I am participating in a sponsored campaign hosted by Advil® as part of the Advil® Relief in Action campaign. I received compensation for this post. While all opinions stated are my own, I make no claims about Advil® as a product or its effectiveness.
For the past 10 weeks, in anticipation of the holidays, Wednesdays have been devoted to recipes for holiday treats. I will have a sweet treat for you later this week, but I am going to deviate a bit today to talk about another passion of mine – running. Not just running for fun, though I like to do that too. Today I want to talk about running to help feed people in need.
Throughout the year, we try to find meaningful ways to make a difference in our community. While we should not need a reminder, holiday time always reminds me not only how lucky we are, but also about the importance of giving to others. Every Thanksgiving Day I run in the Minneapolis Life Time Fitness Turkey Day 5K, which benefits Second Harvest Heartland, a leading hunger relief organization in the Midwest. There is even a kids race, which I thought would be perfect for Adam – fun to run like mama plus a teaching moment about helping others. We run for healthy bodies while our efforts help feed hungry people.
As we prepared for the race, I wanted to illustrate what we’re doing beyond running for healthy bodies. After explaining about helping others in need, Adam and I went to the store. He got to pick out what to buy and then he got to put the food in the donation box. The look of pride on his face when later shared ‘I bought soup for people who don’t have soup’ – was priceless. He got it!
This year, there were over 13,000 runners and walkers! Participants are encouraged to bring as many non-perishable food items as they can carry. As you can imagine, this can amount to an extraordinary contribution! I contacted Life Time Fitness to find out what kind of impact this event can make, and here is what I learned:
- The Minneapolis Turkey Day 5K is the second largest single day food drive for Second Harvest Heartland.
- In 2012, between funds donated ($14,500) and pounds collected (16,518) at the Minneapolis Turkey Day Run, Second Harvest Heartland provided over 66,550 meals.
- For every $1 donated, Second Harvest Heartland can distribute $8 worth of grocery products.
I’m not sure what impresses me most – how far just $1 can go or the number of meals Second Harvest Heartland was able to provide. The difference we are able to make in the lives of so many is wonderful! I am so proud to be able to share this with Adam and be a part of this generous community of runners, volunteers and supporting companies.
I am honored to be working with Advil® to promote their Advil® Relief in Action (#ReliefinAction) campaign, which is all about celebrating the efforts of volunteers all across the country who don’t let pain stop them from helping others. Here are some ways Advil® is making it possible for you to participate and join in the support of active volunteers:
- Follow @ReliefinAction on Twitter and Instagram
- Like Advil® on Facebook.
- Share how you see relief in action happening around you by posting photos on Twitter and Instagram and using the hashtag #ReliefinAction
- Visit http://www.advil.com/reliefinaction to learn more
