Great Strides
One child WILL walk so that another child CAN walk.
About You
Location
Project Street Address
Project City
Project Province/State
Project Postal/Zip Code
Project Country
Your idea
Field of Work
other
If Field of Work is “other” please define in 1-2 words below
health/social justice
Year project started (or projected start date) (yyyy)
2008
YouTube Upload
My work in the past:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M8mBciD_x9o
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gxVcm_HFO6I
Project URL (or link to any media coverage)
http://www.randomkid.org/RandomProjects.asp SCROLL DOWN
What is the primary problem your venture is trying to address and how are you addressing it (or planning to address it)?
Two problems, with their solutions woven together:
Problem One: 1.3 million children all over the world suffer from a condition called "Club Foot". They can not walk because their feet are bent at the ankle so severely that they must either walk on their knees, or not at all. The solution to this medical problem exists, and is very economical, making this suffering unnecessary.
Problem Two: One-third of all American children are OBESE, meaning that they are 20% over their ideal body weight and have a BMI of 30 or more. This makes them at much higher risk for Type 2 Diabetes and heart disease. "Today's children may become the first generation in history to have a shorter life expectancy than their parents'."- 17th United States Surgeon General Richard H. Carmona.
I have an idea that will help both, at the same time. Read on!
Name Your Project
Great Strides
Describe Your Idea
One child WILL walk so that another child CAN walk.
Innovation
Project Description
One child WILL walk so that another child CAN walk.
Unique and different
GREAT STRIDES is a program idea that I came up with that simultaneously supports youth fitness and raises the funds to make it possible for some of the 1.3 million children with Club Foot to receive corrective braces.
Youth will collect pledges for every mile they walk/run during recess, completing a marathon by the end of the school year. For every $260 raised, one child in the world will get corrective braces using the Ponsetti Method (University of Iowa).
This nonsurgical intervention for Club Foot requires 3 sets of braces used over 5 weeks. After 5 weeks, the child's legs are corrected. The University of Iowa has physicians and clinics in place in 30 countries, and with funding, will be able to reach hundreds of thousands of these kids.
The number 26 is signifiant-- a marathon is 26.2 miles, it costs $260 to correct the problem, and the earth's circumference is 26,000 miles.
Project plan
1. I am contacting schools, PE teachers and PE programs to get them to get kids MOVING, in order to help other kids MOVE.
2. I need to provide each student participating with a pedometer ($1 each), mile log that they can download from on-line, and incentives. For every 5 miles they walk they will get a trinket to tie on their shoe laces. When they get to 13 miles, half way, they will get a foot trinket, and at 26 miles, they will do a victory lap around their school, and get the last foot trinket, a medal and a t-shirt. It will cost $7 per student to fund the program. If they get 10 pledges for $1 per mile, they will raise enough to make it possible for ONE child to WALK!
3. Once the child with Clubfoot gets their feet corrected, they will send their footprints to the schools. I have discussed this with the University of Iowa, and this is very do-able.
4. Of the $260 collected, $7 pays for the incentives and $5 becomes start-up funds for the next school who joins us. This is how I will grow the program.
Partnerships
I have worked with 23 state government offices before in a project to commemorate the 2nd anniversary of Katrina. Here is the link to the project: http://www.randomkid.org/gulf.html
I have also worked with Target ($30,000 for a field trip with 20 kids to the gulf to landscape Habitat houses), Toy R US ($8000 to refurbish a school in the gulf and later to fund a water project with a school in Texas to help build wells in Africa), Office Depot (in-kind to help a school), Walmart ($2000 for an event in Seattle with the Dalai Lama), Kum and Go ($10,000- sold one of my products in 445 stores in 13 states) , Hy-Vee Grocer ($216,000-made 8.5 million trick-or-treat bags for 227 stores to support a project in 2005) and others on projects. I called their offices and set up times to meet with them at their corporate headquarters or have a conference call with them. I showed them powerpoints, and they were interested.
Impact
Impact
To help some of the 1.3 million children with Clubfoot to be able to walk, and to get American children to get fit. Kids need to MOVE at recess, and get real exercise. It will also help us to appreciate that we CAN walk, knowing that we are doing this for others who can't.
Effectiveness
I have not launched this yet, but if I win this grant, it will be launched immediately, and I will be forever grateful! See above to know who benefits.
How do you engage and impact the community?
I have a website www.randomkid.org. I also use phonecalling, emails, and contact the media to spread information. To date, my organization has worked with more than 4000 school districts. I have engaged about 10,000 kids in projects, and they have benefited more than 7000 people globally. I have had media for most all my projects, and for that I am knocking on wood!!! (Media sampling: I have been on the TODAY SHOW twice, CNN, MSNBC, NBC Making a Difference segment, NPR, and more. Last week I was in USA TODAY http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2008-10-07-charitykids_N.htm)
How do you measure this impact?
The University of Iowa will keep us informed. For every $260 raised, a child will walk. So we will know, and they will send us the footprints.
Obstacles
I think the main issue is getting schools involved. But I have shown that I can do that very successfully, so I think I can make this one work well, too. Right now, I have schools from NY, IA, MA, TX, MN, CT, NY, CA, and PA all involved in a water project, funding wells in Africa. We have funded wells supporting 5,000 people so far. http://www.randomkid.org/water.asp
This Entry is about (Issues)
Sustainability
Financing source
(or how do you expect your initiative will be financed)
If I can win this grant, I will do what I have always done, and that is to hold back a percentage from every kid who fundraises, and use that money to fund the next school. The pool of funds grows with each new school, and that is how I grow my projects. My water project began with one school, and now I have had 20 schools participate, and seem to get a new school every few weeks. I always hold back 10% which allows me to grow all my projects.
Aside from financial sustainability, how do you plan to grow and sustain your project?
By always getting the word out through my website, emails, newletters, phonecalls and the media. I have learned that once it gets going, it develops it's own momentum. It's a lot of work in the beginning, and then it has a life of it's own that need attention, but less than at the beginning.
Finance details
2006:
Total administrative costs: $2486.52
Total incomes: $25,411.34
The administrative costs as a percentage of the total budget in 2006 were 9.8%
(These are higher in 2006 than 2007 due to nonprofit filing and web design fees)
2007
Total administrative costs: $1984.69
Total income: $83,787.83
The administrative costs as a percentage of the total budget in 2007 were 2.4%
Notes:
1. Prior to receiving our 501C3 in the Fall of 2006, charitable monies collected through RandomKid were given directly to established 501C3 Randomkid project beneficiaries in order to ensure the associated tax advantages for donors.
2. The budget does not include in-kind gifts
I work with hundreds of kids on didfferent projects. Once we launch GREAT STRIDES, I will establish a team from those that write to me. Here is how my organizagion works: Kids, schools and youth groups contact me through my website and I unify fundraising efforts with similar goals in order to finance actual solutions for people who face difficult challenges. I identify high-impact nonprofit partners for my efforts, and develop empowering ways to fundraise. GREAT STRIDES meets all of these goals-- it is high impact, empowers kids, and is a real and affordable solution for a real world problem. Once I get the funding, I will invite kids to lead this project in their schools around the USA. The money will support the purchase of the mile-logs, incentives, t-shirts and awards the first go-around, and after that, it will support itself. One school has about 400-600 kids. So ideally, I would like to start 5-10 schools. That will allow hundreds of kids to walk in the world!
Creative funding
I like to have kids sell products they design. We have kids selling their own private labeled water to fund our wells, and we have kids selling their own designed house-shaped keychains to fund rebuilding in the gulf. Kids need to gain a benefit from our projects, that's my number one rule. That's why GREAT STRIDES is about fitness and completing a marathon! When it is over, someone somewhere will be able to walk, and the kid that raised the funds will always know that he or she did a marathon during their school year. THAT is empowering!
Other non finance needs
KIDS! I work with schools and youth groups and nothing can beat that kind of KID POWER!
The Story
Motivation
At my school we have this thing where you can walk around the premises and try to walk a marathon before school is out. If you get to 26.2 miles, you get to run a lap at the Drake relays. I thought, why not have kids walk for a more noble purpose than that, like, to walk so someone else can.
Awards
INTERNATIONAL
World of Children "Nobel Prize of Children" Founder's Award 2008
Recognized as one of 48 people of character internationally by “Character Counts!”
Build-A-Bear Corporation “HUGGABLE HERO” 2007
NORTH AMERICA:
BRICK award finalist 2007
NATIONAL:
Recognized by President Clinton 2005
Featured on CNN’s “Going the Extra Mile segment” 2005
UNICEF’s National Youth Ambassador (Appointed to this position) 2005-2006
Gloria Barron Prize for Young Heroes 2006
Point of Light Foundation, Presidents Bush, Sr. and Jr.
UNICEF Emissary 2007
Recognized by PEPSI Corporation (Talia featured on 50 million bags of Doritos—summer 2007)
Featured on an “NBC Making a Difference” segment 2007
Appointed spokesperson for the Build-A-Bear Workshop Huggable Heroes Program 2008
Prudential Spirit of Community National Award winner 2008 (Named one of top ten youth volunteers in USA)
Presidential Volunteer Award 2006, 2007, 2008
REGIONAL:
Kohl’s Kids Who Care 2006
STATE-WIDE:
“Character Counts” Citizen of Character Award for the State of Iowa 2007
Broader context
It contributes to youth fitness, youth in philanthropy, and quality of life for youth around the world. It helps many things relating to youth.
Ongoing
I'm not sure what you mean by this, except I can tell you that once this gets started, I will continue it to the best of my ability, encouraging it to grow and benefit all who are involved and all whom it helps.
What is your age?
13
How did you hear about this competition?
Ashoka email
 | 187 weeks agoKate Myers said: Hey Talia! You have some really great ideas! I love how all the numbers relate 26.2, $260...! Could you provide more details on the ... about this Competition Entry. - read more > |
