Season of Giving: Back On My Feet

In the month of December, I'm going to feature various groups that help those in need (that means I'm posting twice a day!!). I'm not always doing fundraising for them- just bringing attention to groups that I think do important work or may need help. Perhaps you will feel the urge to connect to that group or find something similar in your area that you can volunteer your time and talents. Perhaps you will want to make a donation. Perhaps you will just feel warm and fuzzy knowing that good is being done in the world. See all posts for the Season of Giving ***** Back On My Feet To be fair, I only learned about this organization this morning. I have a little list going of the things I want to highlight and have even asked for input from others (on the Facebook page and via Twitter) and gotten some great ideas. I'm a fan of Baise Communications on Facebook. Baise provides nonprofit connections and news through the Facebook page and I love reading about various organizations through them. Today, I read this: What started as a running club between one woman and several homeless men from the shelter she ran by on her morning runs has turned into a nonprofit organization called Back On My Feet (BOMF) - a homeless advocacy nonprofit that builds confidence through running programs. I was very intrigued so I clicked through to the website, shared the link with Christy, and we couldn't stop reading and digging and finding more information. Most exciting to us is that Back On My Feet is going to be starting an Indianapolis Chapter in March! This isn't just a running club. This is a group that advocates for the homeless while also introducing people impacted by homelessness to running- as a confidence builder, a way of setting and achieving goals. The program has steps built into it- when someone commits to the running club, they move up through this program to help them get back on their feet. Help with training, education, finding a job, finding a place to live. The blog on the website really moved me and I encourage you to read through and watch the videos to find out what kind of impact Back On My Feet has made in the lives of others. Here's a great video to give you a taste of what Back On My Feet is all about: I've signed up to get information on running a race for Back On My Feet and to learn about prelaunch events. I hope I can run with them someday- weekday early mornings won't work for me but maybe a longer Saturday run sometime would work. I've also set up a fundraising page with a goal of $100. Give a little financial support. If you are in Indianapolis and want to get involved- Get Involved with the Indianapolis Chapter. And if you live in Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington D.C., Chicago or Boston, there is already an existing Back On My Feet program in your city. In 2011, Back On My Feet is starting chapters in Dallas-Forth Worth, Atlanta, and Minneapolis-St. Paul (and Indy, of course). You can also nominate your city to become a future chapter! I'm very excited about this opportunity to combine my passions and am really eager to see how this all plays out in the coming months. I hope you are excited about it, too, and I hope that you might be able to donate to the Indy chapter, to your local chapter, or find a way to get involved in your city!