Thrive Mighty

**Update** - we hit 93% of our initial $10,000 goal by noon today, so we increased it to $12,500!  Thanks to all who've donated and shared so far, let's keep it going! - Ben

Hi all!  Happy GTMD 2022 - I want to express our gratitude for all the giving over the years - can you believe we are five years old this month!?  Our first five years have been full of unexpected twists and turns, and you've stuck with us the whole way. 

Please read on to see where we've been, what we did this year, and looking forward - this is what your dollars support.

We have our incredible StrongWise Program running each week, where folks meet on Zoom to work with Coach Terri around Strength, Mobility and Balance, and have a great time!  Participants range from 20 years old to their late 70s, and the program has something for everyone!  All summer we also ran our Strength Club (TMSC) where folks met and trained with kettlebells, sandbags, sleds and barbells to be their strongest and best selves.  We continue our 1:1 training offerings as well, working on specific goals in a controlled environment.

We've also added two new board members (Welcome Aaron and Ellen!) as well as hired three part-time employees, Lindsey, Katy and Terri!  We are thrilled with their input and love to see the team growing.

In May we had our first-ever STRENGTHFEST!  We met at Frost Iron Training in South Minneapolis and had an amazing turnout.  With over 100 attendees, a food truck, games, prizes, a community art project, and Feats of Strength (800lb deadlifts were a highlight) it was quite the festival.  We connected meaningfully as a community after a long weird winter, and goodness it felt great.

In June we booked a canoeing grip with Wilderness Inquiry and had a blast canoeing the Minneapolis chain of lakes - we saw ducks, deer, fish, and made some great friends!  We enjoy getting out in, and appreciating, nature exactly as it is, for what it is.

In August we had a great picnic at Hyland Lake Park in Bloomington - with around 40 attendees we grilled, played games, told stories, and brainstormed some fun activities for the future (more about that later).  Burgers, brats, bags and wonderful weather made it so easy to enjoy all the awesome humans who came out.

In September we ONCE AGAIN pulled a massive plane for Special Olympics Minnesota and our beloved powerlifting team, the HardShell Barbenders.  We raised over $4500 for the organization (our team gets half to use for uniforms, parties, etc.) and had a blast testing our strength against a literal 23-ton (46,000 lb) jet.

Barbenders season restarted in October (with a Halloween Costume party!) and runs through Mid March - we train on Saturdays at Frost Iron Training in South Minneapolis, and have 20+ lifters this year!  We also have a dozen dedicated coaches who do an amazing job working in partnership with each other and the lifters to make it the smartest, strongest experience it can be all around.

Looking forward: 

A cocoa and coat drive, as we love to gather, give back, and help keep our community warm, fun indoor activities/sports through the cold months, and other awesome opportunities to keep building the community!

We are small and flexible enough to keep our participants at the center of our decisions at Thrive Mighty.  They have a voice when it comes to steering the organization and determining the upcoming events and activities.  We feel fortunate to have the funding (thanks to all of you) to make it all happen.

The world needs the opportunities that Thrive Mighty provides.  We support and nurture whole people, and are able to meet folks right where they're at.  If you are able, please consider donating to Thrive Mighty this year.  Your donation will go toward supporting existing programming and will give us the opportunity to expand and serve more individuals.

Thank you all - 

Ben Swarts

Founder

PHILOSOPHY

We believe in an ability-first world - a world where people are seen for who they are, and what they can do, first. Their value is inherent as a human, never dependent upon external validation. 

We believe the need to belong - and contribute - to a community is part of human nature, as visceral as breathing. 

It is our conditioned, external, frames that lead us to believe differences divide - rather, diversity strengthens us. We see differences as simply another part of life - not a negative to be hidden or scared of, or a positive to be held up as an example. We aren’t tokens - or inspirations - we are simply different. 

We are all humans, with abilities, first.

We use wellness to connect on the deepest level possible, and high expectations to raise the bar for humanity and acceptance. The Thrive Mighty community leads the way for those bold enough to follow.

We’re raising the bar on inclusion. Join us.  It's time to live in your strength.