Rising Hearts September Blog Updates!
Happy September!!! We have 4 more months of 2026! Time to lock in on goals and prepare for winter months! We have a lot of opportunities for you to get involved this month! We are going into our busiest months! 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 approaching - 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! August went by so fast! We ended the last couple of days of the Rising Hearts Run Retreat in August and added those miles and celebrated Alex Staten and Cali Curley on there World Major TCS Sydney Marathon journey that just happened a few days ago! We were so excited to support them with GU Energy Labs and help celebrate more Indigenous Representation at these start lines. We also support 3 runners and friends to participate in the Annual Remembrance Run with Ku Stevens and family, to run and move across the 50 miles his relative ran when leaving a Boarding School. Which is another reminder - we are now in September - and that means, on September 30th, National Day of Mourning, Truth, Healing and Reconciliation for Boarding and Residential School survivors, for those that never made it home, for those Indigenous babies found in large mass graves, for the 12 babies currently - right now, on their journey home back to their homelands and in their community, for the families and communities who have felt the impacts of the Boarding/Residential school history, violence, neglect, and trauma. So please, we encourage you to sign up for our annual virtual movement event, buy a shirt where funds go directly to the Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition, all year round.
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 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! 👏🏽🌻
Please see below for updates and community. If there is anything you would like to promote please reach out to info@rising-hearts.org.
NEXT AWARENESS + ACTION EVENTS:
+ Run Richmond 16.19 x Team Rising Hearts | Sept. 12th
+ DC Half Marathon x Team Rising Hearts | Sept. 20th
+ 6th Annual Every Child Matters 5k. Virtual | Sept. 27- Oct. 3rd | REGISTER NOW!
+ 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
+ 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
“A warm welcome to the 5-year anniversary of RUN RICHMOND 16.19—a vibrant celebration of movement, culture, and community. Our run-or-walk event is open to all ages, abilities, and backgrounds, taking you on an inspiring journey through over 400 years of Black history. From the rolling start to “The Hill We Climb”, every step carries the weight of history and the promise of progress. The Djimon Hounsou Foundation is organizing this moving event in close collaboration with the Black History Museum & Cultural Center of Virginia, Sports Backers, and 40+ community partners. And in 2026, we are they are the Official Race Partner of Black Girls Run’s Sweat With Your Sole National Conference and a Commemorative Partner of Virginia 250, marking the 250-year celebration of America.”
+ 16.19k (10.1 miles)
+ 8.1k (5 miles)
+ We have 7 runners we are excited to bring together for this community centered experience. More memories to create, 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 are taking another team of 6 to the DC Half marathon! Let’s cheer them on!
We are truly grateful to be able to bring together friends through movement and to create experiences together.
We have Lee Laydon, Nicol Hodges, Cali Curley, Mel Devoney, Dr. Lydia Jennings, and RH founder, Jordan Whetstone.
If you’re in the DC area, please come out and cheer! We are working on a cheer station area, stay tuned!!!
Saturday 9/19, we will be having lunch at the National Museum of the American Indian, if you’d like to join us at 12:30pm! And to walk around and enjoy the museum and history.
Rising Hearts is launching our Fall Fundraiser - help us reach $4,000 now through November 5th!
COMMUNITY SPOTLIGHT
COMMUNITY PARTNER BORN TO ADAPT ATHELETE ZAMY “JAHIR” RAMOS
Born to Adapt Elite athlete Zamy “Jahir” Ramos returned to the OCC for his second consecutive year, taking on 60 kilometers through the Swiss and French Alps.
Born to Adapt helped cover Jahir’s journey to Chamonix, along with many of the resources required for him to train, prepare, and compete at this level. Your support is what makes opportunities like this possible. And this year, Jahir made history. He completed the OCC in 11 hours and 13 minutes, setting a new Para course record for a below-knee amputee runner.
It was an incredibly powerful day to be part of, not only watching Jahir accomplish something he has worked so hard for, but seeing what becomes possible when a community comes together to give Para Athletes the resources and opportunities they deserve.
COMMUNITY PARTNER TOUCHING LAND - BROOKLYN, NEW YORK
This is Touching Land’s 3rd year with our Running Rights and Land Program! So many folks went from walking to running to accomplishing so much more than running!! We are so proud!
We have some surprises and fun planned this Fall running cycle. If you are interested in joining please reach out to Touching Land on IG or fill out this Google form!
10 WEEKS OF RUNNING STARTING SEPT 14TH
SATURDAYS 8AM
EVERY CHILD MATTERS + ORANGE SHIRT DAY
SAVE THE DATE | REGISTER | DONATE
This September, Run to Remember.
September 30th - Wear Orange
Reach out to us if you’d like to host an in person run/walk in your community!
When: Sept. 26th - Oct. 3rd
Where: Virtual
In Person:
1.) TUCSON AZ | 9/27 | 7;30am
Where: 1161 W Silverlake Road, Tucson, AZ 85713
Join us for a group 5K run/ walk along the Santa Cruz River Path on Sunday, September 27th, 2026. Meet at 7:30 a.m. in the trailhead parking lot for access to the river path.
Distance: 5K run/ walk along the Santa Cruz River Path.
Cold drinks and refreshments will be available for everyone after the run/walk.
2.) AUSTIN TX | 9/27 | 8am
Native American Cultural Center (NACC), 84 Robert T Martinez Jr Street, Austin, TX 78702
Led by Indigenous Movement Crew and NACC
3.) LOS ANGELES CA | TBD
$15 Donation to view the new feature length documentary, REMAINING NATIVE!
And option to add the Indigenous lands to your bib.
Join team RISING HEARTS! 4 will be selected to win a pair of shoes!
And all funds will continue being donated to Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition and Orange Shirt Society to support their heart work, impact, and support for survivors, families, and community through healing, justice, accountability, and support.
#OrangeShirtDay #EveryChildMatters
Make $15 donation to receive screener link and password to view! Last day to watch is October 4th.
REMAINING NATIVE:
A documentary told from the perspective of Ku Stevens, a 17-year-old Native American runner, struggling to navigate his dream of becoming a collegiate athlete as the memory of his great-grandfather's escape from an Indian boarding school begins to connect past, present, and future.
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, $727 has been raised and donated to NASHC with 80 shirts sold, out of 150 shirts sold as our goal.
Order by 9/8 to receive in time.
Running shirt options!
INDIGENOUS PEOPLES DAY
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
+ 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
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!
RISING HEARTS BRINGING COMMUNITY TO
WOMEN OF COLOR
TAKE THE LEAD
Jinghuan Liu Tervalon | Running With Purpose Athlete Advocate
Jinghuan Liu Tervalon is a runner and writer based in Tongva Land/Los Angeles area. She trains and runs with several local running groups in Pasadena, and competes with Cal Coast Track Club.
You can find Jinghuan's byline on the Los Angeles Times, Lonely Planet, Runner's World, Outside, Women's Running Magazine and Trail Runners. Her most recent writing is on Substack, under Wings & Spikes, where she focuses on runners' profile stories (ranging from elite runners to couch-to-5k runners) and personal essays that chronicles her journey as a caregiver.
Jinghuan has been an athlete advocate with Rising Hearts. She is also a board member at Bras for Girls.
This will be my second time participating at Take The Lead. I thoroughly enjoyed connecting to various leaders in the running industry two years ago, and the opportunity to lead a writing session. More importantly, TTL has become my support network, especially after the Eaton fire destroyed my home. This year, I'm looking forward to reconnecting with like-minded women to scale our impact in running.
Phoebe Chiang | Runner, Community
I am a Taiwanese American runner based in Los Angeles and a co-organizer of Friday Donut Run Club. Running has given me a way to explore who I am, connect with others, and find community. I love sharing something that brings me so much joy and, even more, seeing others discover that same joy for themselves.
I believe the best communities are the ones where people feel welcome to show up exactly as they are, make meaningful connections, and find their own sense of joy and belonging.
I never set out to be a leader, and honestly, I’ve never really seen myself as one. I simply love sharing the things that bring me joy and seeing other people find joy in them too.
What I’ve learned through building community is how meaningful it can be to create a space where people feel welcomed, connected, and like they matter. Sometimes it’s a run, sometimes it’s giving back to the trails we love, and sometimes it’s simply bringing people together and giving them a reason to show up.
If leadership means creating a space where people can find joy, feel like they belong, and realize that even something small they do can have an impact, then that’s the kind of leader I want to be.
I’m looking forward to Take The Lead because I want to learn from other women of color who lead in their own ways, and to better understand how I can continue creating community without losing the joy and authenticity that made me want to do it in the first place.
Jo Anna Mixpe Ley
Jo Anna is a panelist at Take The Lead!!
Panel: Built in LA: Where Culture Meets Movement -- A conversation with community leaders exploring how movement shapes identity, belonging, and leadership in Los Angeles. This session goes beyond the surface of LA as it’s often portrayed, and instead centers the lived cultures, communities, and everyday rituals that define how the city truly moves.
Date: Monday, September 21st
Time: 11:30AM - 12:30PM
Jo Anna Mixpe Ley is a Huichol Xicana from Boyle Heights Los Angeles, California. Ley has been in education for over twenty years, and is currently with MSTMA at Roosevelt HS. Additionally, she’s a published author, founder and actress in the theatrical group Las Ramonas. Ley has been a community organizer since the age of 17. As an educator, she created and coached the indigenous youth Running Group, the Soaring Eagles, and feels blessed to have run for 39 of her 40 weeks of pregnancy. Additionally, she is a very proud co-founder with Raquel Roman of Running Mamis (8 years old), the first intergenerational safe space for mothers and women to heal through movement in Los Angeles. This space is sacred because as we heal we are also reminded that every mother & woman has a space at the start line of all races regardless of their pace, “shape”, or experience. She is an 18 time marathoner (with aspirations to be the first Indigenous Xikana World Major Marathoner from Boyle Heights, if she can only get a spot in the world majors). She is a mother of a resilient 9 year old daughter (who is a 5k runner) who motivates her to be her best everyday.
Personal IG: @lady_doctora_corazon
Running Mamis IG: @running.mamis
Educator IG: @msmixpeley
As an indigenous educator, organizer, mama, runner in Tongva lands, it's exciting to see the love for movement grow but it is still concerning that we don't have as many women of color women and mothers at the starting lines of various races or decision making tables in the running industry. It exites me that there has been an intentional space created to address this and all the things that are interconnected that seem to create barriers to access for BIPOC women runners. I feel honored to represent two powerful groups that continously strive to address these issues by creating a safe space for BIPOC, especially mothers and women; and I look forward to building with the many women of color who are paving the way for women that will benefit generations to come.
FUNDRAISE FOR RISING HEARTS
Right now, to end 2026, we need 15 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 15 runners to join us, here’s what this could look like:
15 runners x 800 (suggest max limit) = $12,000
15 runners x 500 (suggest min limit) = $7,500
We still have 4 months to reach our goal for Rising Hearts! Let’s keep it going!
We recently missed out on 4 grants, made to second round or reviews. And, l 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
The Tommie runz show
Ep 143 Break Record with Biel
If you don’t know…The Speed Project is a race from Santa Monica Pier in California all the way to Las Vegas NV…the Welcome to Las Vegas sign to be exact.
LISTEN HERE: https://open.spotify.com/episode/2w9p1RhrvjOVe6gz53mgar?si=f71e6cd61863475b