May 4th over 40,000 supporters came out to Project Bread’s 40th Walk for Hunger. This was an amazingly successful event, raising $3.8 million for hunger relief and emergency aid programs across Massachusetts.
The top corporate teams were Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts ($42,509.99) and Raytheon ($40,774.67). Public and private schools, colleges including MIT, churches and community groups also came out in support of the cause.
This year The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) predicts that over 500,000 people will be participating in the charity’s signature Walk to Cure Diabetes. You might know this walk by the easily recognizable shoe emblem. Many communities raise funds with cards shaped as the shoe that you can purchase, sign and display at grocery stores.
Walk events are planned or have already happened in 200 different cities.
As reported by the Courier & Press, the Evansville, IN event was an example of one of these very successful walk events:
The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation’s Walk to Cure Diabetes on May 17 at Holiday World raised $260,000. More than 1,730 people participated in the one-mile event, benefiting research and programs related to Type 1 diabetes.
I’ve been writing a weekly roundup / links post for awhile on Step by Step Fundraising and finally it dawned on me that a weekly roundup would be a great addition to Charity Mile as well. So here’s a roundup of my favorite recent stories & blog entries…
I love events where people dress up. Scott from Trail Runner got some great photos of The 2008 Bay to Breakers (aka, Bleeker Returns). (warning to innocent eyes, includes pics of some in-freaking-sane people running in the buff!) Other people chose more suitable and creative costumes.
I just love the name of this event: Run Forrest Run Charity 5K Walk/Run. It raised $10,000 on May 18 for the Palmetto Animal League in Bluffton, SC. The name was “inspired by the Animal League’s cat Forrest, who is handicapped, Run Forrest Run reminds us all that we can do it and we can make a difference!”
The best blog title (and personal confession over live radio) of the week goes to Dan: “I’m a very sweaty man” describing his training for The Dales Walk.
A few days ago I wrote a post called How to SURVIVE a 26.2 Mile Marathon and submitted it to a group writing project. Anyone could participate in the project which had the simple theme of “how to.” Writing the post brought back memories of races that I have participated in, times that I thought I’d keel over half way through, some of the tough lessons learned as well as the joy of crossing the finish line.
Now for me or anyone to win the contest (and cash prize) they need votes. I can’t vote for myself obviously, but you can vote for me (hint, hint). Just write a blog post listing your favorites from the contest. You can view all of the entries at the Pureblogging website.
Each year residents of Maui, Hawaii come out to support charitable groups with a 5 mile walk. Most of the walkers were employees of area hotels and resorts.
More than 1,100 walkers joined the 30th annual Visitor Industry Charity Walk, a five-mile jaunt Saturday for Maui nonprofit organizations that began and ended at the War Memorial Soccer field.
A total of $294,637 was raised for Maui charities.
Participants walked on behalf of a wide variety of non profit organizations. Each person chose a charity and got pledges for that organization. Kelsey Wiegman was the top individual fundraiser, who collected $12,287 for Hawaii Canines for Independence.
I’ve talked to many people who when asked if they’d like to run a marathon react like you were asking them to jump off a bridge. Yes, marathons and other long distance endurance events ARE difficult. But it’s not something that will kill you. Unless you have a really significant health issue, a marathon can be within your reach. In this post I’m going to show you how to complete a marathon and still feel human after crossing the finish line.
1. Choose your event wisely. First of all there are many different event lengths that you can choose from. A half-marathon is 13.1 miles and a full marathon is 26.2 miles. There are other walk or run events that are 30 miles or even more. If you have never done a race before or your aerobic activity level is low, consider the half-marathon. Most of the time you will still get a finisher’s medal with the half. Read more… »
We’re looking for one or more bloggers who are passionate about raising funds for charity through athletic events such as walks, runs or bike races.The top level Charity Mile blog has been around since March 2007 and the community network launched earlier this year.
Your goal as a blogger would be to:
1. Write interesting and engaging content
2. Encourage participation in the community site
Bloggers will provide original writing only, no content that has been previously published online. You can work on your own schedule and remotely.This work would be in addition to any blog posts that you contribute to your personal blog on the community network.
Requirements:
Active participant in charity athletic events (one or more per year)
Strong writing skills with an engaging style.
Excellent internet research skills.
Ability to discern what type of content is appropriate for the audience.
Be able to write between 1 and 5 posts a week.
Knowledge of HTML and Wordpress is not required but a plus.
This year The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) predicts that over 500,000 people will be participating in the charity’s signature 
I’ve talked to many people who when asked if they’d like to run a marathon react like you were asking them to jump off a bridge. Yes, marathons and other long distance endurance events ARE difficult. But it’s not something that will kill you. Unless you have a really significant health issue, a marathon can be within your reach. In this post I’m going to show you how to complete a marathon and still feel human after crossing the finish line.