Philadelphia Marathon

• Broad Street Run
• Agency Referral Day
• Philadelphia Marathon
• Excellence in Action
• In the Community
• Newsletters
• Contact
• Home

Cassie Beck's 2011 Philadelphia Marathon Fundraising Page

Dear Friends,

On the morning of November 20th, I'm running in a Marathon (what me running a marathon ha-ha yes another one!!), but I'm not just running to run, I'm running for a CAUSE! As some of you already know… I love to run races but last year one of the races that meant the world to me and stuck to my heart was the Portland Marathon. Little did most of you know I ran that in honor of my cousin RJ. He was taken from us all way too early in life.

I ran that 13.1 mile Half Marathon on 10-10-10 in my own version of a cowgirl race outfit in the pouring down rain. Yes cowboy boot knee socks, cute glittery skirt and cowboy hat on my back too. I wasn’t bothered by the rain at all as I knew each step and each mile I took was in honor of him. One thing I learned at his memorial and was touched by the most was the amount of people who poured out stories of him and how much he cared. After I finished the race I went straight to his memorial and boarded a plane back to Maryland the very next day.

Just a couple days back to Oregon for his Memorial and to run in his honor for a charity. When I was on the plane I made myself a commitment that YES I love to run but why not pick an event each year to run in honor of him and help out so many people who are in need. So this year I am running the Philadelphia Marathon all 26.2 miles for RJ and in honor of so many disabled people who would love to have a normal life and sometimes that would be just an opportunity to have a simple life with a job. I have had some people in my life time so far that could use this type of program to help them and found this charity to be something that would make RJ proud and also make me proud to run for.

As one of 23,000 people participating in Philadelphia’s 18th Annual Marathon, I'm racing to reverse the high rate of unemployment for Americans with disabilities. By supporting me, and my 26.2 mile run, you will be assisting regional job seeker with disabilities to gain relevant training and technology skills at The Academy at Liberty Resources.

Over 54.4 million Americans – or one in five – have a disability. People with disabilities are the most rapidly growing minority group, and many disabilities, whether acquired or not, affect every aspect of one’s life. The Academy at Liberty Resources, a program of The Sierra Group Foundation, provides pre-vocational training for adults with disabilities through a series of classes which include Business Communications, Intro to Computers, Assistive Technology and more.  The Sierra Group consults with major corporations, helps small business, delivers accessible technology training and matches people with disabilities with job opportunities.  The mission of Sierra and The Academy is to help adults with disabilities find meaningful employment by providing the skills and accommodations necessary to stay at work or return to work.

Every penny that you give will go towards helping people with disabilities. A donation of $25 could help provide much needed services for students at The Academy, including tutoring; $50 can help people gain career supports and coaching, $100 will assist with specialized technology, and your donation of $500 or more can be used to provide the many customized wrap around services that our job seekers with disabilities need in order to get employed for the first time, or to re-enter the work-force!

Please join me in supporting Liberty Resources Academy and people with disabilities and help me reach my fundraising goal with a tax-exempt donation.

If you can donate $5 (typical price for a Starbucks now a days), $10 or even a larger amount like $25 or $50 (even bigger would be great for me to meet my goals). It would not only help me but it will help me to keep my goals that I have set out for 2011. Every dollar is tax deducible and lets’ hear it we are in November and Tax write off time is getting close… (hint hint hint).

RJ asked me last year why on earth do you run? And who on earth would want to run all those miles (after telling him about my first marathon ever over a glass of Pendleton Whisky and game of pool)? I simply said because I can. I would like to keep proving that to him!

Thank you,
Cassie Beck

Raised: $500

Goal: $500

How you can make a difference!

I have elected to run the 2011 Philadelphia Marathon on behalf of The Academy at Liberty Resources and people with disabilities, but you can join me by making a tax-exempt donation to help me reach this goal.

To make a gift on the internet using PayPal's secure server, use the donate button (you do not need a PayPal account).

To make a gift by mail, send your check (with my name in the memo) to:

The Sierra Group Foundation
Attn: Team Academy
714 Market Street, Suite 100
Philadelphia, PA 19106

To make a gift by phone, call 215-634-2000 ext. 258.

For more information or if you need assistance, contact Emily Coder at 215.634.2000 x258 e-mail TeamAcademy@lriacademy.org.