Yesterday I received a letter in the mail. It is a simple message but something that greatly tied into a lot that I have been thinking about lately. The letter is as follows:
“Zika, Pete, Ryan
I need to ramble a bit…
I feel inspired!
Last week I saw an email headline about ZAP reaching 1,500 fans on Facebook. This is great! I don’t know why but it is great!
Later, I reflected on a conversation I initiated with Pete during an October Wednesday evening run about tithing and donations. My thoughts tying this conversation to 1,500 ZAP fans is, what if every individual who likes ZAP were to donate at least $100 each per year in support? What if that number is $200 or $300 each? How can the ZAP online media presence be leveraged across all platforms to increase awareness and inspire others? I do not have that solution, just ideas. I do know what I can affect now.
How do I put $100 per year in perspective? $.27 per day is what I pay for a 32 ounce drink refill at a local restaurant. That is $100 over 365 days, or $8 per month. Three times that is $.81 per day or $25 per month.
Recently I watched a rerun of the movie Evan Almighty. Dialogue in one scene centers around the question, how do I change the world? The answer provided is through one single Random Act of Kindness at a time. Be the change that you want to see in the world.
Please accept this RAK for January.
Someone on the mountain inspired me to action.
Thanks.”
So why am I sharing this with you? Yes, because we always want to find more ways to raise money for the ZAP Fitness Foundation and this was one of the simplest breakdowns of something that could drastically change ZAP’s financial situation. 1,500 people donating $100 each would allow us to do some simple things like much needed facility improvements but also allow us to think more long term and create an endowment for the foundation- an endowment that would be our promise to always provide support for America’s distance runners.
I am also sharing this with you because Andy Palmer, my late husband and co-founder of ZAP Fitness died while running 10 years ago today, Feb 2, 2002. This is something that is on my mind a lot this time of year and getting this letter in the mail from our friend who was “inspired” struck a chord. âèâèAndy had the ability to inspire people to believe in things that no one would ever think possible.
I wish every one of you who read this could have known Andy as he is one of the greatest people I have ever had the honor to know and influence my life. He is the most generous person I have ever known, a man who would give the last dollar in his pocket or bank account to help someone else. He always had some struggling runner living in his house or apartment for free trying to give them a chance to make it in this sport. He was the guy who always picked up hitchhikers or gave money to homeless people. I can remember one rainy and cold fall day here in Boone he picked up a homeless guy, gave him money and took him to a hotel and paid for him to stay there for two nights. Andy lived a life of Random Acts of Kindness.
It is amazing how quickly 10 years can go by but I can honestly say that not a day has gone by that I have not thought of Andy or been inspired by him. In writing this I am asking all of you to honor Andy today and do your own Random Act of Kindness or a not so random act and donate to ZAP in his honor-just think what if 1,500 fans of ZAP made a donation. It is a goal of mine and ZAP’s to create the Andy Palmer Endowment for ZAP Fitness this year and this could be a big step toward making that happen. I often joke that I am the Z in ZAP but I never want people to forget that Andy Palmer was the A and the P.