Rising Hearts October Blog Updates!
Happy Fall Equinox!!! Happy October! Spooky szn! That being said, here is your yearly reminder going into October and November which is Indigenous Peoples Day and Native Heritage Month. These months are here - meaning, if you’ve been planning on hosting some sort of event that involves Indigenous voices, your invites and planning should’ve gone out weeks or even months ago! While there is still much to celebrate, and look forward to, we still keep fighting for those not at the table and for those being targeted by violence, genocide and injustice.
While there is still so much to celebrate and appreciate, we still can’t ignore the injustice happening in this world and hoping for - justice for Nolan Wells, a free and safe Palestine, families stay together and the disestablishment of ICE, women - survivors being believed, men being accountable for their actions and leading the example for the next generations, where Trans kin thrive and not a threat, where women have true autonomy of their bodies, where are we all are able to be ourselves and thriving. That’s the fight that continues.
We have our athletes, their activities / events / runs, community events we get invited to or collaborate with, and it brings it full circle, that there can also be joy and excitement. We’ve had many of our friends and athletes share similar feelings over the last few years, some have taken a step back from running or fundraising or just being on social media, and we just want to remind you that it’s okay to not be okay. Or just okay. Take care of yourself. Protect your mind and energy. The heart work will continue.
And now back to our advice for the next couple of months - we know last minute opportunities can happen, that’s understandable and all of it is within reason, understanding and compassion. If you are hosting an event, be sure you’re checking these boxes at a minimum (and this goes beyond opportunities outside of these months and for Indigenous Peoples):
+ Do the outreach and your research
+ Have a budget (if asking for free labor and energy, be transparent, let them decide)
+ Let Indigenous voices be part of the planning
+ Be sure to evaluate internally, your DEI policies, hiring policies and opportunities that are available or not available, Board / Council representation, for Indigenous, POC, underrepresented bodies, especially if you’re a brand/company (we do wonder, and a lot of the time, we do ask)
+ Transparency and honesty
+ Begin the planning early on, include in in the next FY Budget
+ If virtual, still pay, if in person, pay and support with travel/lodging support if you can, product support too if desired
+ A true understanding of the person you are asking and / or the organization / group they represent - their heart work and passion
+ Don’t take offense if we have to say no (I’m sure we can help recommend others too! We’ve received some rude responses when we’ve had to say no, they acted like they were doing us a favor… 🙄)
For those being asked, no matter who you are - be your own advocate and yes, you absolutely belong and your voice should be heard! 👏🏽🌻
NEXT AWARENESS + ACTION EVENTS:
+ 7th Annual Indigenous Peoples 5k, 10k, Half, Virtual | Oct. 9-13th | REGISTER NOW!
+ Marine Corps Marathon x Team Rising Hearts | Oct. 25th
+ Run In Beauty Film Screening and Run Event with The Exchange Running Collective + Sin Miedo | Nov. 4th, Wednesday, 6pm
+ US Trail Running Conference, Nashville, TN | Nov. 5-7th
+ The Running Event | Dec. 1 - 4th, 2026
We are up to so much! The hustle continues. And we hope to apply for more funding and we will keep raising funds as we go to keep us running in all ways. Wopila tanka, many thanks, to all of you for your support, and we look forward to our hearts moving forward together.
- Rising Hearts
Rising Hearts at Run Richmond 16.19
We had 7 runners we are excited to bring together for this community centered experience. Memories were created, we leave the community in a good way and carry what we learned back to our own communities!
Rising Hearts is launching our Fall Fundraiser - help us reach $4,000 now through November 5th!
Rising Hearts at DC Half Marathon
We took another team of 6 to the DC Half marathon!
We are truly grateful to be able to bring together friends through movement and to create experiences together.
We had Lee Laydon, Nicol Hodges, Cali Curley, Mel Devoney, Dr. Lydia Jennings, and RH founder, Jordan Whetstone, all together in DC.
Rising Hearts is launching our Fall Fundraiser - help us reach $4,000 now through November 5th!
COMMUNITY SPOTLIGHT
KINDNESS STARTS WITH YOU
Kind Hearted was created with a simple belief: there is always more to a person than what we see on the surface.
Our mission is rooted in autism awareness, acceptance, and understanding. We want to help create a world where people with autism are seen for who they are, not defined by behaviors, differences, or the ways they communicate. Rayana created Kind Hearted after growing up alongside her brother and seeing how quickly people misunderstood him. While others often focused on his behavior, she saw his humor, his softness, and the genuinely kind person he is.
A portion of our proceeds is dedicated to supporting organizations that serve the autism community and create meaningful experiences, resources, and opportunities for people with autism and their families.
When you wear Kind Hearted, you're not just wearing a hat. You're wearing a reminder to lead with empathy, choose understanding, and see the person beyond the surface.
But Kind Hearted is bigger than a hat. It's a movement, and this is just the beginning.
Come see what we're building, learn more and find your way to be part of it.
KINDNESS LOOKS GOOD ON YOU.
"I met Caleigh and Shaniah when Rising Hearts brought a team together for the 2025 Every Woman's Marathon. We learned so much about each other during that short and sweet trip. One of them had briefly mentioned their Kinaaldá, and it stood out in my memory because I'd never heard about anything like it before. I kept that curiosity in my back pocket until RUNHER Magazine announced a call for pitches this year. I'm so grateful that Caleigh, Shaniah and Wynonna were willing to share their stories with me, so that more runners can be as inspired as I am by this tradition."
-Melina Devoney
EVERY CHILD MATTERS SHIRTS
Every Child Matters | Orange Shirt Day merch available via Bonfire Campaign where all profits are directly donated to the Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition. So far, $963 has been raised and donated to NABSHC with 107 shirts sold, out of 150 shirts sold as our goal for Orange Shirt Day.
Shirts are available year round, and will continue to keep donating to NABSHC.
Running shirt options!
INDIGENOUS PEOPLES DAY
We are excited to collaborate with our friends, Trail Mixed Collective, to bring you the 7th Annual Indigenous Peoples Day virtual and in person, 5k, 10k, Half Marathon!
Donations raised from this virtual movement event will be donated to Heal Palestine, Global Empowerment (Earthquake relief + support for Colombia and Venezuela) and Rising Hearts.
HEAL Palestine is a non-political nonprofit organization founded in January 2024, in response to the unimaginable devastation in Gaza, where thousands of lives were lost in a short period, impacting generations for decades to come. Heal Palestine is distressed by the Department of State’s decision to stop all visitor visas from Gaza. HEAL Palestine is an American humanitarian nonprofit organization delivering urgent aid and medical care to children in Palestine, including sponsoring and bringing severly injured children to the U.S on temporary visas for essential medical treatment not available at home. After their treatment is complete, the children and any accompanying family members return to the Middle East. This is a medical treatment program, not a refugee resettlement program.
Our mission gives children a renewed chance at life, whether through life-saving surgery or the ability to walk again. U.S tax dollars don’t fund this treatment. Guided by human and American values, HEAL is committed to offering hope and healing to the few young lives we can reach.
Global Empowerment Mission, GEM, was established in response to the 2010 Haiti Earthquake. Our objective is to deliver the most amount of aid, to the most amount of people in need, in the shortest amount of time and with the least amount of costs to our donors.
With speed, efficiency, and local expertise, we have deployed over 387 disaster relief missions in 76 countries and all 50 states. GEM is 4-star rated by Charity Navigator across all four categories (Accountability & Finance, Impact & Results, Leadership & Adaptability, Culture and community).
Our dollar-to-impact multiplier ensures maximum effect in the communities served, with 97% of every dollar donated going to mission-related activities. We utilize a smart partnership model of donors, volunteers, and local stakeholders to make our work possible.
VIRTUAL INFORMATION:
+ Date: October 9 -13, 2026
+ Distances: 5k, 10k, Half Marathon
+ Stickers to purchase!
+ Donate an entry!
+ Donate instead of register
+ Download digital BIB (free, registration is not required)
+ Add the Indigenous lands you’re to your BIB
+ Create a virtual team or join one
+ You can join - Rising Hearts virtual team!
+ Beneficiaries: Heal Palestine, Global Empowerment Mission, and Rising Hearts
IN PERSON MEET UPS:
+ 10/8 - Portland, OR - Mt. Tabor, Community Garden Bike Racks at 6:30PM PDT
+ 10/11 - Seattle, WA - Sky Country Trailhead by the picnic table at 9AM PDT
INCENTIVE PERKS:
++ You can join Team Rising Hearts! | 4 will be selected to win a free pair of On Shoes.
We are raising funds for our Running With Purpose Athlete Advocate friend and runner, Hosava Kretzmann! At the 2025 The Marathon Project, we supported his journey in covering his race registration and provided a $700 travel stipend to help alleviate the financial costs this journey can accrue. And, Hoka, with a surprise opportunity, reached out to Hosava, to support him and elevate him more during The Marathon Project! Hosava has had an incredible community and his family, that has been supporting him, every stride of the way.
GOAL: $16,000 to help support this. journey and costs
Here is a estimated breakdown over 2 years:
- Running shoes (training shoes and racing shoes): $6,000 ($3k per year)
- Registration and travel funds for the 2027 Berlin Marathon: $4,000 (or for the 2027 Tokyo Marathon as an alternative)
- Registration and travel funds for the 2027 Chicago Marathon: $2,000
- Registration and travel funds for the 2027 Grandma's Marathon: $1,000 (or for the 2027 Chevron Marathon as an alternative)
- Registration and travel funds for the 2028 Olympic Trials, hosted in St. Louis, Missouri: $3,000
For those donating via Givelively, if you donate $250:
+ you’ll receive the cream color shirt, with an autograph from Hosava and some other little goodies!
run reflections
August Grell | Charity Bib Runner
My run with the team at the Richmond 16.19 was amazing. The course was challenging but it meant everything to share the road with Rising Hearts and our partners in the local area. Being in community, meeting new friends and supporting other runners is what it's all about - just honored to be a part of it.
Karla Estudillo Fuentes | Charity Bib Runner
Running the Mexico City Marathon was a dream! It was prep for my first ultra coming up in September, which means that I was able to experience the energy of this city in a low pressure, high joy manner. The vibrant crowds fueled by tamales, mariachi groups, the love of the spectators, and the iconic backdrop of Mexico City made it a long run to remember. I am the proud daughter of Mexican immigrants and anytime I get to spend time on this land, and especially run there, I feel incredibly grateful for all the ways I get to be connected to who I am and the strong lineage that I carry. Gracias CDMX!
Chris Glover | Charity Bib Runner
The run with Richmond 16.19 was exemplified ten fold with the honor of running with Rising Hearts. As a black male and even as just a human, it means alot that my ancestry, history, and legacy of those before me is seen. The entire team and Rising Hearts as an organization knows of this importance and it truly was a privilege to join alongside them and their continued mission of kinship and community. I can't wait to join them again and hunt for chicken tenders once more
Cali Curley | Charity Bib Runner
I was a bit nervous heading into the DC Half Marathon, given that I had just crossed the Sydney Marathon finish line three weeks before toeing this start line. I could still feel the fatigue from that marathon, which shifted my goal from chasing a personal best to simply having THE BEST time out on the course with my Rising Hearts sisters.
The course had a couple of out-and-backs, which can make any race a little tough mentally, but getting to see Mel and Lydia gave me the energy I needed to keep pushing toward the finish line, and eventually meet up with Jordan.
We all struggled through the humidity and heat, but the glitter on our cheeks and stars in our hair made the run feel so fun and carefree.
One of the most meaningful parts of the trip was seeing runners and community advocates come up to Jordan to express their admiration and gratitude for the work she does and the allyship she shows to the community. Those interactions were such a powerful reminder of why this heart work matters and reaffirmed the importance of organizations like Rising Hearts.
We were also given an impact report along with some amazing running gear from Rising Hearts, and it was truly incredible to see just how much of a positive and lasting impact Rising Hearts is making.
I am so grateful for this experience, for my friends, and for the community that continues to make running feel like so much more than just running.
Nicol Hodges | Charity Bib Runner
This year’s DC Half didn’t disappoint! The energy, the vibes, and all the awesome runners were out there fighting through the humidity and rain to have a great run. I saw several friends and even some of the run clubs I’ve been a part of, and everyone always seems to be in such a great mood when running this event. There’s just something special about the DC Half!
For me, training for this race looked a little different. I hadn’t been able to train as consistently as I normally would because I was focused on rehabbing some lower back, knee, and hip issues from a previous half-marathon the year before. I took my time with each training run and didn’t increase my mileage the way I normally would when preparing for a half. So, while my training was a little inconsistent, the runs I did get in were quality runs.
Going into the race, I was a little apprehensive. But I reminded myself to treat it like a training run because in November, I’ll be running the Philadelphia Half Marathon with my daughter.
And let me make something VERY clear…we will be participating in the same event, and we will see each other at the finish line once I complete my run.
So, the DC Half ended up playing out pretty much exactly how I expected. I settled into a comfortable pace and honestly didn’t expect to run much faster than a 9:30-minute mile. But somewhere along the way, I surprised myself and ended up running a 9:00-minute mile!
I finished just under two hours with a 1:59:02 finish time, which I was extremely happy with given where my training was leading up to the race.
And that brings me to something I always like to remind myself—and hopefully someone else needs to hear it too:
Not every run has to be a fast run. Not every race needs to come with a PR.
Every race can have a different purpose and a different meaning. Sometimes you’re chasing a time, other races you’re testing your fitness. Sometimes you’re rebuilding after an injury. And sometimes, you’re simply out there enjoying the experience and being grateful that you made it to the start line.
The goal isn’t always to be faster than you were before. Sometimes the biggest win is finishing safe, healthy, and happy. And honestly, that’s what really matters.
I took the following week off, and now I’m getting ready for the District 19K next week!
Overall, I’m very happy with the results and incredibly grateful for the experience. It was also an honor to represent Rising Hearts during the race.
Thank you for the jersey and all the unexpected goodies!
FUNDRAISE FOR RISING HEARTS
Right now, to end 2026, we need 12 more runners to help raise funds for Rising Hearts! That means, if you’re already signed up for a race, and you want to help support the heart work we do, reach out, sign up with us, and we can reimburse you your registration fee. Then we can provide with you fuel, singlet/shirt, and shoes! And then we will share a fundraising link for you, and help promote you and your efforts until 1 week past your event / race.
If you feel like you have more racing left in your legs, and thinking about signing up and want to bring more purpose to your run and your why, then reach out, sign up, and we can reimburse you your fee or provide a stipend for the amount it would cost you up front. Then get you set up with fuel, a singlet/shirt, and shoes! And then we will share a fundraising link for you, and help promote you and your efforts until 1 week past your event / race. There are no penalties for not reaching your goal. We do have suggested amounts we start at - scroll down to see below! However, if you feel those amounts are too much, remember, no penalties :) We have runners with goals of $2,000 to $250.
It’s fairly simple. It doesn’t need to be strict or hard like some other organizations have it. We are just grateful to connect with you and support you!
If we were to get a minimum 12 runners to join us, here’s what this could look like:
12 runners x 800 (suggest max limit) = $9,600
12 runners x 500 (suggest min limit) = $6,000
We still have 3 months to reach our goal for Rising Hearts! Let’s keep it going!
We recently missed out on 6 grants, made to second round or reviews on 2 more (now still waiting). And, we recently just lost a grant with a big company, that helped cover the pay for our PTE Programs Coordinator role. The last year and a half has been especially hard with loss of DEI initiatives and funds that support more deeper/meaningful support for organizations, groups, like Rising Hearts and many other community friends that felt these impacts.
With your help, you help keep the heart work going, help bring more runners to the start lines, help increase representation on panels and attending conferences and outdoor/running expos, more shoes and gear to make it more affordable and not a barrier, and more films and storytelling to elevate more voices and awareness to the things we advocate for and care.
And to everyone who has fundraised with Rising Hearts in 2025 and so far in 2026, WE APPRECIATE YOU SO MUCH! Wopila tanka, many thanks!!!
WANT TO RACE FOR RISING HEARTS OUTSIDE OF THESE WE HAVE SELECTED?
Not seeing a race you want to run in this list? Check out all of the Wander Project events and choose the “Your Choice” option. They will reach out to learn more about your charity of choice and once you let them know that you’ll be running for Rising Hearts, they will make sure your funds come to support our mission!”
Athletes who want to support Rising Hearts for a race that is not listed, can sign up for any of the events on The Wander Project calendar: https://www.wanderproject.org/event-partners/ and pick 'Your Choice' for charity and then fill out the form to indicate they want to support Rising Hearts: (FAQ page here: https://www.wanderproject.org/athletes/frequently-asked-questions/)
Reach out to us via email, info@rising-hearts.org. Share with us your plans, then we’ll set you up with the link!
Want to run for Rising Hearts?
This is more new for us! We have a givelively link specifically for runners/individuals, who want to raise funds for the heart work we do! If it’s not through our partnership with The Wander Project, or our other partners at CIM or Boston, you can run for Rising Hearts at any race you choose and bring more fun and purpose to your why and the run.
We hope to get 15 Rising Hearts runners! And we have 26 runners now :) With a $36,400 projection of funds raised by the end of the year!
Suggested fundraising limits:
RH Athletes / Community = $500
Open to Community = minimum $800
Perks: RH Singlet, merch, stickers, fuel, and if shoes are needed, we can help you!
PODCASTS
all my relations podcast
Bonus Episode: Celebrate Indigenous People's Day, Not Columbus
The foundational narrative we teach our children about Columbus is rooted in myth and falsity. Instead of teaching our real Native American history, or our real humanity, we’ve settled for American mythology. When we celebrate Columbus, we are blindly supporting indigenous erasure and perpetuating the romantic, dire, insatiable story of extinction. It’s the story that dilutes Native American genocide, and celebrates notions of pioneering, settlement, and manifest destiny. These myths reject indigenous intelligence, indigenous land, indigenous humanity, and dare we say, indigenous futures. So instead, today is a day to Celebrate Indigenous Peoples, and it is an important part of our movement— it centers our stories and therefore our resiliency.