What is NYRR Team for Kids?
Team for Kids (TFK) is a group within the New York Road Runner's club (NYRR) where adult runners fundraise for NYRR youth and community programs. New York Road Runners is a nonprofit organization that organizes some of the largest and most reputable races in the United States, including the New Balance 5th Avenue Mile, the United NYC Half, and the TCS New York City Marathon (which, in 2022, was the largest race in America). In addition to hosting these large-scale running events every year, NYRR devotes and immense amount of time and energy to not only growing the running community in the greater NYC area, but across the US and even the world.
​
Visit the Team for Kids site and watch the video below to learn more about the incredible work TFK runners do every year for the program. I am truly so excited to be joining this incredible organization at the New York City Marathon this year.
​
Common Questions
Do these donations only help youth who are in New York City?
No. New York Road Runners' youth program, Rising New York Road Runners, is active in schools and community centers across the country. Rising New York Road Runners consists of a research-based curriculum that educators across the country can use to help their students learn to run in a fun way.
​
To learn more about the Rising New York Road Runners program, click here and watch the video below!
​
​
Why are donations so important? Couldn't parents just pay a registration fee for their children to be enrolled in these programs?
Note: This answer mainly comes from my own experience with working with a youth sports non-profit, and not from New York Road Runners.
​
Depending on the area of the country, some communities are economically well-off enough to where paying a registration fee is not unreasonable. However, during my time interning for a youth sports non-profit in college, I reviewed applications and was truly shocked to see how many of them indicated a need for financial aid to pay the full program registration fee of $150. According to the program's site, approximately 60% of families rely on financial aid for the program every year. While I was interning, a family indicating financial need would either pay a fee of only $25 or nothing at all.
​
The scholarships for this program were made possible by the thousands of dollars fundraised and donated by this organization's community. By witnessing this program in action, I was able to see first-hand the positive impact that all of these donations had on youth in the Seattle-area.
​
The Rising New York Road Runners curriculum is similar in many ways to the curriculum at the non-profit I interned with, only the program is free to everyone, regardless of financial need. Since Rising NYRR does not obtain funds from the communities they support, as a non-profit they rely solely on donations to keep their programs running (no pun intended) strong.
I want to join Team for Kids, but I don't want to run a marathon? Is that possible?
Yes! If you are looking for an excuse to travel to New York City, TFK runners fundraise for almost every major NYRR race, which includes a host of 10k's and half-marathons. Additionally, if you do not wish to travel to New York, you can create your own fundraising event by either registering for a local race or by even creating your own event.
​
Also, because I know my mom will ask this question, if you absolutely despise running in any shape or form, you can briskly walk an in-person NYRR race, so long as you make the course cutoff (which is usually around 15 minutes per mile, or 4 mph). If you decide to create your own fundraising event, check with the event organizers, but the course cutoffs usually allow for a bit of a slower walking pace.
​
Finally, if races aren't your thing, you can always make a donation directly to TFK or donate to a runner you know that is fundraising....hint hint :)
​
Contact
I'm always looking for new and exciting opportunities. Let's connect.
123-456-7890