NASHVILLE, Tenn. / TAMPA, Fla. (November 18, 2021) – Rock This Town®, a program of the IRONMAN Foundation® and the charitable arm for the Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series will distribute $9,000 in grant funding to nonprofit initiatives and groups in the Nashville community in conjunction with St. Jude Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series Nashville this week.
The grants being distributed include $3,000 to Move! Music City as well as nearly 300 complimentary race entries to several Nashville Elementary Schools for KiDS ROCK taking place on Thursday, Nov. 18 at 5:30 p.m. from Russell St. at Nissan Stadium.
In addition, Rock This Town will team up with Kinder’s Kids to host a Toy Drive in the Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series Nashville Health and Fitness Expo at Nissan Stadium on Thursday, November 18 from 12:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. and Friday, November 19 from 9:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. Kinder’s Kids is a Nashville based organization founded by country artist Ryan Kinder and wife, Mrs. Tennessee America 2019, Heather Kinder, focused on giving children affected by natural disasters a Christmas to remember. Runners and guests are asked to donate toy items at the Rock This Town booth for children and families impacted by the floods in Waverly, Tenn. in August of this year.
Ryan and Heather are also IRONMAN Foundation Ambassadors. In 2019, they partnered with the IRONMAN Foundation to support Hurricane Michael relief efforts in conjunction with Visit Panama City Beach IRONMAN® Florida. Ryan raced with TEAM IMF and performed an exclusive “Concert for Relief” event at the IRONMAN Florida Welcome Banquet. Athletes were encouraged to bring a children’s toy or non-perishable food item to the concert and then with the IRONMAN Foundation, Ryan and Heather delivered the toys to children impacted by Hurricane Michael.
In 2020, Ryan and Heather teamed up with IRONMAN Foundation and Rock This Town to support the Rock ‘n’ Roll VR Challenge that took place throughout the month of August. For every runner that participated in the VR challenge, Rock This Town donated an Operation IRONAID face mask to the Nashville Rescue Mission. Ryan and Heather joined St. Jude Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series Nashville staff to deliver 8,100 face masks the Nashville Rescue Mission at the conclusion of the VR Challenge.
For more information on the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Series, please visit www.RunRocknRoll.com. Media-related inquiries should be directed to press@runrocknroll.com.
About Ryan Kinder
Ryan Kinder brings a wealth of life experience to his debut album, Room to Dream. He launched his performing career as a teenager in the clubs around his hometown of Birmingham, Alabama, and his music has since carried him to Nashville and a tour with two of his musical heroes.
Kinder has accrued more than 95 million streams by steadily building a fan base through electrifying live shows, exceptional musicianship, and a sound he describes as “riff-roaring rock with a side of sweet Southern soul.”
Kinder uses his tour dates to bolster his charitable organization, Kinder’s Kids. One image from the Tuscaloosa tornado stuck with him – a neighboring child clutching her teddy bear, surrounded by wreckage where their house used to be. Seeing how that toy brought her comfort, he created Kinder’s Kids to personally deliver provide toys to children in the aftermath of national disasters. In his tour riders, he asks each venue to supply a toy for the foundation.
Beyond his music career, Kinder has immersed himself in training for triathlons and Ironman competitions. He completed his first distance cycling ride on the Natchez Trace in memory of a friend who had recently died of cancer, ultimately riding 444 miles. On that ride, he talked to his late friend’s racing buddy, who introduced him to the Ironman – where an athlete swims 2.4 miles, rides 112 miles, and runs 26.2 miles. Being told that his late friend had always wanted to do one, Kinder took it upon himself to achieve that dream in his honor.
About the IRONMAN Foundation
The IRONMAN Foundation creates positive, tangible change in race communities by engaging athletes and volunteers to participate in programs that demonstrate service through sport and commitment to the community. Since 2003, over $50,000,000 has been provided through giveback programs led by the IRONMAN Foundation to more than 9,500 local, regional, national and global nonprofit initiatives. Through these partnerships, IRONMAN and Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series participants are powerfully linked to the community and together help leave a positive legacy behind in race communities long after event day. For more information on IRONMAN Foundation programs, including Team IMF, Community Fund, Rock This Town®, Your Journey Your Cause, and Women For Tri, visit www.ironmanfoundation.org.
About Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series
The Rock ‘n’ Roll® Running Series is the world’s largest running series taking part in destination locations around the world every year. Established in 1998, the Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series simple idea of making running fun has transformed both the U.S. and global running landscape by infusing the course with live bands, cheer teams, and entertaining water stations, creating a block-party atmosphere for participants and spectators alike. Focused on running, music, and community, race weekend kicks off with a free Health & Fitness Expo showcasing the latest in running gear, sports apparel, health, and nutritional information, and much more. Events culminate with an entertaining finish-line festival featuring some of the biggest names in music, with past performances including Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, O.A.R. Aloe Blacc, Pitbull, Flo Rida, The Band Perry, Fitz, and the Tantrums, the Goo Goo Dolls, and Bret Michaels. Further information about the Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series can be found online at www.RunRocknRoll.com [t.e2ma.net] and follow @RunRocknRoll on all social platforms.
About The IRONMAN Group
The IRONMAN Group operates a global portfolio of events that includes the IRONMAN® Triathlon Series, the IRONMAN® 70.3®Triathlon Series, the IRONMAN® Virtual Racing™ (VR™) Series, 5150™ Triathlon Series, the Rock ‘n’ Roll® Running Series, the Rock ‘n’ Roll Virtual Running™ Series, IRONKIDS®, World Triathlon Championship Series, premier running events including the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon™ and The Sun-Herald City2Surf®, Ultra-Trail® World Tour events including Tarawera Ultra and Ultra-Trail Australia™, mountain bike races including the Absa Cape Epic®, road cycling events, and other multisport races. The IRONMAN Group is the largest operator of mass participation sports in the world and provides more than a million participants annually the benefits of endurance sports through the company’s vast offerings. Since the inception of the iconic IRONMAN® brand and its first event in 1978, athletes have proven that ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE® by crossing finish lines around the world. Beginning as a single race, The IRONMAN Group has grown to become a global sensation with hundreds of events across 55+ countries. The IRONMAN Group is owned by Advance, a private, family-owned business. For more information, visit www.ironman.com.
About Advance
Advance is a private, family-held business that owns and invests in companies across media, entertainment, technology, communications, education, and other promising growth sectors. Our mission is to build the value of our companies over the long term by fostering growth and innovation. Advance’s portfolio includes Condé Nast, Advance Local, Stage Entertainment, The IRONMAN Group, American City Business Journals, Leaders Group, Turnitin, 1010data, and Pop. Together these operating companies employ more than 17,000 people in 29 countries. Advance is also among the largest shareholders in Charter Communications, Discovery, and Reddit. For more information visit www.advance.com.