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Moody Foundation to Match Austin Gives Miles Donations

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High Five Events is proud to announce that Austin Gives Miles, the Official Charity Program of the Austin Marathon® presented by NXP, has been selected for a Moody Foundation grant for the second year in a row. The grant will match dollars raised by each of the 27 Austin Gives Miles Official Charities, up to $10,000 per organization.  

“The Moody Foundation is pleased to support Austin Gives Miles,” said Elle Moody, Moody Foundation Trustee. “This program gives runners the opportunity to make their miles meaningful by raising funds for a great cause and the grant helps them leverage their donation by matching the funds. We are happy to provide this support for a program that is building a stronger Central Texas community with every step and every mile.”

The Moody Foundation, based in Galveston, Texas, has funded projects and programs that better communities throughout Texas. The grant that will match Austin Gives Miles donations will have a positive impact on the Central Texas organizations and their specific causes by matching their funds raised (up to $10,000). One of the Moody Foundation’s areas of support, community development, directly aligns with the goal of the Austin Marathon: to better Central Texas. Austin Gives Miles is proud to receive this grant and knows the positive effects will be far-reaching.

“We’re both grateful and excited to receive this Moody Foundation grant,” said Carly Samuelson, Austin Gives Miles Charity Manager. “The official charities are working harder than ever to enhance their respective organizations and this grant will push that effort to the next level. This grant will make it possible for Austin Gives Miles to raise more than $600,000 this year, bringing the four year total for the program to more than $1 million.”

This is the fourth year that Austin Gives Miles is the Official Charity Program for the Austin Marathon. Last year, Austin Gives Miles contributed more than $446,000 to the Central Texas community through its fundraising efforts. In addition to the funds and awareness raised, last year’s Austin Gives Miles Official Charities recruited more than 750 runners and provided more than 1500 volunteers.

The Austin Marathon will celebrate its 26th year running in the capital of Texas. Austin’s flagship running event annually attracts runners from all 50 states and 20+ countries around the world. With start and finish locations just a few blocks apart, and within walking distance of many downtown hotels and restaurants, the Austin Marathon is the perfect running weekend destination. Participants can still register for the marathon, half marathon, or 5K.

Austin Marathon Introduces Austin Gives Miles Charity Chaser

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High Five Events is excited to introduce Chikage Windler, CBS Austin Chief Meteorologist, as the official Austin Gives Miles Charity Chaser for the 2017 Austin Marathon® presented by NXP. Windler will begin the marathon as the final participant and earn $1.25 for a chosen Austin Gives Miles Charity for every runner that she passes.

This is the third year that the Charity Chaser has started as the final participant on behalf of Austin Gives Miles. In addition to starting last and raising money for a charity on race day, Windler will generate awareness for the Austin Gives Miles Program, engage all 27 Official Charities, and help the AGM Program surpass its goal of $500,000. Windler will run on behalf of the charity that wins a month-long campaign that will run from Dec. 14th to Jan. 16th. The selected organization will be determined after calculating donations made during that month-long timeframe, engagement through a social media photo contest, and votes from an online poll.

“I’m honored to even be considered for this year’s Charity Chaser,” said Windler, who’s running the Austin Marathon for the the second year in a row. “What better motivation to train harder and run faster than knowing it will help a charity earn that much more money!”

Chikage grew up in a family of runners, but only started distance running a few years ago. She hopes to qualify for Boston someday, or at least have fun trying. She’s the captain of Team CBS Austin, running races across Central Texas with her coworkers.

“This has been one of the harder Austin Marathon secrets to keep because we were so thrilled when Chikage agreed to be our Charity Chaser,” said Carly Samuelson, Charity Manager, Austin Gives Miles Program. “We appreciate her willingness to lend her miles and her platform to positively impact the Austin Gives Miles program and Central Texas nonprofits.”

The Austin Marathon will celebrate its 26th year running in the capital of Texas. Austin’s flagship running event annually attracts runners from all 50 states and 20+ countries around the world. With start and finish locations just a few blocks apart, and within walking distance of many downtown hotels and restaurants, the Austin Marathon is the perfect running weekend destination. Participants can still register for the marathon, half marathon, or 5K.