“Give more than you take, then it will all come back at you before you know it.”

Photo and text by Emma E. Petersen

Doug is the founder of PhilanthroFIT. The concept of PhilanthroFIT is “getting fit and getting back,” and their mission is to help people identify and accomplish their health and fitness-related goals while simultaneously giving back to the community. 

“Life is not always happy and smiley, but if you fight and don’t give up, then you will make it somehow. There will be obstacles all the way and you may think about quitting and giving it all up, but if you are surrounded by the right people or a support group, then you can change your mindset and suddenly everything is possible.” 

Another way Doug gives back to the community is by hosting 'couchsurfers.' A term to describe a free form of lodging where an individual sleeps on, essentially, a “strangers” couch. Since 2011, Doug has hosted over 200 couchsurfers from all around the world in his small studio apartment in New York City.

A friend introduced him to this concept when he was traveling to Paris. When he brought up this term and tried to explain it to him, he thought that it was completely insane and wondered why anyone would ever want to do such a thing. He thought, “why would you ever let strangers stay at your place, and also, why would you let them stay there for free?”

“Send an email, show up at their home; they might not even speak your language. Why would people do that? To me it only sounded like trouble. How could you be sure that you won’t be robbed or murdered?” 

Doug’s curiosity and open-mindedness led him to create a profile on couchsurfers.com and got in touch with a host from France. He met up with her in Paris where she gave him a tour around the city, which was an experience of a lifetime for him. Had he opted for a standard tour, he would never have been able to experience such a wonderful and personal view of the whole city by someone who actually lives there.

 “The fact that a local took the time to show a completely random tourist around really made a big impression on me. That was really cool! So when I got back home from Paris, I decided to do the same, so I opened up my doors and honestly I got a bit addicted”

When Doug was younger, he was not given the opportunity to travel as much as many young people do these days. So, when people of all different cultural aspects visit him in New York, he somehow feels like he is able to diversify and expand his horizons in that aspect. He might not have been able to travel to other countries and experience various cultures, but by opening up his home to “strangers,” he feels like the cultures come to him while he is helping them by hosting them.

“When I first started to host people I realized that there are so many openminded people all over the planet. The world can be a wonderful place and by being a host,it’s possible to bring this wonderful world into my home over and over again. It was literally a life-changing experience for me.”

With over 99% of the people Doug has hosted, he mentioned that it had been an absolute pleasure. 

 “I like how people take the time to talk to you, cook a meal together, learn a new dance and so on. Once I hosted an Italian couple, I had never been to Italy, but one night they taught me how to cook homemade pasta Italian style. Suddenly New York was replaced by Rome. That was amazing!”

Are you never afraid of letting strangers into your home?

“I was a little nervous the first time I let couchsurfers into my house. It is important to be careful, pay attention to the profiles, read the references, and look for small warning signs. However, the most important of all, is to trust your intuition; then you shouldn’t worry”

Do you clear your expectations with the people you host before letting them in?

 “Not really, I believe in the pay it forward concept. So if I open my house to you, then my house is your house while you are here. I’m happy to share with people. Doug believes in karma; the only thing he expects from these surfers while hosting them is that they will do the same for other people as he did for them. “Give more than you take, then it will all come back at you before you know it.”