Marathon Charity Partners is a program of Arlington Cooperation Foundation.

 

Arlington Cooperation Foundation is a co-op, and delighted to be National Co-op Business Association’s newest member.  ACF may also be NCBA's most unusual member.

 

Back in 1976, eight buying clubs in Arlington merged to form The Arlington Co-operative Organization, Northern Virginia's only co-op grocery store.  In 1993, members of the co-op incorporated Arlington Cooperation Foundation as an educational and charitable organization for the benefit of the public in general, and in the Northern Virginia area specifically; with the mission "to work toward a sustainable future for our community by supporting, encouraging, educating, and disseminating information about good health, healthy nutritional choices, physical fitness, issues of public health, and the benefits of co-operative living."

 

Two of the foundation's founders were Sarah Turner of MD-DC Credit Union League and Paul Hazen, now NCBA's president.

 

ACF conducted annual health fairs on Edgewood Street in front of the co-op and ran the Art Danforth Memorial Library inside the store itself, featuring the longtime co-op educator's personal book collection, donated by his widow Mae Gellman Danforth, who cut the ribbon the day the new store was opened in 1992.

 

The co-op store closed its doors three years ago, but the Foundation lived on, at least on paper.  When longtime co-op activist Jay Jacob Wind (one of NASCO's founders) began work on a health-oriented marathon in Belle Haven Park, south of Alexandria in Fairfax County, Virginia, he turned to the Foundation.  Wind brought in new energy and people, pushed to convert the Foundation from an organization whose directors were appointed by the now-defunct co-op board (obviously a problem) into a membership organization with an elected board, and gave it a new mission: to run health-promotion events as fundraisers for charities.

 

The Foundation organized the 1st Potomac River Run Marathon in 2004, raising $3500 for charities; and the 2nd in 2005, raising $5500.  The charitable beneficiaries staffed the water stations along the 6.6-mile stretch (out-and-back twice made it a 26.2-mile marathon).  Both years, the marathon drew an international field and runners from 25 states and more than 100 dedicated volunteers.  The seven charities themselves formed a co-op, joining together in training and fundraising programs for Marine Corps Marathon called Marathon Charity Partners (MCP).

 

This year, MCP became an ACF activity, making ACF the fastest-growing running club and co-op in the DC area.  Now, ACF's members including representatives from all the charities in MCP, and ACF has become a fundraising co-op -- perhaps the nation's only one -- with the goal of raising at least $10,000 for charities from the proceeds of the 3rd Potomac River Marathon, set for Sunday, May 7.

 

The charities supporting and supported by the race are the seven Marathon Charity Partners:

 

·  AIMS for India

 

·  Asha for Education

 

·  Association for India's Development (AID) 

 

·  Cystic Fibrosis Foundation

 

·  Stop the Silence

 

·  Big Brothers Big Sisters of the National Capital Area

 

·  Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors, Inc.

 

plus

·  Running Strong for American Indian Youth

 

·  Arlington-Alexandria Coalition for the Homeless

 

·  and Northern Virginia Conservation Trust

 

ACF has built additional alliances:

 

·   On Saturday, May 6, 9 am, the day before Potomac River Run Marathon, and Sunday, May 7, 1 pm, after the marathon, Northern Virginia Conservation Trust and ACF conduct a clean-up of the Mount Vernon Trail as part of Capital River Relief, a month-long Potomac River restoration effort

 

·  The race celebrates World Laughter Day, Sunday, May 7, in cooperation with World Laughter Tour, featuring Certified Laughter Leader Scotty Scott at the pre-race warm-up

 

·  ACF is a President's Council of Physical Fitness and Sports 50th Anniversary Partner

 

·  Joining the race are five members of Quadfather Association, rolling to raise funds to buy wheelchairs for United States Quad Rugby - all featured in the Oscar-nominated documentary Murderball .

 

The day before the race, Saturday, May 6, 12 noon to 6 pm, ACF hosts the Potomac River Run College of Running, at Courtyard by Marriott, 2700 Eisenhower Avenue, Alexandria VA presenting these speakers:

 

·         Jay Jacob Wind, Potomac River Run Marathon director: 'A Virtual Tour of the Course"

 

·         Dr. Bernard Etherly, sprinter, triathlete, and chiropractor: "Running with Proper Form"

 

·         John Steitz, marathoner and proud penguin:  'Hydration for the Distance Runner"

 

·         Bruce Reynolds, USDA Cooperative Services:  "Co-ops -- Working Together Worldwide"

 

·         Nicholas Panebianco, marathoner, Big Brother,  philanthropist:  'Fundraising 101 for Charity Marathoners"

 

·         Walt Cline & BJ Ketchem, Velocity Sports Performance:  'Preparing to Achieve Your Dreams – Strength & Flexibility"

 

·         Ben Cooke, champion runner and Georgetown Running Company assistant manager: "The Latest in Running Technology"

 

·         Scotty Scott, certified laughter leader on the World Laughter Tour:  "Warm up for the Marathon with Laughter"

 

ACF invites other co-ops to support its mission.  Almonds, cheddar cheese, dried cranberries, grape juice, raisins, yogurt, and other co-op products would be welcome additions to the post-race picnic, and all co-op sponsors will get star billing on the race publicity and in the goodie bag that goes to all participants.

 

The marathon's web page is file:///C:/Documents and Settings/silg/Desktop/Web-Stuff/www.pvtc.org/marathon.html.

Its sponsorship prospectus is on-line at file:///C:/Documents and Settings/silg/Desktop/Web-Stuff/www.pvtc.org/marathonsponsor.html Jay Jacob Wind is the race director -- write him at racedirector@att.net or call him at 703-218-2726.