The cryptoworld is a niche community known for its eager following of young and dreamy-eyed tech gurus, many of them disillusioned with the inefficiencies of government and other widely accepted societal institutions, such as banks or even social networking. They are fed up with society’s wastefulness, and consequently, decide to put their faith in the more equitable and ever-expanding power of technology.

But while it’s easy to write crypto fans off as a bunch of futuristic geniuses harboring an immense aversion to trusting the masses, such a dismissive and caricatured perception would fail to recognize large portions of the crypto community.

Indeed, if one stumbles across the Twitter pages of blockchain influencers like @VitalikButerin, the Russian-Canadian Co-Founder of Ethereum (a very popular coin, listed as the second-best cryptocurrency on coinmarketcap) and Bitcoin Magazine (a widely-circulated and well-respected magazine focused on Bitcoin and other digital currencies), one will be greeted with a profile that embodies the “futuristic genius” archetype mentioned before. An avatar of Buterin’s intellectually-famished appearance accompanies a stream of thought-provoking and esoteric Tweets.

If one is not familiar with blockchain or cryptocurrencies, one might feel ostracized and overwhelmed by how much one doesn’t understand, and just call it quits on the digital money so many are hailing as the future. After all, not a lot of people have years to become blockchain experts themselves, and may also be hesitant to spend time and money on something they’ve never heard much about.

According to a March report by CNBC, about 8 percent of Americans are invested in cryptocurrencies. Considering how popular talk of cryptocurrencies has been in the media, that is a considerably low number. The same report stated that 40 percent of Americans without cryptocurrencies decided not to purchase because of disinterest or a lack of necessity, and 27 percent say the concept is simply too difficult to understand.

And while the enigmatic crypto leaders and the skeptical statistics may dupe one into believing that cryptocurrency is simply unfathomable to the average person, SoCo SNP has found evidence that disproves that statement.

During the blockchain project’s first bounty campaign, the team accumulated over 45,000 members on Telegram as well as a couple thousand followers on Twitter and subscribers on Reddit. Many of the Twitter accounts were not Buterin-type personas, but were created by everyday people devoting their social media to supporting multiple airdrop and bounty campaigns.

As a result, however, the profiles were rather lacking in individual content, and served more as repetitive generators of general bounty endorsements. It was impossible to tell what kind of people SoCo’s bounty supporters were, because they did not disclose their personal lives on the Twitter and Reddit accounts they used for their crypto activities.

Interestingly, people’s distinct personalities were more likely to surface in the Telegram chat. People would mention where they came from (and, if possible, join SoCo’s regional Telegram communities), what holidays they were celebrating (i.e. Eid al-Adha or Knowledge Day), disclose small parts of their day (i.e. sending videos of themselves going to work or mentioning their birthdays) and reveal some of their interests through SoCo-related photo edits (some would post SoCo edits with celebrities, or connect SoCo with football, or create beautifully artistic scenes embedding the SoCo logo).

Naturally, when placed into a platform that required discussion and interaction, the users’ human identities began to show, and with it, the truth that a great deal of the crypto community is comprised of normal people just trying to make a living.

With people of different faiths, backgrounds and beliefs all communing together in one chat, it was as if a microcosm of the world existed in the SoCo Telegram community (which now has over 59,000 members). To better understand their supporters, the SoCo SNP Team found a few volunteers who were kind enough to share their lives with them.

They were wowed by the moments of determination, hope, and faith, and impressed by the generally shared desire to contribute to something greater, to develop and support something that would improve the world and make it more equal and helpful and moral.

Above all, the SoCo SNP Team was moved by how impactful their supporters aspired to be, despite their humble origins. They weren’t Buterins, but they certainly embodied similar senses of passion and duty, as well as the same insatiable desire to leave something meaningful for the next generation.

Here are their stories, detailed in a series called “SoCo Spotlights.” Read them — they might be more familiar than you’d expect them to be.

If you’re interested in being interviewed, please contact SoCo SNP at socosnp@gmail.com, or message the admin of the SoCo Telegram chat.