It’s our BIRTHDAY!

We have had an incredible year and can’t thank all of our supporters enough. There are so many people who have helped make this year so successful and we are grateful for every single one of you.

Thank you to all of our partner facilities HVAF of Indiana, Progress House, Resident Members, Core team members, Non-res runners, FundRacers, Volunteers at races, Corporate supporters and anyone else who has been involved in nurturing and growing this amazing chapter.

Purchase tickets for our upcoming Birthday Luncheon!

2012 in a nutshell:

• 3 Partner Facilities
• 45 active resident members
• 3 active alumni members
• 80 volunteers
• 77 members served since March 8^, 2011
• 49 members who have completed a competitive race
• 13 members who have completed a half-marathon
• 3 members who have completed a full-marathon
• 8 members who have obtained housing
• 25 members are currently employed
• 56 members have enrolled in financial literacy, job training programs or schooling
• 83% of members in Next Steps

Check out the year in pictures:

Our first circle as a team- at the first of many BlueMile shoe fittings! Thank you BlueMile for being such an amazing supporter.

Members from team HVAF Warman at the launch luncheon at JW Marriott.

White Lodging helping us get our chapter started! Thank You!

Heading to the start line of our first race!

On July 28th, many employees in downtown Indianapolis are trading their dress shoes for sneakers to participate in our inaugural 2011 Citywide Sneaker Day. The event kicked off when members of the Back on My Feet Indianapolis teams joined with our Sneaker Day sponsors, participating businesses, and new friends for a 1-mile run along the  Downtown Canal. It was a great summer morning for a 1-mile run to watch the sunrise in downtown Indianapolis.

Thanks to all those who came out to run for this special event. We love having such a large circle of friends! (Like our newest friends from Wisconsin, who are guests at the Marriott and learned about the event from a flier in the hotel). We are thrilled about the success of our inaugural Sneaker Day- thanks to you all!

Closing circle after the 1-mile run along the Downtown Canal.

This run was especially meaningful for our teams, as it was the same route as our launch run back on March 8th. Our members that were part of the inaugural team are four months into their journey and have achieved many major milestones including completing financial literacy and job readiness training classes, running a half-marathon, and now beginning the stage of preparing to interview for jobs with our incredible job partners. Keep it up Team HVAF and Team Progress House!

BoMF Indy Staff with the GM's and BoMF Board Members from Marriott Downtown and JW Marriott, Phil Ray and Scott Blalock. Scott is looking good in his tie and sneakers!

JW Marriott Crew! Thanks so much for coming out and supporting BoMF Indy!

We want to say a huge thank you to our Sneaker Day sponsors: Accenture, Finish Line, and Greater Indianapolis Hotel & Lodging Association.

Thank you to all of the local businesses that participated in Sneaker Day, including: Alpha Chi Omega Sorority, Alpha Sigma Alpha Sorority, American College of Sports Medicine, Apparatus, Baker & Daniels, Brown & Brown, CSO Architects, Delta Faucet, Embassy Suites Hotel, Endurance IT, Inc., Gilchrist & Soames, Hilton Downtown, Indianapolis Convention & Visitors Association, Indianapolis Downtown, Indianapolis Marriott Downtown, John H. Boner Community Center, JW Marriott, Monarch Charitable Foundation, National Panhellenic Conference, Pro Trans International, Sigma Kappa Sorority, and 2012 Indianapolis Super Bowl Host Committee.

Didn’t find your company on the list of those who participated? No fear! We will be having another Sneaker Day in November! Contact Lindsey to sign up!

If you are out and about in downtown Indianapolis today, be on the lookout for suits and sneakers!

Ding.

It’s an email from the boss. Oh no.

Wait… I get to wear my running shoes to work on Monday?

Wicked awesome! That’s way cooler than HR rolling a margarita machine around the office on Fridays…

Back on My Feet is on the prowl for innovative companies hoping to involve their employees in a spirit-filled, community building campaign that is sweeping Dallas. Sneaker Day.

Employees are asked to donate $5 in exchange for the opportunity to wear their most scuffed up sneaks to raise funds for educational programs, vocational training and financial aid for Back on My Feet members. Organizations are asked to match employee donations and encourage clients, colleagues and vendors to participate in a day that promotes awareness of a program combating homelessness in Dallas.

For more information about a Sneaker Day in your office, please contact Kristen Kouk at kristen.kouk@backonmyfeet.org.

As a brand new nonprofit in one of the most philanthropic cities in America, the Dallas-Fort Worth staff thought it was high time we let you know exactly how your donations impact your community, Residential Members and the homeless population of our city.

For each dollar donated to Back on My Feet, 83 cents directly impacts our program which includes financial aid, vocational training, financial literacy programs, the Skills to Succeed program, race entries, social events and running gear. The majority of Dallas funding goes to programs and education crucial for our Residential Members to achieve self-sufficiency.

“Some of our Residential Members meet with a Back on My Feet staff member more often than they can meet with their own case workers,” said Lea Velez, Program Director. “Many of the facilities we work with are unfortunately understaffed. We are there to provide our members, which have shown accountability and perseverance, an extra push in the right direction towards moving out and moving on.”

For Back on My Feet DFW, every dollar counts. And that is why we are asking that organizations across our city participate in a Sneaker Day during the month of June. Sneaker Days allow employees to wear their running shoes in exchange for a $5 donation to our program. We ask that companies match employees’ donations and foster a spirit-filled, community building environment in the office. For more information about Sneaker Days, contact Kristen Kouk at kristen.kouk@backonmyfeet.org.

Here at the Back on My Feet Dallas office (any Starbucks with some speedy wifi) we’ve come up with the top five ways to share the Back on My Feet experience with your neighbors, aunts and doctors. Ya know? The people in your life that may not have already heard you rave about running with the teams… those few.

Here are a couple of ideas for shy types, loud types and everyone in between…

1. Bring a friend to a Non Residential Member Orientation
Struggle to find the words when telling fellow runners about the intangible and rewarding aspect of Back on My Feet? This is the perfect opportunity for you to bring a friend or troupe of runners to discover what this program is all about.

2. Wear your merchandise
Run On! has all of the Back on My Feet gear you need for the summer heat. Head to their stores in Coppell, Richardson, McKinney or Dallas to purchase a new technical shirt. All proceeds directly impact the Back on My Feet program.

3. Ask your office to participate in a Sneaker Day
Sneaker Days allow employees to wear their running shoes in exchange for a $5 donation to our program. We ask that companies match employees’ donations and foster a spirit-filled, community building environment in the office.

4. Share us on Facebook
Visit facebook.com/bomfdfw. Scroll down and on the left hand side of the page you will see a link that says “Share.” Click that link and you have the option to either post our fan page on your profile or send us to 10, 20 or 200 of your best friends.

5. Recruit your family and friends to a race
We’ll provide the poster board if you provide the fans! Nothing beats the excitement and energy surrounding a team members’ first 5K.

Ahead of  National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness week, Nov. 14-20, Back on My Feet Chicago will hold its signature fundraiser to support its own mission of combating homelessness.

To help combat homelessness in the Windy City, Back on My Feet Chicago will be holding its first annual Chicagoland Sneaker Day on Friday, November 5th. As many of you know, the concept of the campaign is simple: companies sign up to participate in the campaign, and its employees who donate at least $5 to Back on My Feet can wear their sneakers to work that day and will receive a BOMF wristband and Sneaker Day sticker badge.

Back on My Feet Chicago has set a goal of $25,000 for its first year. For additional information or to get your company/school/organization involved, sign up here or contact Erin Serkaian at erin@backonmyfeet.org.

Last month, hotel management company White Lodging held its own Sneaker Day, as pictured below.

A leading hotel management company with thousands of employees is welcoming Back on My Feet to Chicago, ahead of the chapter launch there Sept. 22.

The leading hotel management company is hosting the National White Lodging Sneaker Day to support Back on My Feet, which has chapters in Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington, D.C. and is launching in Chicago on Sept. 22, 2010.

Download a PDF of this release here, or see the full release on our website here.

The campaign is simple: this Labor Day weekend, all White Lodging associates who donate $5 to Back on My Feet on Sept. 3 will be able to wear their sneakers to work throughout the whole weekend. They will also receive a Back on My Feet wristband to raise awareness and show their support.

The campaign is low cost for associates but has the opportunity to have a big impact for Back on My Feet, as the amount raised will be generously matched by The Bruce and Beth White Family Foundation.

The Philadelphia chapter is pleased to share that nearly $40,000 was raised by the Back on My Feet’s Sneaker Day presented by Accenture on June 18.

Sneaker Day was a success, as more than 6,000 employees and their respective employers participated. With each pair of sneakers worn to work and subsequent donation, they edged Back on My Feet closer and closer to its ultimate Birthday campaign target of $100,000.

Read more…

Back on My Feet’s good friends at Stroemann Bakeries added to the celebratory kickoff of our third birthday by holding a morning fun run.

Read more…

Back on My Feet kicked-off its 2nd two-week $100,000 Birthday Campaign in style on Friday, June 19th by teaming up with over 65 companies for “Wear Your Sneakers to Work” Day. Over 12,000 employees helped to raise over $35,000, which will go toward the campaign.

Back on My Feet would like to extend a special thank you to Blank Rome, LLP from Philadelphia, PA – the company with the largest number of participating employees and the largest amount of funds raised. While most participating companies were located in the Greater Philadelphia

region, companies participated in “Wear Your Sneakers to Work” Day in New York City, Baltimore and even California!

To help us reach our $100,000 Birthday Campaign goal click here!

Later, on Friday, June 19th, team members and fr

iends gathered in celebration at The Field House for the BOMF 2nd Birthday Happy Hour!   Back on My Feet would like to thank The Field House for a great night filled with food, drinks, laughter and awesome raffle prizes!