Wild Tomorrow is proud and excited for our team of 28 charity runners who are ready to run this year’s TCS New York City Marathon on Sunday! Read more below about some of our amazing runners and why they’ve dedicated their race to helping elephants and other threatened species. Go Team Elephant!

*Photo by our Ambassador, Shannon Wild.*

Wild Tomorrow Fund is proudly an Official Charity Partner for the 2023 TCS New York City Marathon, which takes place this Sunday, November 5th. We are incredibly proud of our 28 runners in this year’s marathon - many of whom have run two or more races to benefit Wild Tomorrow. This year’s team was chosen from nearly 80 applicants who wanted to run for our benefit and our team is twice the size of last year!

So far, the team has raised over $67,000 which will help us to save, restore and reconnect wild space for rhinos, elephants, leopards, lions and other threatened species including dwarf chameleons, precious orchids and other “little things” that matter just as much.

Thank you to TINICUM partners Eric Ruttenberg, Bob Kelly and Seth Hendon for sponsoring the team again this year, with 5 Tinicum runners for Team Elephant in 2023!

*Tinicum partners Seth Hendon (left) and Bob Kelly (right)*

To save elephants and other endangered wildlife, we must prevent poaching, and we must also preserve and protect wild habitats. At Wild Tomorrow, we are restoring a wildlife corridor in KwaZulu-Natal South Africa. To survive, elephants depends on these wild spaces – and therefore, they depend on us!

Our runners efforts are personal on many fronts. In addition to the lofty goal of completing a marathon, our runners are also devoted conservationists. Here are a few of their stories.

Hannah Follender majored in conservation biology in college and then spent a year in Kenya studying human-wildlife conflict. “I had always loved animals and was an avid animal planet watcher as a kid, so my travel study opportunity in Kenya was a perfect entry to my adult years.” Hannah feels strongly that conservation solutions must include local communities and that the sustenance of these communities is directly linked to the local conservation of wildlife. We are excited that her vision is so closely aligned with our mission.

Jeff Cardell Jeff and his wife have been saving up for their bucket list and finally were able to check it off in 2002. They visited Kruger National Park and the Addo elephant national Park in South Africa and fell in love with the country. “The wonderful cities, rugged mountains, and plentiful wildlife took our breath away. We were able to experience not only elephants, but rhino's, lions, giraffes, and many other amazing species first hand! While we were there, a baby elephant came right up to our jeep, gave a little head shake and made a trumpet that literally melted our hearts!” Returning to South Africa to volunteer is now added to their bucket list. We can’t wait for their visit!

*This baby elephant is ready to run! Thank you to all of our runners for creating hope for the future for elephants and their future. Photo Credit: Shannon Wild.*

James Knight This quote from James resonates in our hearts too: “The interconnectedness of all life within an ecosystem is a concept that resonates with me deeply. I believe that we must protect wild areas from destruction in order to safeguard the incredible diversity of life on our planet. The fact that Wild Tomorrow Fund works to protect, restore, and re-wild land in strategic, ecologically important areas is something that I admire greatly. …the organization's commitment to expanding natural habitats in threatened wild places is vital in the face of the extinction crisis that we are currently experiencing. I am inspired by Wild Tomorrow Fund's efforts to not only improve the lives of the people living in poor rural communities but also reduce their impact on natural resources while increasing support of conservation practices.”

Cassidy Maugeri Cassidy is a veterinarian whose goal in running is to spread awareness of Wild Tomorrow and its missions. “As a veterinarian, my passion is embodied by your three pillars: animals, the communities that support them, and they space in which they need to thrive. Elephants and the wild animals of the African and Asian territories are widely known as majestic and exotic creatures, yet the realistic discussion of what it takes to maintain a herd, and support the environment in which encompasses them are not topics at the forefront of discussions.” Cassidy has also volunteered for 3 weeks at the Wildlife Friends Foundation in Phetchaburi, Thailand, where she learned what it takes to care for endangered animals. She is a perfect match for Wild Tomorrow’s threefold mission: to protect, restore and rewild land in ecologically important areas; to ensure that everyone benefits from conserving wild spaces and to save wildlife.

Our co-founder, Wendy Hapgood, teaches at Columbia University’s Sustainability Management graduate program. One of her former students is running with our team this year, Nora Apelgren, and a current student of the International Policy program (and talented artist), Victoire Mandonnaud.

Adding to the excitement this year, two of Wild Tomorrow’s staff members are also running: Greg Canning, the amazing and dedicated leader of Wild Tomorrow South Africa and Annic Randriamampianina from Madagascar who will be the flag bearer for her country in the NYRR Parade of Nations ceremony and is running the NYC marathon for the 2nd time in a row for Team Elephant! “I am honored to represent Wild Tomorrow and Madagascar.” For Greg, it is not only his first time to run the NYC marathon, but also to visit the United States! We know the NYC marathon spectators will ensure an unforgettably warm welcome to all runners.

Thank you to all of the runners on our 2023 TCS NYS Marathon team which in addition to the runners profiled above include Mark Purcell (our top fundraiser!), Courtney Chavez, Nick Alibrandi, Jeff Cardell, Miles Johnson, Nicolas Hills, Daniel Koch, Chris Rutter, Regina Kramer, Kris Martin, Maggie Carroll, Claudia Jasper, Matt Lander, Chris Orkwis plus Tinicum’s William Means, Aaron Zuo, Kira Koehler, Jared Lee and Lauren Day.

DONATE TO TEAM ELEPHANT

Thank you to our sponsor

If you are in NYC or tuning in to watch the race on ABC7NY in the New York tri-state area (includes a live stream on their website), please cheer for our runners, and look out for their white “Team Elephant” t-shirts!

Throughout the rest of the U.S.you can catch the race on ESPN2 around the world by various international broadcasters.

Marathon fans can find the full list of international broadcasters here for their country.

TEAM ELEPHANT NYC MARATHON STAMPEDE