#causeplay

“We’d ride around together, and she’d help me find the numbers for the apartments and the doors on the houses. After two months of Dashing, I wondered why aren’t people coming to the door? There was no social interaction whatsoever, and I couldn’t deal with that. So I said “I’m going to call myself Dash Gordon, like Dash from DoorDash, and Gordon from Jeff Gordon cause he’s really fast, and I’ll combine the two and I’ll be Dash Gordon.”

“So I started sending GIFs and emojis using the Flash and Flash Gordon to customers as I was delivering, or right before I’d get to their door, and they liked it. They’d laugh back or send something funny, but they still weren’t coming to the door at the magnitude I was wanting.”

That’s when Glover decided to take it up a notch, and made a purchase that helped set up his entire journey.

Glover continued, “I turned to my wife and asked ‘Would you order this? It’s a Flash costume. It’s pretty generic, not really expensive, and I think people will come to the door more, they’ll tip more, and it’ll help with our goals to go on our vacation’. So a couple weeks went by, and the costume came in, and I put Dash Gordon on my uniform. And I started dashing like that and it caused quite a stir.”

Glover’s big gamble paid off, as he was meeting more people at the door than ever.

Glover recalled, “If I did 10 dashes, 9 of them would come to the door. They wanted to see the spectacle.”

What Glover did next though is what truly set his hero journey in motion, as he answered the call of someone not needing food from DoorDash, but help from their community.

“A woman posted in a local Facebook group saying she was struggling,” Glover mentions. “She was putting her feelings out there, and I felt really bad because no one was really giving her guidance, so all I did was type in that thread ‘Dash Gordon to the rescue.’ I then instant messaged her and asked ‘what do you need’, and she said ‘I’ve got a roof over my head, I’m in government housing, but I’m struggling to buy diapers and wipes for my child’. So I said ‘give me sometime and I’ll message you back’”.

“So then I put the costume on, I went through my neighborhood, I got donations to get diapers, wipes, and I even got some extra money to give her some for the next couple weeks,” said Glover.

This one charitable act then caught the attention of the local community. Dash Gordon was asked to join Helen Hall Library’s Pop-Up Storytimes, a storytime event for children, teens, and adults. Then he was also featured in a local documentary all about Dash Gordon. Leigh Kirkland wrote the story, and it went on to win a Savvy award.

Glover emphasized “It was a big deal.”

That’s when the Houston media market really took notice. Dash was on the morning news, afternoon news, and newspaper articles began to be written about Dash. What gave Glover a spark though for what to do next, was when non-profits and individuals in his community began to reach out, including special needs organizations, victims of human trafficking, and others needing help.

Glover then realized “We’re creating a community superhero.”

Like many heroes, Glover’s origin story was not always an easy one.

Glover recalled his childhood, “I’m a foster kid. I spent a lot of time in six foster homes. I was in two shelters and finally put into an orphanage. I was adopted at the age of nine by a family that didn’t really know how to raise kids. It was a little bit borderline abusive. I left at the age of 17 and headed to Rochester, New York, where I found my real parents. I got to spend five months with them before they passed away.”

Glover had to grow up quickly in the years following.

“After my parents passed, I was back on my own, got married at a young age, had four children, and went into the military. While in the military I went to culinary school, came out then got a job as a chef.”

Glover’s natural affinity with people propelled him into his next role where he hoped to be a beloved car salesman.

“I thought people liked them. I didn’t realize people didn’t like car salespeople,” Glover said.

Glover’s family grew to six kids, but then after a divorce, he moved to Houston. There he met his wife.

Glover remarked, “I’ve been married to my wife for 13 years, and she backs this Dash Gordon escapade. She keeps me grounded, because when you start achieving this level of popularity it's easy to get a real big head.”

What Dash Gordon has achieved in that time is rather incredible and speaks to the love from his community for his efforts and the outpouring support he’s received. And Glover understands that what matters overall is not the man under the mask, but how he’s able to use Dash Gordon’s abilities to provide platforms to speak for many whose stories don’t get such attention. In only ten months time as Dash Gordon, Glover’s focused on some incredibly important issues and underserved communities, including those with special needs and abilities.

“We’re partnering with Bitty & Beau's coffee shop. They are a coffee shop just for special needs employees. We’re getting League City a place called Howdy Homemade ice cream. They make their own ice cream, and they only employ those with special needs and abilities. They want to work. They want to do everything every other person wants to do. They don’t want to be [treated] differently. I don’t think people get that.”

Glover also connected with victims of human trafficking, and showcased the story of Nikki’s family and her daughter Mady’s story on his YouTube channel.

“Human trafficking is tough [to discuss], and the story I did with Nikki was very emotional and hard to get through. But that story was able to help get traction with Maddie’s movement.”

In addition to these causes, Glover also wants to highlight awareness of animal abuse, suicide prevention, veterans assistance, foster/adoption care, spouse shelters for women and children, autism, and mental health. All of which together help make-up the seven platforms that Dash Gordon tries to help and bring awareness to.

Glover remarked, “Those are huge things people don’t want to wrap their arms around. We want to put them in people’s faces, and we let a superhero do it. Because Dash has a voice now and people are using the voice to get what they need to get done.”

I asked Glover if he did anything himself for his mental health and to help him cope with hearing these heavy stories.

Glover replied, “A couple months ago I sat back and was frustrated. I thought to myself what are we doing here, and I told my partner Ben maybe I’d cut off social media for a couple weeks and take a break. He said “We cannot do that. There’s too many people depending on us. So I started meditating, taking small breaks, and getting good sleep. Everyone asks what I'm bad at, and it’s getting good sleep.”

That seems to have helped, as Glover’s found balance in his life and his purpose as Dash Gordon.

“I’m in a good mental place. I’ve gone through so much in my life that it’s hard to believe I’m standing here today where I’m at and I don’t have a lot of problems. I’m not on drugs. I didn't get wrapped up with a bunch of junk that ruined my life. I was able to somehow keep it together.

Glover’s faith has also helped carry him along these past months.

Glover remarked, “Whether you’re a believer of God or not, I just believe He’s had a hand on me and guided me through this whole journey. I finally had an epiphany while meditating that I’m just the vessel that’s delivering the goodness, the help, and the hope that people need. Someone else is driving the car, and once I relinquished that I’m not driving I was in a pretty good place.”

Glover spoke of his family often during our interview, and I was particularly curious how his children felt about their Dad dressing up as Dash Gordon.

“I have eight kids. Out of the eight kids I think I have two who are real supporters. The others either don’t follow it, don’t care, or hate it.”

Of course regardless of their feelings on Dash Gordon, Glover keeps his kids, and today’s kids, in his mind as he tries to make a positive impact on the world.

“I worry about the next generation. I worry about the kids being born now and what’s going to happen to them. But I don’t think they are lost at all, and in fact I think they’re really smart. But I think they’re fighting for things like freedom and to be different, much like the fights in the 50s and 60s. And is there anything wrong that? Is there anything wrong with being different? That’s why we are so diverse, because we are all so different. The world’s not a square and everyone fits in it. It just doesn’t work that way.”

I enquired further as to what advice Dash Gordon would give the next generation growing up today.

Glover said, “Never dream too little. Go big. Don’t ever strive for perfection. Strive to be excellent, just because you may slip and fall. Accept help sometimes. Especially for young people, I tell them to look internally. Where are you headed, and what do you really want out of life? Be respectful, and have a little bit of compassion, because in everything you set out to do people will give you advice when you need it. [That can help] take you to the [highest] level that you can achieve.”

One way this message has started to reach younger people is through a new series of books based on Dash Gordon created by local author Renne Siewers.

“The book covers the seven platforms we represent. There’s a story and it’s very easy to read for the special needs community, and all the illustrations were designed by the author. There’s a second book coming out in the series called Dash Gordon 2.0, which will tell how Dash Gordon came into existence.”

Glover is never one to let free time idle by, and as such he’s always looking for what more he can do. His wife’s suggestion last December led them on a path that’s allowed them to help hundreds more than ever before.

“I was looking for something more to do for the special needs community, and my wife suggested a winter formal. I said ‘there’s only three weeks till Christmas?’ and she replied “You can do it. You’re Dash Gordon’”.

Glover set about to create the event, and in part thanks to Glover’s familiarity with a venue, and the venue’s generosity to waive all fees, they were able to get the venue space for free. They got a flier created from a member of an Autistic mothers support group, and more assistance poured in, and they hosted the event the next day.

Glover remarked, “It was a smash hit. Way more people than we ever expected.”

This led to even more levels of exposure for Dash and the causes he’s been supporting. Ben, Dash’s partner and photographer/videographer, then suggested the next major step for Dash.

Glover recalled, “Ben said to me, ‘you need to start a Dash Gordon foundation’. I said ‘Really? You think so?’”

Glover was uncertain if they had grown to that point, but Ben emphasized how generous everyone’s been to the cause. “You did not have to raise money for the winter formal. Everyone helped to chip in to your cause to help the special needs community with the event.” Glover then agreed.

Word spread quickly of their plan and two days later they were contacted by a bank that stepped in to donate their time, and their services, to set up the Dash Gordon as a 501c3 non-profit. Now with the foundation created they’ve begun to set up other events, including their next one ‘Dash Into the 80’s”, which filled to capacity in just over two hours time.

Glover’s impact continues to be infectious. When asked about what he’s had to do to get further community involvement, he emphasized “I started just DoorDashing to go on vacation. I never reached out to anyone for any publicity. I never asked for money. I never made a phone call. Everything that happened was all organic.”

Ultimately I was curious if Dash Gordon could ever see ‘more Dashes’ in other cities.

Glover said, “What we’ve created is a real life superhero, and yeah he’s not out flying around, but he’s showing a genuine concern for people. He’s doing everything he can to make any moment of their life better, whether it’s a smile, a laugh, or showing up at an event, comforting a family, getting them food, or the things they need to try to get by. Anything we can do, we are going to do it.”

“Not yet,” Glover replied. “But it could definitely be bigger than Houston. It takes a lot to put on a leotard to walk around. I’m not in the most perfect shape, and to go out and be judged and people think it’s wacky [can be difficult], but I really didn’t care. I knew there’d be a shock factor, and people would take pictures, but I knew that there was more [I could do].”

Time will tell how many others will continue to be inspired by Glover and Dash Gordon’s incredible work in League City, but perhaps the next time you receive a friendly Door Dasher, or need help and ask for some through social media, maybe you too will see a friendly superhero near you step up to assist, or maybe you can become one.

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