Charity Miles

🎙 I'm truly honored to share a very special interview with the great Harvey Lewis, one of the world’s top (and nicest) ultrarunners of all time. (Link in the comments since LinkedIn likes it that way.) Harvey is not only an accomplished runner but also a dedicated high school teacher at the School For Creative & Performing Arts Cincinnati. He runs to work every day on what he calls his “run commute,” and I had the incredible opportunity to join him on one of those runs—from his home all the way to his school, winding our way through Cincinnati and Kentucky, over and back across the beautiful Ohio River. In this episode, we’ll talk about Harvey’s journey as an ultrarunner, including his record-setting win at #BigsBackyardUltra, where he ran an astounding 454 miles over 4 and a half days. We’ll dive into what drives him to push beyond physical limits, and his approach to inspiring others to live healthy, active lives. After relistening to and reflecting on this interview, I think that what comes through the most is not just what Harvey has to say, but how he says it. He truly has a passion, not just for running, but for inspiring and helping others—whether that’s other runners, people that he passes on the road, his fellow competitors in a race, his students or animals. When we finished our run commute, I had the chance to meet with some of Harvey's students, and I asked them what it’s like to have such an extraordinary person as their teacher. I'm grateful that they allowed me to share their responses, which will give you a real sense of the impact Harvey has, both inside and outside the classroom. Of course, I'm also grateful to Harvey for such a memorable run and for sharing so much with us. And, of course, we're all grateful to our partners at Brooks Running for supporting us so to make interviews like this possible. #EveryMileMatters, #LetsRunThere, #Vegan, #Inspiring, Jesse Itzler, Melanie Allen, Meredith Hamrick Bevis, Emma Lane, Jillian Zech, Maya Iverson, Emily Conlon, Sean Lynch, Kim Fabiano Fassetta, Stevie Jones, Alaina Fuld

🎙 I’m honored to share my latest interview with Courtney Dauwalter, one of the greatest ultrarunners of all time. (Link in the comments since LinkedIn likes it that way.) For those unfamiliar with the ultrarunning world, Courtney has shattered expectations and rewritten records in some of the most grueling races on the planet. In 2023, she became the first person ever to win the #WesternStates100, the #Hardrock100, and the #UTMB all in the same year — which is like the ultrarunning triple crown, an achievement that stands alone in the history of the sport. Known not only for her incredible endurance but also her positive attitude, sense of humor, and love of candy and nachos, Courtney has conquered races like the #Moab240 (a 240 mile race in Moab!), which she won by more than 10 hours, and the #BigsBackyardUltra, where she set a women's record of 279 miles. She’s also renowned for her trademark “Shortney” baggy shorts, her love for the “Pain Cave,” and her unique ability to push herself through the most difficult physical and mental challenges– whether it’s running through storms, climbing mountains, or even hallucinating friendly woodland creatures along the trail. In this episode, we talk about what Courtney has learned about the mental side of ultra-running and try to glean some lessons that we mere mortals can apply to our everyday challenges—things like problem-solving, positive self-talk, and mantras that keep her going for hours on end. We also explore how she stays grounded, connected to the community, and why she believes there’s always another level we can reach if we just keep moving forward, and stay curious about what’s possible. Courtney is like the Ted Lasso of running. I think her superpower is her curiosity. Big thanks to Courtney for sharing so much with us. And, of course, big thanks to Brooks Running for supporting us. #LetsRunThere Melanie Allen, Jillian Zech, Emma Lane, Meredith Hamrick Bevis, Emily Conlon, Maya Iverson Alaina Fuld, Stevie Jones, The Feed, Suunto, Injinji®, Tailwind Nutrition, LEKI, Kodiak Cakes, Squirrel's Nut Butter NL, Petzl America, Kristen Flemington, Celeste Lorenzo, Lexi Brantman, Jenni Riihijärvi, Cory Bayers, Ben Kleinsmith, MBA

🎙 Honored to share a very important podcast with Alison Mariella Désir, a powerhouse disrupter and #activist in the running community and a true advocate for #change. (Link in the comments since LinkedIn likes it that way. 🤷♂️) Alison is the founder of #HarlemRun, a running club that brings people together through running while championing diversity and inclusion. She's also the author of "Running While Black", which sheds light on the intersection of race and running. I like to think I’m pretty progressive and aware of the ways that race affects us all personally and collectively. But reading Alison’s book, my eyes were opened even more to the ways that race continues to shape the running community—and society generally. In this conversation, Alison shares her personal journey, how running can be a vehicle for social justice, and the importance of creating spaces where everyone can feel welcome and empowered. This is a conversation about more than just miles—and more than just race.  It’s about community, activism, inclusivity, intentionality, culture and using movement to drive change. Big thanks to Alison for sharing so much with us. And also big thanks to Brooks Running for their support in Charity Miles, and in helping to make the running community more inclusive as well. Melanie Allen, Jillian Zech, Stevie Jones, Maya Iverson, Meredith Hamrick Bevis, Emma Lane, Emily Conlon, Jeremy Braud, Sean Lynch

🎙 Excited to share our latest #podcast with Dana Snyder, Founder and CEO of Positive Equation | Dana Snyder, where she helps charities grow their communities and #sustainablegiving programs. >> Check it out here: https://lnkd.in/eZN4zE5p This interview will be helpful for anyone that works at a charity—which some of our members do. But, more than that, this interview will provide all of us with insight – and empathy – for how hard our charities work to fundraise in support of the missions we all care about—and, therefore, how we can better support them in that endeavor. Most crucially, I hope Dana’s insight will help us all think less transactionally, and more relationally, about how we support our favorite charities. I also want to give a huge shoutout to our partners at Lifeway Foods, Inc. Lifeway was one of our first sponsors, and their CEO, Julie Smolyansky has become a friend and has been on the pod before too. Lifeway Kefir is purpose-driven brand and a champion for many social causes, supporting initiatives that promote maternal health, girls education and empowerment, the environment, mental health and well-being, and more—all things we care deeply about here at Charity Miles. Speaking of #mentalhealth, did you know that what you eat can have a profound effect on your mind? It turns out that the gut and brain are connected in ways we’re just beginning to understand. Lifeway Kefir, with its rich probiotics, supports your gut biome, which plays a crucial role in regulating mood, stress, and overall mental health. It's a simple, delicious way to nourish your body and your mind. So, whether you're fueling up for your next walk, run, or bike ride—or just looking for a way to take care of your mental well-being— be sure to look for Lifeway Kefir in your grocery store!

🎙 Excited to share my latest podcast with Nathan Chappell, MBA, MNA, CFRE, one of the world’s foremost experts on the intersection between Artificial Intelligence and philanthropy. >> Get it here: https://lnkd.in/eEKStiBU Nathan serves as Senior Vice President of DonorSearch, and the founder of Fundraising.AI, a member-centric collaboration of nonprofit professionals with a focus on data ethics, data equality, privacy and security and sustainability. Nathan is also the co-author of #TheGenerosityCrisis, which we discuss in the interview. Nathan elaborates why there is a generosity crisis now and how the remedy for that crisis is for people like us to think less transactionally and more holistically about our relationships with the charities we care about. I’m sure his message will resonate with all of us. #charity #csr #impact #ai

Our teams at HARMAN have long been committed to giving back to the communities in which we operate, as well as supporting our employees’ health and wellbeing. Our #HARMANInspired partnership with Charity Miles does just that by empowering our team members to turn their daily steps into charitable donations in support of causes that are meaningful to them. Take a closer look in honor of #NationalNonprofitDay today: https://bit.ly/3X8hK03

🎙 Excited to share the latest episode of The Extra Mile podcast with Brian Reynolds, one of the world's fastest double amputee runners. >> Check it out here: https://lnkd.in/eKnRkckY When Brian was four years-old he contracted a rare form of bacterial meningitis, which led to him having both of his legs amputated below the knee. Despite this, Brian was fairly active as a child– and did his best to participate in most common childhood sports like baseball, basketball and even hockey. (He grew up in Boston after all.) When Brian was in college, he got into power lifting… which led to him to join the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's Team in Training to hike across the Grand Canyon… and then finally to running. Brian is now one of the fastest double amputee runners in the world, having set records in distances from the 5K to the marathon. Brian happens to live about a mile from me, so we see each other on our morning runs quite often. I'd love to run with him more, but I don't think I can keep up! Thankfully, Brian took it easy on me as we ran for this interview. If you listen, I hope you come along for a run or walk with us. Also special thanks to our partners at Brooks Running who is also one of Brian's sponsors. #LetsRunThere! Melanie Allen Jillian Zech Stevie Jones Meredith Hamrick Bevis Emma Lane Maya Iverson Jeremy Braud Sean Lynch

🎙 Excited to share my latest podcast interview with Soraya Alexander. >> Check it out here: https://lnkd.in/eSdxU7qc Soraya is the Chief Operating Officer of GoFundMe and as the President of Classy, a GoFundMe subsidiary. Through her work, Alexander supports thousands of nonprofits and hundreds of thousands of people to unlock the world's #generosity. GoFundMe is on a mission to help people help each other. Through innovative technology, Classy helps nonprofits raise more so they can do more good in the world. Together, the two organizations help billions of dollars per year get raised for social and environmental good. In this interview, we discuss the challenges charities face in engaging their supporters, generational shifts in donor expectations, effective fundraising techniques, community building, and the psychological barriers to making donation requests. Soraya shares how GoFundMe and Classy are tackling these challenges and how we, as people who care about charities, can take a more active role in supporting them.  On a final note, I'm happy to share that Charity Miles is developing a partnership with Classy and GoFundMe to help bring some of these ideas to life, and to better help our members support the charities they love. We're grateful for the opportunity to make an impact with Classy and GoFundMe. And we're grateful to Soraya for sharing so much with us in this interview. #charity #fundraising #impact Heidi Brown Jake Holslag Hai Habot Moriya Blumenfeld Thom Morris Kara Kolibas Erin Hall Kate Roberts Jesse Lusa Kellen Hawley Michelle Boggs, MBA, CFRE Tim C.

🎙 Excited to share my latest interview with Kara Goucher. https://lnkd.in/eWDKPjFz Kara is a two-time Olympian, World Championship medalist and one of the most accomplished and admired distance runners of our time. Kara is also an author, podcaster, broadcaster and passionate advocate for clean sport, gender equity, fair-play and social change. Two years ago, Kara was diagnosed with Runner's Dystonia, a neurological disorder with similarities to Parkinson's. (Big shoutout to Justine Galloway, by the way!) Kara also as a unique and hard-won perspective on the power of brands to affect social change, and the power that we have as people– individually and collectively– to move them to do so.  Most recently, Kara has partnered with Brooks Running, a brand that shares our values and holds a very special place in our hearts here at Charity Miles. For over a century, Brooks has been propelled by a never-ending curiosity with how humans move. It drives their every decision and every innovation. Because they believe movement is the key to feeling more alive. And we’re all moving towards something. It could be the top of a mountain, a first-ever 5K, or peace of mind after a stressful day.  It could be a cure for Parkinson’s, a cleaner planet, fair play. So… #LetsRunThere Adam Goucher, Melanie Allen, Emma Lane, Meredith Hamrick Bevis, Jillian Zech, Stevie Jones, Emily Conlon, Katie Casamassina, Liz Berger, Stephanie Paddock The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research, Bachmann Strauss

"The change was made uptown and the Big Man joined the band." I've been waiting to share this for a long time... 6.5 Charity Miles for the Michael J. Fox Foundation, and welcoming Brooks Running back to the Charity Miles band! Brooks believes that a run can change a day, a life, the world. Which is exactly what we believe. And it's why we couldn't be more excited to be partnering with Brooks again. At Charity Miles, we're all moving towards something. It could be the top of a mountain, a first-ever 5K, a cleaner planet, a cure for Parkinson's, education for all, equal rights... or even just some peace of mind. So… let’s run there. Together. Huge thanks to Melanie Allen, Jillian Zech, Stevie Jones, Meredith Hamrick Bevis, Emily Conlon, Emma Lane, and Maya Iverson at Brooks, as well as Emily Duke and Jeremy Braud and the team at Assembly Global for the opportunity to make an impact together. #LetsRunThere!