Today is a special day.
The Pieksekisten project turns 3 years old.
What started as a very personal journey has grown into something I could have never imagined back then.
Three years filled with ups and downs, difficult moments, but also moments that stay forever — especially the ones where you see children smile again, even if just for a short time.
And that is exactly what this project has always been about:
small moments of joy, when they are needed the most.
Over the past years, many Pieksekisten have found their way to children in the pediatric oncology center in Augsburg.
Each one filled with care, with thought — and with the hope to bring just a little light into a very heavy situation.
And then… something unexpected started to happen.
This topic here, the community around it, and everything connected to it began to grow in a way I honestly never expected.
People started responding.
Creators joined in.
Ideas were shared.
Support was offered.
Not as a transaction.
Not as a contract.
But simply because people wanted to help.
And step by step, something bigger began to take shape.
Conversations happened.
Connections were made.
And from those conversations, a shared understanding continues to grow:
This project is not something that one person carries alone.
It is something that many people are now walking together — and continuing to build.
MakerWorld is part of this journey — not as a label or a title, but as a presence that supports and encourages this path forward.
The same goes for many creators and members of this community, who continue to contribute in their own way, whether through ideas, time, or simply by being here.
And that is something I deeply appreciate.
At the same time, I have been thinking a lot about how to move forward in a responsible way.
Because with more possibilities also comes more responsibility.
The Pieksekisten are not about producing as much as possible.
They are about giving the right thing, at the right moment.
I will prepare a limited number of boxes and keep only a small, rotating stock.
Everything else will depend on what is actually needed.
There will be times when small printed figures are exactly what brings joy.
And there will be times when children prefer something completely different — like crafting or drawing.
And that is something I want to respect.
Resources matter.
Material matters.
Time matters.
And everything that goes into this project should be used where it truly makes a difference.
This is not about “more”.
It is about “meaningful”.
And this is also something I want to grow together with all of you.
Your feedback, your ideas, and your perspective are an important part of this journey.
Because this is no longer just a project — it is something that continues to grow through all of us.
Looking ahead, there are also new things slowly taking shape.
Some of the stories behind this journey — the encounters, the moments, the people who crossed our path — have not been fully told yet.
They will find their place on the website in a new section called “Encounters along the way”.
And at the same time, there are already ideas forming on how this community itself can become an even more active part of what we are building here.
More on that very soon.
But for now, today is about something simple — and at the same time very important:
Appreciation.
For everything that has grown so far.
And for everything that is still ahead of us.
And most of all:
For the children, whose smiles remind us every day why this continues.
Pascal
