UPDATE: Photos from the marathon added below. 6/5/17
What's a better motivator than a little healthy competition – especially with a spouse?
Gunster business litigator Mike Freed has decided to one-up his wife's 2016 fundraising efforts (she raised $40,000 with a Bollywood-style bash celebrating her 40th birthday and raising money for the Emancipation Network, which provides job training to human trafficking survivors. See the June 2016 Florida Times-Union article profiling the couple's philanthropic deeds.
Freed's current goal is to raise $50,000 for Jacksonville Area Legal Aid (JALA), which helps provide legal services for the low-income community in northeast Florida. He'll do so by seeking donations and sponsors for six marathons he'll run over the course of six consecutive days.
The schedule
He begins his journey in Tallahassee, ending in Jacksonville, running every day beginning at 7:30 a.m. from the following locations:
- May 28: Florida Supreme Court, 500 S. Duval Street, Tallahassee, Florida (Facebook video update)
- May 29: Jefferson County Court, 1 Courthouse Circle, Monticello, Florida (Facebook video update)
- May 30: Madison County Court, 125 S.W. Range Avenue, Madison, Florida (Facebook video update)
- May 31: Suwanee County Court, 200 S. Ohio Aveneu, Live Oak, Florida (Facebook video update)
- June 1: Columbia County Court, 173 N.E. Hernando Avenue, Lake City, Florida (Facebook video update)
- June 2: Baker County Court, 339 E. Macclenny Avenue, Macclenny, Florida (Facebook video update)
His 157-mile journey will culminate in a barbecue-and-beer celebration from 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. on June 2 near the finish line (the Duval County Courthouse at 501 W. Adams Street in Jacksonville), which is open to the public.
Please join us in supporting Mike's efforts and JALA's mission of justice for all – especially the many people in Florida who live paycheck-to-paycheck and whose legal needs are underserved.
"Many of the poorest among us have no access to lawyer support to navigate the legal system," Freed points out. "That means a single mother may not be able to protect herself and her children from an abusive ex; a father may not be able to maintain adequate housing for his family; a veteran may not have the legal representation necessary to obtain needed benefits; and an ex-offender may go without help to rebuild his life and become a productive member of society. Legal aid fills this critical gap."
Freed raised a total of $65,460.30 – far surpassing his $50,000 goal.
Donate now
Visit the '6 marathons in 6 days' event page on the JALA website to donate, run the last 5K with Freed, or sponsor the run. You can also read the press release and find out more.
Social media
Please use the hashtag #Freedtorun so that everyone can join in on the conversation on social media forums like Facebook and Twitter.
Read media articles about Freed's 2017 run:
- Freed-to-Run: 6 marathons in 6 days (Jacksonville Area Legal Aid) – DONATE HERE
- For the greater good #FreedtoRun for justice (Attorney at Law magazine, 8/21/17); here's a link to the digital edition of this issue of the magazine
- 6 marathons + 6 days = $55,000 to aid the needy (Clay Today, 6/7/17)
- Gunster partner completes daily marathons for legal aid funding (Daily Business Review/The Associated Press, 6/6/17) - note: subscription required.
- Photos: Freed celebrates marathon mission (Jacksonville Daily Record, 6/5/17)
- Lawyer runs 6 daily marathons to raise money for legal aid (Associated Press, 6/3/17)
- Attorney runs 160 miles across Florida to raise $50K for Jacksonville Area Legal Aid (The Florida Times-Union, 6/2/17)
- Running for a cause: Jacksonville attorney goes distance of 6 marathons (News4Jax, 6/2/17)
- Mike Freed is blazing a path to justice (ECB Publishing, 6/1/17)
- Video: Freed-to-Run: 6 marathons in 6 days (WCTV, 5/29/17)
- Scarce legal aid funding spurs attorney to fun 6 marathons in 6 days (WFSU News, 5/26/17)
- Marathon mission to boost legal aid (Jacksonville Daily Record, 5/24/17)
- 6 marathons, 6 days: Athletic attorney fundraising for legal aid (Today's General Counsel, 5/24/17)
- Audio interview with Jacksonville Area Legal Aid President & CEO Jim Kowalski and Jacksonville attorney Michael Freed (NPR/First Coast Connect, 5/23/17) - note: interview begins just after the 36-minute mark of the podcast.
- This Florida attorney will run 6 marathons in 6 days to raise money for legal aid (ABA Journal, 5/23/17)
- Freed runs – and runs and runs – to support legal aid (pdf) (Skadden Alumni News, 5/16/17)
Photos from the road
Photos courtesy of Jacksonville Area Legal Aid
