By Rob Adams
A Greenwich family has come up with a unique approach to raising money in the fight against cancer, and it involves nothing more than being active.
Move Me Monday (noted on social media as #MoveMeMonday) is the creation of Laura Daniel and her husband, Kyle, who also founded the Linda W. Daniel Foundation. The idea of Move Me Monday is to walk, run, or participate in an activity and forward the story of what was done. Sponsors then match those efforts with one dollar for every “beat.”
“We like to share stories,” Laura Daniel said. “From personal experiences to survival. It can serve as additional motivation for people.”
According to the foundation website, “Move Me Monday is how we help bring the fight to cancer, 52 times a year. Each week we’re going to share a story, ask you to do your part, and we’ll do our best to donate $1 for every beat shared on our page each Monday.
“Since we don’t all share the same interests, physical abilities, or even live in the same place we’ve devised a universal system of awesomeness that anyone can use. Basically, if it has a distance, count it. If not, 15 minutes of your activity equals 1 beat.”
Participants can also submit their #MoveMeMonday activity to the foundation via Facebook and Instagram.
“To post on Facebook please post as a ‘Visitor Post’ on the LWDF page and for Instagram please
include @lindawdanielfoundation and follow us and allow us to follow you,” the foundation said in a release.
The Linda W. Daniel Foundation was created in honor of Kyle Daniel’s mother, Linda, who was diagnosed with multiple myeloma in 1995 and died in 2000.
According to the website (http://lindawdanielfoundation.org/): “As a strong voice in helping to advance student trainer education, Linda was always ready to lend an ear and a kind word to help heal both the physical and emotional injuries to an incalculable number of student athletes and student athletic trainers.”
Linda Daniel was an athletic trainer at The Ohio State University from 1975 until her death. She started at OSU in 1971 and worked as an assistant Athletic Trainer, Co-Head Athletic Trainer and Director of Rehabilitation Services for the Department of Athletics, all while completing her master’s degree in physical therapy.
With all that said, it’s not hard to see where Move Me Monday came from.
“We’re not doctors or scientists, but what can we do everyday?,” Laura Daniel said. “We’ve all been impacted by cancer.”
Originally from Columbus, OH, the couple first moved to New York City before relocating to Greenwich five years ago. They have two children: Luke (6) and CC (4).
They’ve come to love their new hometown, and feel that the town is taking to the Move Me Monday idea.
“It’s gained a lot of traction in Greenwich,” Laura added. “Mondays are tough, but this is something that everyone can do.”
The foundation raises money for the prevention of all types of cancer. Among their recipients are Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, as well as Nationwide Children’s Hospital and The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute in Ohio.
Move Me Monday alone raised $40,000 last year.
“We just had our best month ever,” Laura Daniel said. “We raised $4700 in January.
“We don’t ask people to donate money. We ask people to put in the “sweat equity,” and we’ll match the dollars.”
This Daniel family has their hands full with two kids and a foundation, plus the activity of Move Me Monday. But hold on – there’s more.
“Our other initiative is a youth soccer camp,” Laura said. It’s a way to get kids out and be active, and educate parents on ways to help prevent cancer.”
While camps have already been hosted in Columbus and Greenwich, Laura added that they want to make the camps an annual event with an eye towards adding other host cities.
A camp has already been announced for May at Otterbein University’s Memorial Stadium in Ohio, and a plan for Greenwich is in the works.
“We’re excited about where this can go,” Laura said about all of the initiatives. “It can be overwhelming, but it’s a labor of love.
She added that she and her husband have friends who have been supportive in helping with the foundation.
So next Monday, get out and be active. Then share it via #MoveMeMonday, and help raise money in the fight against cancer.
“It starts the week off on the right foot,” Laura said.
