Team Congo PDX & Cause + Event Portand

We are now less than a month out to Cause + Event Portland's charity walk/run, and as of today's date, Team Congo PDX has 43 members, which means that simply by joining our team, our members have raised $430 for Women for Women International's Congo program (half of each team member's registration fee is a donation to our cause)! 

Our team is multi-distance: 10K or 5K run or 5K walk. The race starts at 9:00 am (individual event start times TBA).  Our team members need not worry about their individual pace affecting our team, as each team member will run or walk their own race—it’s just about numbers and raising funds & awareness for good causes (over 40 charities, including Women for Women International, will benefit from this event). 

Why Congo?  Over the past 12 years just under 6 million people have died due to violence fueled over who controls the mineral mines in eastern Congo, leaving women & children vulnerable.  There are 4 main minerals which are sourced from eastern Congo which are necessary for our every-day electronics to function properly: cell phones, computers, digital cameras, etc.  It the goal of Team Congo PDX to educate others about the conflict in the region, their inadvertent connection to the conflict, and provide positive & proactive ways to affect change. 

Perks of joining our team?  Each member of Team Congo PDX will receive a free Run for Congo Women t-shirt (if they don't already have one), and will receive an invite to our Facebook group so that we can better coordinate for race day. Also, doesn't everyone want to be in the group photo on race day with our Run for Congo Women banner?

Photo taken by Alexa Brandt of Fatman Productions

Team Congo PDX members will also have an opportunity to win a free entry into our 2014 Group Walk/Run which is held on International Women's Day. The team member who raises the most funds for our cause via our official team fundraising page will win the free entry!

Also, this past June Team Congo PDX entered into a friendly challenge with the Angel's MS Warriors team & whichever team brings the most members will get to select which exercise the losing team has to complete on race day & our friendly challenge has caught the attention of the race organizers & so it should be a fun spectacle in front of everyone! And, the largest team will receive $250 for their charity.  

To date Angel MS Warriors have 70 on their team, but we haven't given up yet!  So, please ask your friends and family to join Team Congo PDX on 11.16.13 to support women in eastern Congo! 

Pertinent links:

Team Congo PDX Facebook Page

Team Congo PDX Website

Team Congo PDX Fundraising Page

Join Team Congo PDX @ Cause + Event

Cause + Event Facebook Page

Cause + Event Website

Inspiration Amid Exhaustion

Here it is nearly 11:00 pm, and I'm tired and plain worn out from the past week.  I'm still getting over a nasty cold, work is busy, and I'm juggling several charity projects, all amazing and also another reason why I'm tired, mentally. 

Photo by Marcus Bleasdale (source)

But, now my mind is abuzz after reading the October 2013 National Geographic which features the work of Marcus Bleasdale, a photographer who has been capturing the conflict in eastern Congo for over a decade.  This article compels me to get out of my cozy bed, boot up my computer and pound this out, because it's the only way my mind will ever find enough peace to call it a night. 

I'm inspired, and feel a kindred spirit in Mr. Bleasdale:

"When I first went to the Congo, I realized that a hundred years after Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness, nothing has changed.  People were still being exploited, only now it was multinational corporations sucking up all the resources.  A report in 2004 said that more than four million people had died in what is now called Africa's first world war, and I just couldn't believe that no one was talking about this horrific death toll.  That enraged me.  At one point I was spending eight months a year photographing this war, and yet only a couple of international reporters were covering it from Kinshasa.  So I keep bringing back these images because I want to make people as angry as I am.  I want them to know the minerals in our mobile phones or computers or cameras are funding violence.  How can we make the horror stop?  It begins with a photograph." ~October 2013 National Geographic

And, so thank you Mr. Bleasdale for so eloquently explaining why it is that the Congo has changed my life.  I simply cannot bear to live in a world where nearly 6 million people can die, seemingly unnoticed, simply because their blessing is a curse, and where I am an inadvertent cause for the continued curse. Indeed, I want to live in a world where living in one of the most mineral rich regions in the world doesn't mean that you must live amid horrific violence. 

I am honored and humbled to be a part of a movement sweeping across the country, and in fact across the world, to shine a bright light on the situation in Congo, because the fact is that, "...your laptop--or camera or gaming system or gold necklace--may have a smidgen of Congo's pain somewhere in it." (October 2013 National Geographic)

And so, no matter how tired I become at times, I will persist on, and keep working to highlight the beauty of Congo, and to educate others as to the horrors which threaten to snuff out this beauty. 

Support Women for Women International via Foot Traffic Women's Academy!

Attention: Women for Women International supporters! 

Help Women Half a World Away!

Here's your chance to do something good for a fantastic non-profit AND for yourself! Run or walk with hundreds of other women as you train together with Foot Traffic Women's Academy this fall! This all-women's running and walking training program prepares members to complete a 10K (6.2 miles) or a half marathon (13.1 miles). Professional coaching, pace mentors for ALL abilities (many at the beginner level for walkers and runners), weekly group workouts and emails to keep you motivated and on task, guest speakers, technical fabric member shirts, and more await you. Program starts Sept. 14th.

Visit www.foottraffic.us/academy or email laura@foottraffic.us for more information.

PLUS, Foot Traffic will donate $40 of every half program registration and $20 of every 10k program registration to Women for Women International (WfWI)! Simply use code "WfWI" when registering!

LAST, during session I of FTWA (Spring 2013) we raised $60 for WfWI's program in Democratic Republic of Congo via FTWA registrations using our charity code. The $60 was transferred to our online Congo fundraising page last week, which means that the $60 was doubled to $120, because between now and September 30, 2013 all donations are being doubled by one of WfWI's generous group of supporters!

Please spread the word that registration is open for FTWA's Session II (Fall Session): www.foottraffic.us/academy. This go around any funds raised via our charity code ("WfWI") will benefit WfWI's work around the world (8 countries in all).  You can also make a donation directly to our online WfWI fundraising page.

Tabling at Pamper for a Purpose

     On Sunday, July 28th Team Congo PDX was privileged to table at the 3rd annual Pamper for a Purpose, which is a local benefit for Jewish World Watch's (JWW) programs in Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).  For $20 you could purchase a service (make-over, acupuncture, hairstylist, massage, etc.), and pamper yourself, but for a purpose! 

Team Congo PDX's table @ Pamper for a Purpose

It was a beautiful sunny day, and afforded the opportunity to meet many inspiring activists, policy makers, & Congolese and Sudanese nationals. 

   

Diana & myself

I started my day by meeting Diana Buckhantz, a JWW Board Member, who had just returned home from a trip to DRC (Read Diana's Huffington Post blog here).  Diana and I spent a bit of time chatting about her recent trip to Congo, JWW's work with Women for Women International. Diana even donated to Team Congo PDX's online fundraising page, and in return I made sure to give her a Run for Congo Women t-shirt!

Rudwan and I

Later in the day I was honored to meet Rudwan Dawod Cis, who one year ago was unjustly detained by the Northern Sudanese Government for advocating for peace in Sudan (you can read more about Rudwan's incredible story here).  Rudwan lives south of Portland with his beautiful wife and daughter, and I was tickled to meet Rudwan, his wife and daughter in person as like so many others across Oregon, and in fact the country, I was able to take part in the campaign to help bring Rudwan home.  Rudwan's story is incredible, and yet he is one of the most humble, compassionate human beings I have ever met.  

     I was able to talk to a around 150 -200 people about my upcoming Run for Congo Women events, and collected $52 in donations which has been applied to our online fundraising page for Women for Women International's DRC program.  All-in-all a wonderfully inspiring day!

Donations!

15 Things Which Will Make you Run Faster

Those of us who run regularly know at which point(s) in our run we tend to slow down and almost give into our inner voice which is practically yelling at us to stop.  Of course, once you overcome that voice you often realize that you can actually run farther than you thought, and those moments of overcoming the doubtful inner voice feel so empowering (take that inner voice!)

While about halfway through today's long run I was motivated to run a little faster as I approached an extremely smelly porta poddy.  The smell permeated for a good quarter mile, and the quickest way to get out of the danger zone, was to speed up those feet. 

That got me to thinking, and before I knew it a mile or two had gone by as I was compiling in my mind a list of the top 15 irritating things I regularly encounter on my runs which cause me to speed up, and so really these irritating motivators are silver linings, and I am begrudgingly thankful for them:

1) Smelly porta poddys

2) Off-leash pooches who think it's fun to chase you (after all that's why you are running, right?)

3) Imminent bridge lifts (while I used to find these irritating, I actually like them now as they provide an opportunity to take in a nice view & stretch a bit, but when you are cresting the bridge & see a vessel coming, it's fun to try & outrun it too!)

4) A slowly approaching freight train at the RR crossing you must pass over (longest wait at a RR crossing, over 10 mins!)

5) Creeps

6) The sudden feeling that you must use the restroom (tip: don't eat a lot of cherries the day before a long run...trust me)

7) Approaching rain clouds (while I enjoy a run in the rain, it's actually fun to try outrun the rain clouds!)

8) Crowds of people (the quickest way to get out of the bottle neck of people on foot & pedals is to find the maze within and just hoof it)

9) Runners & their dogs on long leashes (I think it's great for runner & pooch to go for a run, or walk, but please keep them on a tight leash.  When your furry friend is 10+ feet from you, you've just created an unwanted obstacle course)

10) Group mob runners/walkers (I frequent group runs, and so I get it, but please realize that just because you are in a group does not mean that you get to take the ENTIRE path. Be courteous & let us solos through too)

11) Group stroller runs/walks (don't mistake me, I have mad respect for those who can run and maneuver a stroller, but when running in a group, please recognize that you should sometimes stroll single file through congested pathways)

12) Narrow shoulder on a busy roadway (sometimes you have few options but to run along the side of a busyish road & the best way to get out of harms way is to speed on through)

13) A counting down pedestrian traffic signal (If the countdown is 6 or more, I can always sprint & clear the light before it hits 0!)

14) Hills (I have two large hills to contest with in my neighborhood & sometimes it's just easier to get them over with quickly)

15) Surreys

I HATE these!!!

I must now rant a bit. I get that surreys are fun.  They are a neat way for tourists to enjoy themselves. However, I do not appreciate them when crossing over Portland's bridges.  The surrey joyriders typically don't have the best control over the contraption, and so they are often unpredictable, and are especially irritating when crossing over the Hawthorne Bridge, because a narrow space must be shared by one-way bicyclists and both-ways pedestrians.  The surreys are only available for rental during the fare-weather runner/walker time of year, and so if you are not quick, before you know it you are stuck behind an ill-operated surrey.  I've rarely seen happy faced surrey connoisseurs when going over the Hawthorne Bridge, because by this point even they realize how precarious they are to others. My tip to fellow runners/walkers would be to use the eastbound side of the Hawthorne bridge during fare-weather running/walking season (May - September).  

All-in-all, I never let any of the above ruin a run, and in fact when you turn them in to quick footed motivators, you can begin to embrace them as opportunities to challenge yourself!

Urban vs. Suburban Running: Who Let the Dogs Out?

Mostly I'm an urban city runner, but lately I've been running more in the burbs, and sometimes just a smidgen into the country.  An observation: in the burbs, people seem to think it's okay to let their dogs roam around their yards off leash, unsupervised.

L-R: Rylee, Brenna & Bailey.
Photo taken by Samantha Ulrich

 Don't get me wrong, I love dogs, and in fact my family has three lovable, too-cute-for-their-own-good, snugly fur monsters (evidence to your left).  

However, that doesn't mean that when I'm out for my weekend run that I enjoy being chased by other people's dogs--particularly when I'm in the last grueling mile of my long run.  It's happened twice lately, and both by labs.  While I am pretty sure that in each instance the pooch was just playing, I was not in the playing mood.  Each time it took the owner several minutes to realize that their dog was enjoying a game of catch-the-runner, which for me was several minutes too long.   

So, I post this just to remind my fellow dog-owners, as is best put by the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA),

Regardless of your dog’s motivation, chasing runners should be discouraged. No runner enjoys being harassed by a dog, even if the dog’s intent is playful. Your dog could be injured or frightened by a runner since the person is well within his or her rights to shout, strike out or kick at your dog in self-defense.

Read more about the types of behaviors to look for in dogs who chase runners 

Don't worry, even though the ASPCA deems it a reasonable possibility, I won't hit or kick your runner-chasing-dog, but I will tell your dog "No" and be very annoyed with you. 

To end on a positive note, I have observed very courteous dog-owner behavior along a multi-use path I frequent in my suburb running route, and thank the dog owners who make sure that their dogs don't chase others, and when appropriate keep their dogs on leash.  After all, there's no reason runners, walkers and dogs can't share the path in harmony! 

I Run to Empower

Well, today is National Running Day, which is held annually on the first Wednesday of June.  Today is a day where runners everywhere proudly proclaim their favorite pastime. There's even an official website (http://www.runningday.org/) where you can locate local running events, group runs, and even snag your own National Running Day Badge:

I never would have thought I'd catch the running bug.  Despite the encouragement of one of my high school's track & cross country coaches to come on out for a run (she literally pestered me all 4 years of high school), I was adamant that I despised, in fact hated, running.  I can't even count how many times I've declared that I will never run. 

Fast forward 14 years to the Spring of 2011, which is when my attitude toward running changed forever.  I caught the running bug mostly due to curiosity.  I thought I'd give running a try, and although I hated it for the first 6 months or so, eventually it grew on me, and when it did, there was no going back.  And here I am in 2013 training for my first half marathon (this ones for you Coach Garrison!).

Running is my time to clear my head and regain balance.  It's where I challenge myself, and insert adventure into my day.  Sometimes it's a social endeavor (**High Five** to my running buddies!). You just never know what any given run will bring.  There's lots to see: flowers, sunsets, neat cloud formations, and let's not underestimate the people (ahem, Too Short of Shorts Running Man). 

For me running is what reminds me that anything is possible.  I use running to not only empower myself, but also to empower others, and to raise awareness about causes which are close to my heart (plug website for cause here: http://amandapdxrunforcongo.wix.com/teamcongopdx).  I'm not alone in this, collectively in the last 20 years runners have raised over a billion dollars for countless causes (http://www.runningday.org/charity/make-a-difference-on-national-running-day). 

Of course not everyone can run, and you know, that's the neat thing about the running community.  Most running events welcome walkers, wheelchair runners, and even sometimes our furry friends.   And, personally, my hat's off to those who are coordinated enough to run while pushing your little one in a jogging stroller--I mean seriously, sometimes it's all I can do to get my two feet across the finish line, let alone four additional wheels!

So, whether you're a casual or super fanatic runner, today is for you!  So, what in the heck are you waiting for?  Lace up and get out there!


My running partner & I sprinting to the finish at the 2012 Red Lizard 5 Miler