Community-Driven Fun Run Raises Over $15,000 for Oxfam Canada!

Owner of Saskatoon running store, Brainsport, Brian Michasiw, is a runner himself. After traveling to Kenya in 2007 with his running partner Jason (husband of Oxfam's own Michelle Beveridge), and independently distributing running shoes to athletes (many of which were donated by customers), he was very touched by all the people and felt compelled to help them in any way that he could.

Choosing Oxfam was easy, as he already had a connection, and through Oxfam he was able to allocate funds to the crisis in Kenya, where water and sanitation issues were critical.

With only 3 weeks to put an event together, they kept things simple, and Brian thinks this may be part of the success. They eschewed complexity for a homegrown, volunteer-driven event, and also accepted donations for Oxfam at the store.

The event they put together was called 10k for Kenya, which involved a 10km fun run beginning at Brian's store. It was about -30 C, yet 150 people showed up when Brian was hoping for 100. African drummers entertained the participants and those who came to cheer them on, and they screened a documentary that Jason spearheaded about Kenyan runners and how they give back to their community. After the race, they served chai, Kenyan coffee and Ugali to warm up their participants.

Brian says `[the] response from patrons was strong, [and] there was a good connection between the Saskatoon running community and Kenya. So it wasn't too hard for my customers to get enthusiastic about the event. Everything throughout the day was by donation, and everyone involved opened up their hearts and their wallets.

With the involvement of Brainsport staff, customers, participants, and the community, Brian was able to surpass his goal of $10,000 for Oxfam and raise an astounding $15,052.00! The day was such a success that Brian hopes to repeat it again in the future.