Two Dancing Elves Become Full-Time Do-Gooders
With the Do Good Daniels Family Foundation, Robert and Christi Daniels are changing lives through the filter of their own experience.
Robert Daniels remembers the day providence smiled on him. He was trudging uphill, pelted by rain, along his usual postal delivery route. The contents of his mailbag were soggy. His knees hurt.
Tears gathering in his eyes, he looked up and defiantly addressed the Almighty: “Listen, you can’t tell me I’m supposed to be doing this for the rest of my life?”
And lo and behold, the clouds opened and sunshine broke through. “The next day, we got a call from The Ellen Show,” recalls the 47-year-old father of four.
Today, Robert and his wife, Christi, 41, are full-time philanthropists. But they aren’t your usual philanthropists. They’ve faced the fear of eviction. They’ve felt the blow of having a car repossessed. Yet their Do Good Daniels Family Foundation has distributed more than $1.5 million in services, programming and direct support since its launch in 2020.
Ellen DeGeneres (yes, that Ellen) had taken an interest in the Daniels family after they appeared on her show as dancing elves during the “12 Days of Giveaways” event in 2018. A few weeks later, the TV host invited the couple back, along with their four boys. The Daniels family went home with $150,000 in prizes—free trips, new beds, appliances, and gift cards.
“We got so much stuff we couldn’t even use,” Christi recalls. So they started their own “giveaway” event—passing unneeded prizes to people in need, sometimes strangers.
The show producers noticed, and a third invitation came just after Robert’s cri de coeur to the heavens. This time, Ellen presented the Daniels family with the biggest gift in the show’s history: $1 million. Half to spend on themselves, the other half—courtesy of a Cheerios sponsorship—to pay forward “to deserving people and organizations.”
In a fourth appearance on The Ellen Show, the Daniels family returned to talk about their first major gift: $25,000 to support a homeless college student. As their giving continued, Ellen’s YouTube channel produced a series of short videos documenting their philanthropic choices.
Pretty soon the family was rolling out its own 501(c)(3) nonprofit and leaving steady jobs to become full-time do-gooders. In just a few years, they have made a tangible impact.
In 2023 alone, the foundation provided stable housing for 42 people, connected 25 youths with mentors and delivered educational support to 700 schoolchildren. The Do Good Daniels Family Foundation also served 880 nutritious meals, organized personal development workshops for 450 adults and hosted community engagement events for 1,500 people.
Their flagship program, I Am Breaking the Chains, delivers financial literacy workshops, life skills education, diversion programs and parent engagement services at 55 schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District. The Daniels family runs a private publishing company to supplement Do Good’s educational programming, producing interactive workbooks and tailored instructional materials.
The foundation operates the House of Do Good, a 10-bedroom, 25-bed facility in South Los Angeles for women and children who have experienced domestic violence. Since its inception in 2021, the shelter has transitioned some 80 families into permanent housing.
The original $500,000 grant from Cheerios is long gone, but the family has since learned the ropes of the nonprofit world, gaining skills in grant writing, fund development, compliance and housing. They’ve set a fundraising goal of $1.7 million for 2025—enough to cover essential programs, direct client support, operational costs and salaries for a growing professional team.
In September they began the buildout of a Long Beach service hub. The 4,000-square-foot facility will allow the foundation to offer walk-in client services and host on-site workshops.
Robert and Christi met at a karaoke bar in 2011. At the time, he was a single father of three young boys. They started dating and, says Christi, “my family thought I had lost my mind!” In 2014, a fourth son came along.
They had good-paying jobs. Christi was a business analyst with Nordstrom’s e-commerce division. Before becoming a mail carrier, Robert had been a teacher. Still, finances were shaky.
“From the outside looking in, people think you’re OK because you’re working. But you’re really not. That was us,” Christi says.
At the low point, she says, “we were just one step away from being homeless ourselves. We didn’t have enough money for rent. We received a three-day notice. One of our cars got repossessed. Thank God, everything worked out.”
Such personal crises inform Robert and Christi’s philanthropy. “That’s why it’s important for us to help not just families experiencing homelessness but all families,” Robert explains. “We love everyone, no matter the shape, no matter the color, no matter the size, no matter the religion. We love people, and we love them wholeheartedly. We want to see them thrive.”
It turns out there’s a steep learning curve to becoming philanthropists. “In the nonprofit world, there are things you can and can’t do,” Christi says. “There has to be a process. You have to keep records and stay on top of everything.”
To bypass these hurdles, the Daniels family initially would dole out their own money. “Everybody needed help. A lot of people still call us thinking we have $500,000. And if we didn’t help,” Christi pauses to get her emotions under control, “well, we had to break with some relationships.”
Ellen had hinted this might happen. “Get out of debt, buy a home, put some away for your boys,” the celebrity advised early on. “And we were able to do those things,” Christi says. (They bought a house in San Pedro, showcasing their new home in a video.)
Today, the Daniels family enjoys economic security. Dylan, 17, Tristan, 16, and Houston, 10, are still at home. The oldest, RJ, 19, is a youth advocate for the foundation and studying business through online college courses.
All four boys are involved in Do Good’s work. Inculcating service values is a top priority for Christi. “We want the foundation to be a legacy for our children,” she says. “We are blessed, but we can always do better and do more.”
Seeing the ripple effects of their work is what brings Christi and Robert the greatest joy. Many early recipients of Do Good services stay in touch. Some give back as volunteers and make small donations. Occasionally someone will recognize them from the Ellen Show and say: “You inspired me so much. You made me feel anything is possible.”
That’s when everything comes full circle for Christi. “It feels like God is saying, ‘This is your work. This is where I need you. Just keep doing what you're doing.’”
Reflecting on that rainy day when he questioned his place in God’s plan, Robert feels vindicated. “I always knew I had something big to do in the world: to wrap my arms around people and be of service. I love that.”
Photographed by Siri Berting
