WASHINGTON-After more than a decade, CU Miracle Day Chairman Juri Valdov says the event remains focused on what he calls "the four C's: children, credit unions, community and Capitol Hill."
The event-which began following 9/11 and has survived a recession and all the ups and downs credit unions have seen since-has grown to be a marquee event for credit unions across the country, raising millions of dollars for Children's Miracle Network hospitals all over the country.
It has been named "Outstanding Program" in this year's 25th Annual Herb Wegner Memorial Awards from the National Credit Union Foundation.
To date, CU Miracle Day has raised more than $5.5 million for CMN hospitals nationwide.
The 2012 race marked the 40th anniversary of the Cherry Blossom Ten Mile Run, but credit unions did not become the naming sponsor until 2002, and Valdov explained that from the very beginning organizers saw it as an opportunity for credit unions to attach their name to a prominent annual event and "actually present their brand in a very, very positive way."
The Cherry Blossom race takes place in Washington in the spring and is named from the city's famed the cherry trees that are often blooming at the same time.
"It took a little while to get it going," admitted Valdov. "2001 was a very chaotic period of time, particularly after 9/11, so in some ways people could've said at the time-and probably did say-that it was a dumb idea, it's not going to work, credit unions aren't going to work together, trade associations aren't going to work together on the same event, et cetera. There were some skeptics on the sidelines. ... Very honestly, I think the first year we raised $65,000 for children's hospitals. That sounds like a goodly amount, but not really when you think about the event that it was."
The event continued each year, gradually gaining steam, but Valdov and others noted that it wasn't until PSCU Financial Services agreed to pay the expenses for the event that things really picked up.
"That allowed us to really expand and become not $65,000 contributed to children's hospitals, but $1 million contributed to children's hospitals," he said.
More Than A Bake Sale
In the beginning, however, the vision was more modest.
"We thought a day could be set aside by credit unions to do charitable kinds of things," said Valdov. "We can do individual bake sales and golf outings and wine sales and so on, but if you do it collectively, the impact is so much bigger. You make a contribution of $1 million to children's hospitals, people pay attention; people look at that event. If you do $25,000 on a bake sale, yeah, it's a good thing that you've done, but the impact is quite a bit smaller."
Valdov, the former CEO of Northwest FCU, pointed out that during the first five years, each year was a struggle of hoping that business partners would see the event in the same light that organizers saw it.
"The biggest problem with a vision is that you can have a vision, but if it's you yourself that only has that vision, it doesn't go very far," said Valdov. "You've got to sell that vision. So for the first five years we were selling the vision, and it did take a bit of time. But now, as far as credit unions are concerned, as far as the Children's Miracle Network is concerned, it's the single biggest event they have during the year. A lot of other events take place collectively, but this is the single biggest event."
While credit union participation has increased, the race itself has grown as well. What began as a run for 7,000 participants grew to 7,500, then 9,000 runners and eventually to today's 15,000. Last year more than 28,000 people applied to take part in the race, but capacity is limited due to restrictions by the National Park Service. The event is also "a legitimate road race sponsored by the National Road Race Association," said Valdov, so it draws participants from around the world.
"It makes the run a little more legitimate, simply because it can be used for qualifying for other runs," he said.
Internally, the event has evolved as well. Jan N. Roche, treasurer of Miracle Day and CEO at State Department FCU, noted that all of the event's accounting was done on Excel spreadsheets until about five years ago, when an external CPA was brought in to audit the event and the accounting was switched to QuickBooks.
The Future of Miracle Day
Having established itself during the first decade, the next big step for Miracle Day is expanding the event's footprint beyond just the Washington D.C. area. That's already underway, and last April saw the debut of the SacTown 10, a ten-mile run in Sacramento, Calif. that is set to return this year. Additionally, races have been established on American military bases overseas, with races held last year in Afghanistan and Iraq, while this year races are expected in Kuwait and Germany.
"The strategic decision is to continue to replicate what we're doing here in Washington and other places," said Roche. "We think we've got a formula for success that we've seen work in California, and that's to find a league that wants to get behind a race."
Leagues in Oregon, Ohio, Florida and Texas have reportedly expressed interest in establishing events in those states, but for now the SacTown 10 is the only concurrent event on Miracle Day.
Expanding the event has also forced those in charge of Miracle Day to streamline what was a segregated process so that it could be replicated elsewhere. "When we needed to help another organization do what we do here, all of a sudden it created this need to get in there and create a manual that would document how we do things," explained Roche. "The SacTown 10 was basically the guinea pig on the first draft of that."
'It's About Relationships...'
One of Valdov's "four C's" is Capitol Hill, and many said that the event has helped raise credit unions' profile with legislators and Congressional staffers taking part in the race. But after more than a decade as the race's title sponsor, CUs are still fighting the same issues, including protecting the tax exemption and raising the MBL cap. So has the race really done any good on that front?
"I wouldn't say that we're not making progress on the Hill," said Diana Dkystra, CEO of the California & Nevada CU Leagues. "I look at the California delegation, and every year we get more Congressmen and women and senators backing our legislation, listening to our concerns and being our champions. ... It's about relationships. Anything in life is about relationships, and [CU Miracle Day] just helps build more of those relationships."
Dykstra added that as the event continues to grow and ideally gains a foothold in more states, there will be increased opportunities for credit unions to deepen those relationships and show legislators the good that credit unions do for their communities.
Until then, thousands of runners will gather again this spring in Washington and Sacramento and overseas to take part in an event that's all about people helping people.
When that happens, Jan Roche will take a break at some point before the race begins to step up on the podium and look at the runners assembled for the event.
"I look over this vast field of people that are always out there funning for kids, and it's awe-inspiring."
MORE@CUJOURNAL.COM
Readers can read related stories at www.cujournal.com by searching the following headlines:
How Cherry Blossom Ten Mile Run Goes The Distance
Children's Miracle Network Hospitals Set Billion-Dollar Goal, Raising Stakes For All
For info: www.ncuf.coop, www.cucherryblossomrun.org, www.sactown10.org
