Fitness Startup Raises $500,000 For Charities

BIRMINGHAM, Ala., Oct. 10, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- By performing air squats, kettlebell swings, lunges and presses, Iron Tribe Fitness athletes have raised more than $500,000 for clean water wells and military veterans in the company's first three years of operation.

Iron Tribe Fitness is the fastest growing group fitness franchise in the country. Since opening the doors of the first gym in 2010, CEO and founder Forrest Walden and COO Jim Cavale have led Iron Tribe Fitness athletes in fundraising for two important organizations: Neverthirst, a non-profit that builds clean water wells in the poorest regions of the world, and Team Red, White and Blue (RWB), whose mission is to enrich the lives of America's veterans by connecting them to their community through physical and social activity.

This amount given back to charity in three short years is an outlier in the fitness industry and reflects unique core values at Iron Tribe. Iron Tribe Fitness hosts annual Workout of the Day (WOD) fundraisers for each organization. The most recent event, "Workout for Water," raised more than $207,000 for Neverthirst.

On the rainy morning of September 21, 150 athletes broke into teams of five and participated in a workout meant to mirror the journey village residents must make to carry and fill their jugs with water. The money raised this year will build 81 wells in India through Neverthirst.

Last year, "WOD for Water" raised $100,000, which built 40 wells in India. Walden recently led a team of Iron Tribe athletes to India to see the wells built with those funds and experience the impact of those dollars at work. Neverthirst is already planning its next WOD for Water event in Nashville, TN on October 26.

Iron Tribe athletes are also passionate about American veterans. Iron Tribe Fitness actually created "WOD for Warriors," a national fundraising event for Team RWB.

"WOD for Warriors" denotes the fact that the workouts are done on behalf of our nation's fighting forces, past, present, and future.  "WOD for Warriors" raised $30,000 for Team RWB the first year and $60,000 the following year. This funding is critical to the organization's ability to deliver great programs across the state of Alabama. 

For more information on ITF, visit IronTribeFitness.com. For more information on the workout events, visit WODforWater.com and WODforWarriors.com.

SOURCE Iron Tribe Fitness