trans and non-binary folks. He is vocal about trans rights and being accepting. – Sam
- Misha is very vocal on multiple issues, but he has been a huge advocate for mental health awareness, he continues to use his platform and voice to speak up and help stop the stigma that comes with mental illness. -Kailin
Poetry/Literature
Many of his fans have developed a new appreciation for poetry as a result of his Instagram stories where he shares various poets work with the world.
- l know that Misha is a published author but I love how he is always sharing his love of literature with us.
- His poetry! Not everyone knows that Misha is a published, and very talented, poet. He often shares that love for poetry via Instagram stories, reading an original poem or one that has resonated with him recently. It’s a rare gift as he doesn’t share them every day, but when he does, my day feels a little brighter. – Brianna
Supernatural/Conventions
Misha’s been a part of Supernatural since season 4 when Castiel gave Sam and Dean a close up look at an actual Angel of the Lord. Conventions are where we get an up close look at this Angel, and you never really know just what might happen…
- There are photo ops with Supernatural actors and then there are photo ops with Misha Collins. He knows how to have fun with fans, mostly of the weird variety. He had me in a head lock for my first photo op with him, no lie. – Rachel F
- His character Castiel changed Supernatural and the lives of many fans forever. – Kailin
- His talent. How many actors have been on the same show for 10 years and played 8+ variations on their own character? Very few. Yet every time there is a new version of Cas, Misha rises to meet the challenge and knocks it out of the park. Whether the changes be subtle or drastic (Lucifer!Cas anyone?) Misha has always nailed the challenges presented to him by the Supernatural writers. He is incredibly talented, and I sincerely hope we will get to see him in other roles once Supernatural ends. -Brianna
- Misha has an incredible sense of loyalty and friendship with Jensen and Jared. Their chemistry in my opinion, is what has kept the show running for so long. -Kailey
There’s no one quite like Misha Collins and we are so glad to be able to share our appreciation of his big heart and kind ways on his birthday. A very happy birthday from Nerds and Beyond to our favorite Angel!