Walking for a Purpose

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By DouglasPosted In: Charity Activity, Childrens Charities

Tony Cunningham has a mission. He has pledged to walk 10 miles a day throughout the year 2022. He is also a 72-year-old great-grandfather who has recovered from a quadruple heart bypass. Being the determined man that he is, the Coventry, England native is walking to raise funds for Molly Ollys, a children’s charity based in Warwickshire.

With 2,500 miles already under his belt, Cunningham is currently 450 miles beyond his halfway target. He has been starting his laps in Memorial Park at 5:00 AM daily, without fail. To this date, he has raised over £4500 for Molly Ollys to be used to support kids suffering from life-threatening illnesses.

According to Cunningham, the toughest part of this endeavor has been getting through the winter months. With floods hitting the city hard in January, he was cold and wet. There were days he questioned his ability to achieve his goal but always gathered the strength to continue. He explained: “It suddenly dawned on me what a mammoth challenge I’d set myself, but a guy who was jogging the opposite way suddenly stopped in his tracks and just started applauding me. I felt quite emotional at that moment and it gave me a mental boost to carry on.”

Tony Cunningham is scheduled to complete his final walk on New Year’s Eve.

Neil Cole and The Candie’s Foundation

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By JohnPosted In: Charity Activity

It’s obviously important and impactful when anyone creates a charitable organization that aims to help others. It’s even more impactful when it’s a well known branding executive and founder of Iconix Brand Group, Neil Cole. Neil Cole, as the founder, and former Chairman and CEO of Iconix Brand Group understands working with licensing, branding and public relations. He understands how to get ideas from infancy to action, and he knows how to bring a message to people that will be impactful.

Neil Cole
Neil Cole

For these reasons, his creation of The Candie’s Foundation in 2001 managed to reach millions of teenagers and to have a lasting impact. This foundation, started by Neil Cole formerly of Iconix Brand Group, worked with well-known celebrities to get messages about teen pregnancy to the right audience. With participation from such heavy-hitters as Hilary Duff, Hayden Panettiere, Ciara, Bristol Palin and many others, The Candie’s Foundation has influenced teen culture and behavior through education. They have been able to explain the consequences of teenage pregnancy.

And the research has shown that Neil Cole’s vision is making a difference. Teen girls who were exposed to The Candie’s Foundation have been more likely to view teen pregnancy and parenthood as stressful and negative and believe that their peers should wait longer to have sex than those who haven’t been exposed to the foundation.

Such organizations, and the efforts put in by people like Neil Cole, can really make a difference in the lives and the futures of American teens.