Kansas City, MO (May 24, 2018) Tech industry veteran and longtime Children International supporter Laird Malamed has run 20,000 miles and raised more than $75,000 for the organization to date. His most recent events this spring — The Boston Marathon and The Star Wars Dark Side Half Marathon — helped him reach this incredible achievement.
Malamed, who is the founding COO of Oculus and currently serves as Vice President and General Manager at the company’s Seattle office, began running in 2006. While he began running for health reasons, he realized he could fundraise for important causes while pursuing his fitness goals.
Children International has been fortunate to benefit from Malamed’s fundraising efforts over the years. In 2016, he raised over $20,000 while on his way to completing 50 marathons in 50 states before his 50th birthday. The money raised covered the cost of building a computer center in Children International’s newest community center in the Philippines. The computer center provides kids in poverty with an opportunity to learn basic technical skills and internet safety. They can also use the equipment for homework and research projects, and older youth are able to use the computers to seek gainful employment.
Malamed visited two of Children International’s community centers in India and got to meet the kids who benefited from his fundraising efforts and other supporters’ generosity. | Download image
Continuing to support Children International’s programs in the Philippines, the funds raised from his running events this spring will support youth programs in the country. These programs teach teens life skills and empower them to be agents of change in their communities.
In addition to the computer center and youth programs, Malamed’s fundraising efforts have helped support a community center in India and provided scholarships for students in need to help them complete their educations. Malamed has also sponsored kids with Children International since 2008. He currently sponsors four children in the Philippines.
Follow Malamed on his running blog for more updates on his fundraising efforts.
About Children International
Children International is a leader in the movement to eradicate poverty. From toddler to young adulthood, we surround kids with a caring team, a safe place and a clear path out of poverty through programs focused on health, education, empowerment and employment. Our supporters are inspired as they see children radically change their lives and create a ripple effect that impacts their families and communities for generations to come.
