T-minus 209 days until the Houston Marathon, and I’m ramping up the training. I’d thought for the past 5 years about joining the marathon, but never figured I’d be fit enough or capable enough to do it. I still have a ways to go in learning and the changes I need to make along the way, and am willing to do what is needed for the physical aspect.
I was just as concerned about the financial aspect, though, because I’d never tried to fundraise like this before & I’m in my own pinch. I knew I’d have to take some days off work to join the marathon (Saturday for the prep packet and checking the route, Sunday for the race, Monday to recover at home) and cover the parking fees… and I haven’t even touched the entry fee yet.
I was prepared to scrimp and save for the entry fee so I could join when I first considered the Marathon as doable instead of a pipe dream, but the idea of driving all that distance just to run a long way with a crowd wasn’t enough. I wanted to do something more, to use my training and hard work to have an impact beyond myself.
And that’s where “Run for a Reason” comes in.
Pretty much every marathon I’ve seen online that has sponsors as “Run for a Reason” programs attached to them. Dozens of non-profit organizations and charities allow runners to pledge to raise funds for them in exchange for covering their entry fees. The amount of funds runners have to raise by race day (or just a bit afterward) depends on the charity’s threshold and/or the distance covered (since fees are determined by race length and type, too).
That said, volunteers who choose the fundraising route aren’t guaranteed a place in the marathon until they raise the minimum by 2 months before the race date (at least in the case of the Houston Marathon and some charities I saw). This guarantees that folks aren’t trying to just get a free spot and are serious about fundraising, and that the charity can cover the discounted entry fee quickly and have a racer representing them who is legit.
I chose the Houston Food Bank because of their work helping get food to food pantries, homeless shelters, and those who’ve gone through disasters and need re-stocking of their food supplies. I’ve donated to them before when I had more money and Hurricane Harvey and the pandemic lockdowns put a lot of families in the area in a terrible crunch. Since I can’t work with them in person due to my ever-changing work schedule, I figure raising money for them again would be a step toward volunteering again.
I am in the process of re-learning how to work my camera equipment and video software so I can take video and being a YT channel to spread the word about the marathon and running (and the charity itself). I spent a good portion of the night before coming up with milestones and incentives I can put on YouTube for fun or laughs and perhaps that will help with the fundraising.
I will elaborate further when I have a better idea how it will work in two weeks… and hopefully some vids to see on my channel. I am also working to get a donation box here on the blog to minimize the amount of clicks you folks have to do to see what’s up or where to donate if interested.
In the meantime, I at least have this blog here and My Fundraising Page at the Houston Food Bank’s “Run for Food” program site, which connects to the Houston Marathon charity pages. T-minus 209 days to raise funds for the hungry in H-Town.
Be well, and thanks in advance if you’ve decided to help:
"Hey, Howdy!" from Texan Tally 
The Floor is Yours…