Toukel’s Mission

America has a loneliness epidemic.

The US Surgeon General declared on May 3, 2023: “Our epidemic of loneliness and isolation has been an underappreciated public health crisis that has harmed individual and societal health. Our relationships are a source of healing and well-being hiding in plain sight – one that can help us live healthier, more fulfilled, and more productive lives. Given the significant health consequences of loneliness and isolation, we must prioritize building social connection the same way we have prioritized other critical public health issues such as tobacco, obesity, and substance use disorders. Together, we can build a country that’s healthier, more resilient, less lonely, and more connected.”

Toukel is here to help you make friends, the most basic kind of social connection. Toukel is an online service that brings people together without the intrusion of social media and impersonal communications. With Toukel, you meet real people face-to-face so you can get to know each other as yourselves, not your online profiles or your awkward texting. Just people, strangers, who want to meet other people and build social connections.

Who is lonely?

From Our Epidemic of Loneliness and Isolation: The U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory on the Healing Effects of Social Connection and Community: “studies find the highest prevalence for loneliness and isolation among people with poor physical or mental health, disabilities, financial insecurity, those who live alone, single parents, as well as younger and older populations. For example, while the highest rates of social isolation are found among older adults, young adults are almost twice as likely to report feeling lonely than those over 65. The rate of loneliness among young adults has increased every year between 1976 and 2019. In addition, lower-income adults are more likely to be lonely than those with higher incomes. Sixty-three percent of adults who earn less than $50,000 per year are considered lonely, which is 10 percentage points higher than those who earn more than $50,000 per year.

Why is it so hard to meet people?

That’s a good question that Toukel can’t answer, but we can try to make it easier by bringing together people who want to make connections. We make it easier to meet people.

What if you meet weird people?

There’s always a chance that you will find your Toukel friends to be weird, unexpected, out of your league, beneath you, or just…different. Good for you! No matter what else you think, you know you already have a few things in common:

You are looking for social connections
You took a big step by reaching out to Toukel to make something happen
You have your own stories to share

Why do you have to pay for Toukel?

Toukel charges a very reasonable price. Here’s why:

We hope to keep out spammers and bots.
We need to have Toukel members have some skin in the game, so to speak. We believe you are more likely to follow up on a meet up if you paid for Toukel.
We have no other sources of income to support our mission (but we’re also not beholden to any sponsors or advertisers to promote their products).
A portion of our revenue goes to support a Maryland non-profit organization, Circle of Hope Therapeutic Riding, that does great work in Montgomery County, MD. We will donate $1,000 for every 1,000 Toukel users.
Revenue will help us expand Toukel to more locations to build more social connections.