In May, we will be Honoring,Remembering and Supporting, our family members, friends, co-workers, classmates and neighbors impacted by invisible disabilities, illness and pain!
We will be walking, running, hiking, treadmilling, biking, spin biking, wheelchair rolling, scootering, skateboarding, roller blading and skating while supporting the ongoing work of IDA who is changing the way the world sees disabilities!
Marek Kaminski is an explorer, pole conqueror, innovator, philosopher, entrepreneur, founder of the Foundation, and author.He first in the world to reach both poles of the Earth in one year, without outside help, for which he was entered into the Guinness Book of Records. Marek is an expert in survival and mental toughness. He is a motivational speaker who, on the basis of his extreme expeditions and experiences, provides tools for building mental resilience in development programs.
Marek Kamiński has written a number of books, been involved in various films and received numerous awards and distinctions, including ‘Young Businessman of the Year 1994’ in the Polish section of the International World Young Business Achiever Competition, the ‘Knight’s Cross of the Order of Poland’s Renascence’ for reaching the North Pole (an award conferred on him by President Lech Wałęsa himself in 1995), the ‘Sports Minister’s Gold Medal’, the ‘TV Polonia Award’, the ‘St Wojciech’s Medal’, for making Gdansk known throughout the entire world, the ‘Amber Butterfly’ Award’, the ‘Explorer 2000’ prize awarded by the festival of explorers in Łódź in 2000, etc.
It was a childhood accident that originally inspired Marek to travel the world; having nearly lost his arm, the blank days spent recuperating in hospital saw him make a personal pledge to live a life of adventure.
His most high profile moment, however, came in 2004 when he set off to conquer both Poles once more, this time with 15 year old Jaś Mela from Malbork. Mela managed the feat in spite of losing an arm and a leg after being electrocuted a couple of years before. Battling temperatures of –30 degrees Celsius, and winds of 200km per hour, the pair just managed to hit their target, arriving at the South Pole on December 31. In the process Mela became the youngest and first person with a disabilities to conquer both Poles in one year, and the expedition raised funds to provide prosthetics for around 65 Polish children and adults. Subsequently, Marek founded the Marek Kaminski Foundation to assist other young people with disabilities to travel to the polar regions.
Jack Smith is a Legendary skateboarder and Guinness World Record holder. In 2019, Jack completed the nation’s first cross-country road trip on an electric skateboard. The 2,394-mile journey was Jack’s fifth cross-country expedition on a skateboard, with his first taking place in 1976 on a traditional skateboard at the age of 19 from Oregon to Virginia.
Skateboarding across America has since become a vehicle to raise awareness for causes near to Smith’s heart. In 2003, Smith’s son passed away from complications due to Lowe Syndrome and in 2013, Smith’s father passed away from Alzheimer’s Disease. Three of Smith’s trips across America were dedicated to raising funds and awareness for these causes.
“It is definitely… interesting to be 61 and riding an electric skateboard across the country,” Smith stated. “Even though I was not physically pushing this time around, it was more difficult than you would think. Your feet and legs go numb unbelievably quickly on rough roads. It’s mentally draining as well, you have to be hyper-focused on traffic and road conditions… cracks, potholes, changes of surface, debris on the shoulder or road. It was as much a test of mental fortitude as it was about endurance.”
“It’s been great seeing different parts of America from this unique perspective,” Smith continued. “In this journey and in my 2013 push, I had my wife, Cathy, as my support driver and pit crew. She kept me calm and was as serious about safety as I was. Smith is excited to have been the first man to ride across America on an electric skateboard and envisions that he will not be the last.
Col. Chris Kolenda (Ret) is a warrior-diplomat, combining assertiveness, statesmanship, and wisdom to help his clients gain dramatic wins. A West Point graduate, internationally renowned combat leader, and retired Army colonel, he was a trusted adviser to three 4-star generals and two Secretaries of Defense, Chris became the first American to have both fought the Taliban as a commander in combat and negotiated successfully with them in peace talks. Alan Weiss has selected Chris for his consulting Hall of Fame.
Chris is passionate about helping CEO’s and consultants to get good at getting better, developing their subordinates, build winning teams, and make the pivotal decisions that create sustainable growth. He is the founder of the Strategic Leaders Academy where he works with extraordinary leaders to make very small changes that create massive impact.
His unique warrior-diplomacy has been featured in the New York Times bestselling books, including The Outpost by Jake Tapper. His contributions have also been cited in the world’s leading newspapers and on television. He also writes life-changing books and bikes for great causes.
In 2022, Chris biked 1,689 miles, visiting the gravesites of the six fallen paratroopers in his unit who were killed while serving in Afghanistan and known as the Fallen Hero Honor Ride. Chris’s efforts raised awareness and funds for veterans’ mental health.
But I wasn’t riding only for those six men. Some survivors could be entering the most dangerous days of their lives. Since our deployment, our unit has lost more of our troops to suicide and substance abuse than to enemy fire. Post-traumatic stress, midlife crisis and feelings of emptiness are a potentially deadly combination. That’s the reason I established a foundation to raise money to help our unit’s veterans and their families.
Named by TIME magazine as one of the “100 Most Influential People in the World,” Dean Karnazes has pushed his body and mind to inconceivable limits. He once ran 50 marathons, in all 50 US states, in 50 consecutive days. He’s run across the Sahara Desert and run a marathon to the South Pole. On ten separate occasions he’s run a 200-mile relay race solo, racing alongside teams of twelve. Men’s Fitness hailed him as one of the fittest men on the planet and Wired magazine called him, “The Perfect Human.”
An acclaimed endurance athlete and NY Times bestselling author, he’s won the World’s Toughest Footrace, the Badwater Ultramarathon, running 135 miles nonstop across Death Valley during the middle of summer and has raced and competed on all seven continents of earth, twice.
Dean is an ESPN ESPY winner, a 3-time recipient of Competitor magazines Endurance Athlete of the Year award and serves as a US Athlete Ambassador. He’s twice carried the Olympic Torch and is a recipient of the President’s Council on Sports, Fitness and Nutrition Lifetime Achievement Award.
Dean and his incredible adventures have been featured on The Today Show, 60 Minutes, The Late Show with David Letterman, CBS News, CNN, ESPN, The Howard Stern Show, NPR’s Morning Edition, Late Night with Conan O’Brien, the BBC, and many others. He has appeared on the cover of Runner’s World, Outside, and Wired magazine’s, and has been featured in TIME, Newsweek, People, GQ, The New York Times, USA TODAY, The Washington Post, Men’s Journal, Forbes, The Chicago Tribune, The Los Angeles Times, and the London Telegraph, to mention a few.
Yet it is his unique ability to enthuse athletes of all abilities and backgrounds that truly sets Dean apart. Despite his many accomplishments, awards and distinctions, he remains most proud of his ongoing contributions of time and funding to programs aimed at getting children and youth outdoors and active. He has raised millions of dollars for charity and served on the Board of Girls on the Run, a national organization that helps young girls learn valuable life skills through training and completing a 5K.
Beyond being a celebrated endurance athlete, philanthropist, and bestselling author, Dean is an accomplished businessman with a notable professional career working for several Fortune 500 companies and startups alike. A graduate of the USF McLaren School of Business & Management, he is uniquely able to demonstrate how the lessons learned from athletics can be applied to business, and he is able to convey, with authenticity, the many insights he has gleaned along the way as a record-setting athlete and professional businessman.
Dean is a sought after speaker who has captivated and inspired audiences across the globe with his stories of persistence and perseverance. His dynamic, engaging and rousing presentations focus on going beyond perceived limitations to be the best that you can be. He talks about unlocking an inner strength to achieve extraordinary results. His real-life examples explore the topics of: dealing with adversity, overcoming
obstacles, setting and reaching lofty goals, the importance of teamwork, even in solo endeavors, and excelling in a competitive, and often confusing, world. In his presentations he examines and discusses the essential ingredients necessary for high-achievement and developing the ability to prevail and preserve against staggering odds.
Dean is believable, because his achievements and accomplishments are real. He delivers his message with the insight and candor that only an individual who has lived through such experiences can. Dean’s stories of endurance and perseverance are often comical, sometimes tear-jerking, and always thought-provoking and entertaining. His roster of clients include: Nike, Google, Sony, PepsiCo, Wells Fargo, Apple Computer, Merck, Toyota, Starbucks, Accenture, Stanford University, Yale, JP Morgan Chase, Amazon, Facebook, and a host of others.
Become a Participant – May 1st through May 31st you will be Walking, Running, Biking, Wheelchair Rolling, Hiking, Treadmilling, Spin Biking, Scootering, Skateboarding, Rollerblading or Skating, miles or kilometers while Honoring, Remembering or Supporting a loved one with an invisible disability. Participants will keep track of and update their progress throughout the month of May on their personalized page. Progress can take place over 31 days in May or all in one event or over a day or two during May. Your choice!
Create or Join a Team – Work together as a team of participants to Honor, Remember or Support. Engage your company, employee group, organization, church, sports team, neighborhood, city, gaming group, social club and more and create a team to walk and roll and run and ride together!
Make a Donation Pledge – Support Participants in their walk and roll endeavors by making a Donation Pledge for the number of miles, kilometers or steps they are determined to accomplish in May.
Become an Event Sponsor – Sponsorship is critical for IDA to continue to encourage, educate and support people with invisible disabilities around the globe.
