March 3, 2010 | Read Time: 1 minute
Seeking a new way to appeal to donors in a bad economy, the Museum of Science, in Boston, has a running start at raising at least $80,000 a year.
The museum approached organizers of the Boston Marathon, applying for one of six openings that every year is reserved for new charities that are allowed to use the September race to raise money. Out of 120 competing charities, the museum was approved for the marathon, and can now enter 15 runners a year for the next three years.
By advertising those openings for 2010, the museum easily filled the 15 spots after receiving 50 to 60 applications from people who want to do the marathon and, in the process, help raise money. This year, proceeds will be used to buy a new van for the museum’s traveling programs, which annually bring science exhibits and educational lessons to 81,000 New Englanders.
Each museum racer must raise at least $3,250 from friends and relatives to participate. In exchange, they are exempt from a requirement other marathoners must meet before the race: demonstrating they can complete the grueling 26.2-mile course in a certain amount of time.
But even though they are exempt from the time requirement, the museum runners, including Joe Piedrafite, a planned-giving associate at the institution, have been training in cold weather since November.
“It’s a life-changing experience,” Mr. Piedrafite says of the rigorous training, three days a week, plus Saturdays at 8:00 a.m., when he and his fellow runners embark on long runs of up to 18 miles.
