Friends and family:
Thanks for visiting my Success Preparatory Academy fundraising page. Last year, as you may know, I set an ambitious goal of raising more than $2,000 for Success Preparatory Academy (SPA), a K-4 charter school in New Orleans for which I’ve been a board member for 3 years. My big goal was to race 400 miles over the course of the year by racing marathons and triathlons. Thanks to the generous support of lots of friends and family, we met this goal and contributed over $2,300 to support our school’s academic program. This year I’ve set my sights on a few new challenges, and we have mobilized a group of more than 35 runners who are challenging themselves as well by racing to support SPA.
Throughout the next 9 months I’ll be driving toward a fundraising target of $2,000 again and toward two new big goals, and I’ll be racing to support the students at SPA every step of the way. I’m asking that you consider supporting me in one of these two big goals by making a donation to our school at www.firstgiving.com/jackcarey. Please know that your support helps motivate me during the long months of training ahead, and your donations go directly to support our academic program.
So, if you’re willing I’d love your support as I focus on a couple of big running goals.
1) Working toward marathons in 50 states. So far this year I’ve run marathons in Alabama, Mississippi, and Georgia, and I’m running in Oklahoma on 4/2. Over the next nine months I’m aiming to run in Michigan, Maryland, Virginia, New York, and perhaps Nevada. My goal is to join the 2,400 individuals on earth who have completed a marathon in every state (www.50statesmarathonclub.com), and with 11 states done so far, this year will be a big step toward 50.
2) Completing my first 100 mile race. I know our students push themselves academically every day, and our teachers work with them to overcome greater and greater challenges throughout the year. That’s part of my motivation to participate in the Lean Horse 100 (www.leanhorse100.com) in South Dakota this August. I’ll be writing to give you updates on race training throughout the summer, and I hope you’ll consider supporting our school and supporting me as we prepare for the challenge.
Part of what motivates me to shoot for these goals this year is the inspiration I draw from the work that our students, teachers, and co-school leaders at SPA. I’ve seen our school community grow in several ways since we opened our doors two years ago. Student academic achievement scores in reading and math have steadily risen, and the school has begun to play a transformational role in the community. The school culture is just fundamentally different than the culture of the school that previously inhabited our building, and when you ask students and families what the future holds in store, they will tell you which colleges they are working hard to attend years from now.
You can read more about the school at www.successpreparatory.org, where you can learn about the school's extended day and dual-teacher model for Kindergarten. These academic programs give our students more learning opportunities, but they also mean we need to raise funds beyond what we receive from state and federal sources. With additional resources, the teachers and leaders can focus more time on developing college-bound scholars for leadership and lifelong learning.
If you are interested in donating, I appreciate anything you are willing to offer our school. You can also consider the following levels of support as you read about our work in New Orleans:
$26.20 is $1 per marathon mile
$52.40 is $2 per marathon mile
$100.00 is $1 per mile for the Leanhorse100 race in August
$140.60 is $1 per mile for the Ironman Houston race in May
Many thanks for your support -- and please consider forwarding this to anyone who you think might want to support SPA's work as well. Donating through this website is simple, fast and totally secure, and it is the most efficient way to support my fundraising efforts.
Jack Carey