Crisis of Charity

For nearly two years, the American Cancer Society's charity endurance athlete program, "DetermiNation," has been an important part of my life. I have raised money for it through at least one endurance event each year, I have discovered my love of half and full marathons through the program, I have made wonderful friends, I have taken joy in spending my time giving back rather than focusing {even more} on myself, and I have felt that I am contributing to a cause very dear to my heart - the fight against cancer.

I have recently discovered through Charity Navigator, however, that the American Cancer Society devotes more than the recommended 25% of its income to overhead expenses. At 28% it is only slightly over the generally accepted limit for an efficient charity, however, even 25% is pushing it in my opinion.

I cannot in good faith continue to ask my friends and family to donate to an organization that, while it does significant good, will not administer their donations as efficiently as possible. I have already attended one event hosted by the St. Louis area DetermiNation chapter at which I learned that their numbers for the upcoming Go! St. Louis Marathon and Half are considerably lower than their expectations. I feel guilty to not pledge myself to run on their team, but knowing that I wouldn't feel comfortable fundraising, how could I? As I am registered to run the race, I feel that I cannot continue to attend DetermiNation meetings knowing that they need more runners on their team, but that I refuse to be one of those runners.

Have any of you experienced such a crisis of charity? Do you have other recommendations for a charity I can get involved with in the Midwest -- giving back is so important to me and I don't want to let that go, just because I am moving on from the ACS.

Running for a reason

In a recent post, Sarah Kay Hoffman shared a few insights on exercise motivators, many of which I related to strongly: creating a great playlist (new music is SUCH a motivator - I can't wait to go for a run when I know I have a new sweet jam to rock out to!), finding a workout time to stick to (promising myself I'll work out "later" results in puttering around my apartment until I'm out of time), and putting out workout clothes the night prior (streamlining my morning routine and knowing that I've already put some effort into my workout plans leaves me without excuses to get up & go).

The motivator I related to the most, however, was this: run for a reason. I can't even say how much running with the American Cancer Society's DetermiNation program has enhanced my time in New York and transformed my view on running. It used to be a chore, I used to fear competitive races, now I love them. Cancer was something that had personally broken my heart, now I am making a difference in fighting this terrible disease. I've made friends, learned more about running tricks and tools and gotten in better shape.

While I have a clear bias towards DetermiNation, there are an almost overwhelming number of worthy causes out there that sponsor bib numbers in popular, sold-out races. If you are interested in running the ING New York Marathon and didn't get a lottery number (I mean, who did? I don't think I've ever met someone who actually got in through the lottery!), please check out these charities, which currently have spots available!

Streetwise Partners - an NY-based organization that "provides an effective, free job training program for highly motivated people who face multiple barriers to employment (source)."

Girls on the Run - an organization that is particularly dear to my heart as they encourage girls to gain confidence and live healthfully through running! Running for this charity is an awesome opportunity for grown-up girls to lead by healthy example.

Team Fox - Michael J. Fox's foundation for Parkinson's Research has an amazing running team, and let's be honest, how cool is Michael J. Fox?

source

Team in Training - the purple team. For those who are runners, this team likely needs no introduction. It is a huge team of charity runners running for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

And of course....DetermiNation!

I have had friends participate in the running programs for all charities listed and all had wonderful experiences - I wouldn't lead you astray!

Now that you can't use, "I didn't get into the lottery" as an excuse...what are you waiting for??