MORTON GROVE, Ill. — Lifeway Foods, Inc., (NASDAQ: LWAY), a leading supplier of kefir cultured dairy products, today announced its sponsorship of the Charity Miles running, walking and biking app in support of The One Fund Boston fundraising initiative benefiting victims of the Boston Marathon bombing tragedy. During the free two-week campaign, Lifeway will sponsor each individual’s Charity Miles plus an additional 25¢ per mile for The One Fund Boston, with a goal of raising $10,000.
Lifeway is encouraging additional donations to the cause with a virtual #BostonStrong10k race for which participants will receive a “Boston Strong” t-shirt and a coupon for a free pint of Lifeway Frozen Kefir in exchange for a $25 registration fee. Lifeway will donate net registration proceeds to The One Fund Boston for the next two weeks.
Charity Miles is a free iPhone/Android app that enables people to earn money for charity when they walk, run or bike. The app tracks the distance traveled and awards 10¢ per mile for bikers and 25¢ per mile for walkers or runners, with funds donated by Charity Miles and its corporate sponsors. Participants can also raise awareness for their causes by sharing their achievements on social media using a built-in widget.
Julie Smolyansky , President and CEO of Lifeway Foods, Inc., is an avid marathon runner who uses the Charity Miles app to raise money for Girl Up, the UN Foundation and many of her other favorite non-profit organizations. Ms. Smolyansky participated in this year’s Boston Marathon and was only half a mile from the finish line when she was diverted off the route by safety personnel. She and her family were unharmed, but she was deeply impacted by the compassion and heroism that occurred after the tragedy.
“The Boston Marathon bombing was a terrible event that touched me personally,” said Ms. Smolyansky. “Lifeway Foods has been a longtime supporter of the running community, sponsoring major races across the country. While many of us have had a feeling of helplessness as we watched the events unfold over the last two weeks, running, walking or biking in solidarity with the people of Boston and those injured can give us a healthy outlet to channel our collective humanitarian spirit and raise money for those impacted while we move toward healing.”
“I’m very pleased to support The One Fund Boston with Lifeway,” said Gene Gurkoff , founder of Charity Miles. “Lifeway Foods has always encouraged both wellness and social impact by empowering people to participate in healthy lifestyles, two attributes we also share with the Lifeway brand.”
About Lifeway Foods, Inc.
Lifeway Foods, Inc. (LWAY), recently named one of Fortune Small Business’ Fastest Growing Companies for the fifth consecutive year, is America’s leading supplier of the cultured dairy products known as kefir and organic kefir. Lifeway Kefir is a dairy beverage that contains 10 exclusive live and active probiotic cultures plus ProBoost™. In addition to its line of Kefir products, the company produces a variety of Frozen Kefir and probiotic cheese products. Lifeway also sells frozen kefir, kefir smoothies and kefir parfaits through its Starfruit™ retail stores.
About Charity Miles
The Charity Miles app tracks miles for walkers, runners and bikers to raise money for some of the world’s top charities, including Feeding America, Stand Up To Cancer, (RED), Autism Speaks, Wounded Warrior Project, Every Mother Counts, the UN Foundation, Girl Up, Shot@Life and Nothing But Nets. It was the winner of this year’s SXSW Interactive People’s Choice Award and was noted as one of Mashable’s Top Five Fitness Apps for 2013.