The Helping Hand Run Partnership

The Helping Hand Run is a 5k/10k fun run benefiting Hospice of the Valley's pediatric unit for children with life-limiting illnesses. Chapter members of Alpha Kappa Psi professional business fraternity at Arizona State University initiated this annual event in 2008, and I was the event Chair for the 2016 and 2017 races. In the past this leadership role was notoriously difficult, as there were no pass-along documents. Fraternity brothers held their breath before committee placement results in hopes their name wouldn't be on the "Helping Hand Run Committee" line. Each year the committee started from scratch with no tangible documentation of how previous coordinators pulled off the run. My thesis reads as a partial narrative intermixed with summary; these stories stem from my two years in overseeing the Helping Hand Run and the third year in serving as an informal mentor to the committee after stepping down as Chair. The symbolism of the narrative style is intentional, as my formal preparation for undertaking this leadership role consisted of a 20-minute conversation with the previous event Chair. The purpose of my thesis twofold: exploring how project continuity and pass-along documents contribute to event sustainability and also in assessing how teaming promotes social unity. Through my experience in coordinating the 8th and 9th Helping Hand Runs, I identified and created an opportunity to improve two distinct communities: Alpha Kappa Psi and Hospice of the Valley. This is largely displayed through authoring the Helping Hand Run Project Plan (See Appendix D). This document contains a variety of resources including an introduction of the project, Hospice of the Valley, and event history, descriptions of committee member roles and responsibilities, thank you note templates, contact information, and more. While the Project Plan is helpful, a significant amount of information is now easily accessible to event coordinators on the Helping Hand Run Gmail Google Drive. Combined, the resources found in the Guide and Google Drive is all information I wish I had when being handed the event. With more involvement from my chapter and a solid foundation of documented resources, ultimately my fraternity now has the tools necessary to carry out a more impactful and lucrative event to support local youth in need. Although the Helping Hand Run Project Plan is event-specific, both this tool and the accompanying reflection can be used as a frame of reference for other event planners in terms of important event management information to consider when aiming for project sustainability and continuous improvement.