National Storage was the Presenting Partner of the 2023 International Women’s Day Fun Run, hosted by the Mater Foundation. Our new Presenting Partner title marked an increase in our involvement with the event compared to previous years. We are absolutely thrilled to have been afforded this opportunity, and now we want to share with you our full journey!
Event Launch
The International Women’s Day Fun Run presented by National Storage campaign launched on Friday the 13th of January, dubbed Pink Friday by the Mater Foundation/Mater Chicks in Pink team. This day saw the opening of registrations to the public with an incredible 50% OFF offer. We were hosted by the Mater Foundation for an intimate morning tea in the days prior, with National Storage sponsorship ambassadors from the Brisbane Heat and Brisbane Broncos also joining to celebrate the launch of the event.
Pictured: Sophia Catsoulis (National Storage Corporate Communications Manager), Courtney Sippel (Brisbane Heat Player), Ali Brigginshaw (Brisbane Broncos Ambassador), Claire Fidler (National Storage Executive Director and Company Secretary, Head of Legal and Governance), Grace Parsons (Brisbane Heat Player), Joel Milligan (National Storage General Manager – Marketing and Growth), George Takis (National Storage General Manager – Corporate Sales)
Fundraiser Morning Tea
With registrations and fundraising taking off, the next noteworthy event occurred on the 1st of February. A fundraiser morning tea was held in our Head Office, complete with special guests Dr Chris Pyke and Ash Mondolo from the Mater Hospital, a breast and endocrine surgeon and a breast cancer care nurse, respectively. Our team was fortunate to hear from these experts about how the funds raised from the International Women’s Day Fun Run are used to conduct lifesaving research and provide support to women currently living with breast cancer. Many of our staff pledged donations at this morning tea, and it was an incredible way to get more people involved.
Pictured: Dr Chris Pyke (Mater Hospital Breast and Endocrine Surgeon), Ash Mondolo (Mater Hospital Breast Cancer Care Nurse), Claire Fidler (National Storage Executive Director and Company Secretary, Head of Legal and Governance)
National Storage Dollar Match Day
The first of the dollar match days took place a few days after our fundraiser morning tea, on Friday the 3rd of February. We were the host of this particular dollar match day, with a $20,000 dollar match pledge. This cap was reached in an incredibly short eight minutes, and all donations on the dollar match day contributed an additional $158,147 towards the fundraising total.
The Big Day
And now to the event – on Sunday the 12th of March, 20,000 people took to the streets of Brisbane to join the Sea of Pink. Our National Storage team was set up in the Finisher’s Village, ready to hand out thousands of frozen treats to deserving participants. The treats were supplied by our new friends at Bulla Family Dairy. Brisbane Broncos player Corey Jensen also took part in the event as an unofficial National Storage ambassador, in honour of his mother currently undergoing breast cancer treatment. To our pleasant surprise, the rest of the Broncos team showed up to support Corey, and joined in on the fun of the day.
National Storage’s mascot – Mr Boxy – was seen on the course and in the Finisher’s Village handing out hugs and taking selfies with all his admirers!
Staff Involvement
Throughout the whole campaign, from launch on the 13th of January to event day on the 12th of March, we were constantly amazed by the willingness of our staff to become involved with the 2023 International Women’s Day Fun Run presented by National Storage. Several staff joined the event virtually, with special mention to our Far North Queensland participants who raised over $1,000. We would also like to mention a particular staff member from our Head Office – Deneth, Design Coordinator – who went the extra mile with his family, and brought in homemade earrings to offer to staff in return for donations. This was as well as his entire family of five participating in the 5km walk.
In addition to our sponsorship contribution, our National Storage staff team helped to raise over $23,000. This was an amazing effort by the 70+ registered participants on the National Storage fundraising team. We extend a warm thank you to all those who made our incredible fundraising efforts possible, by donating to our team and team members.
Support from our Sponsorship Teams and Partners
With an extensive sponsorship and partnership portfolio here at National Storage, we were privileged to be able to call upon several groups to support us in our fundraising endeavours. We received donations from both our friends at the Brisbane Broncos and Richmond Football Club. Beyond donations, and as previously mentioned, we were delighted to have Brisbane Broncos player Corey Jensen join our National Storage fun run team. Corey and several other members of the Broncos playing squad participated in the 5km walk, as unofficial ambassadors of our NS Cares community support initiative.
To say the International Women’s Day Fun Run presented by National Storage is a meaningful event would be an understatement. This event has become part of Brisbane’s very DNA, and is also spreading to the farther reaches of the country through virtual participation. Here at National Storage, many of our staff have experienced firsthand the devastating effects of breast cancer on the lives of women and their families. We are glad to have been part of such an important community movement for many years now, showing our support not just for our staff, but for the communities in which we operate. 2023 was the biggest and best year yet, with over $2 million raised for the Mater Chicks in Pink, to support breast cancer research efforts and to provide practical services to women living with breast cancer.
We set out with a goal to move to make change, and that is exactly what we have all done – thank you for playing your part.
