Get Sweaty for a Good Cause: RUN 10 FEED 10

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By Women’s Health Action Hero Sara Ziemnik}

I’ve been honored to be a representative of Women’s Health Magazine’s “Action Heroes” for three years now. One of my favorite things to do for the Action Heroes is to get involved with RUN 10 FEED 10 and the FEED Foundation! At first, I was bummed out that Cleveland (the best city in the universe, although I may be biased) was not one of the host cities for a RUN 10 FEED 10 event. But after a little thought, some planning, and some work, I was able to put together a local event that helped raise hundreds of dollars and thousands of meals. As a high school teacher, I try to always tell my students to “think globally and act locally,” and the RUN 10 FEED 10 events have helped me really put that saying into action.

First, I picked a date for our fun run! I chose early October so it could be part of training for those who have a fall marathon or half-marathon. We are so lucky to have such an amazing park system here in Cleveland so I knew that finding a safe route would be a piece of cake. My next step was to contact local running shops and area businesses to see if they would be willing to support the fun run in some way. As expected, they were super awesome in helping me not only publicize the fun run, but supporting RUN 10 FEED 10 with donations and swag for my runners!

I created a Facebook page called “CLERUN10FEED10” and started publicizing the event to recruit my friends and members of local running groups. It was a really easy way to get the word out! I also hit up Twitter and Instagram and tried to contact groups like “Moms Run This Town” to see if I could encourage others who could not make my fun run to run on their own. I had quite a few people register to run their own 10K on another day, which was exciting news! The great thing about RUN10 is that you can do it ANYWHERE, and anytime. Busy working parents, those who travel, or those who have difficult schedules can squeeze this into their day and provide 10 meals for hungry people in our community. It’s a wonderful opportunity to celebrate health and serve others.  

Race week, I worked with Dewey’s Pizza Shop to host a “CLERUN10FEED10” evening where a proceed of all the sales went to the FEED Foundation. I saw lots of my friends, their families, and even my students up at Dewey’s that night, and the support of Dewey’s was just phenomenal. They were able to donate a large sum to the FEED Foundation and provide hundreds of meals!  

Post-race, we celebrated at another local establishment: Around the Corner. Their brunch was amazing, and as we all enjoyed our food it was awesome to know that a portion of our bill also went so support the FEED Foundation. Adding in support from local businesses helps give back to our economy, all while supporting food banks here in CLE to help end hunger in our community.

I am so proud of the efforts of Women’s Health Magazine in their involvement in the FEED Foundation. Hunger is the world’s most solvable problem. This fall, grab your friends and head to your RUN 10 FEED 10 Race… or, just start your own! Make a difference, one mile at a time. 

Women’s Health Action Hero Sara Ziemnik

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