Who should be a NEDA Walk Coordinator?
You! Anyone with an interest in raising awareness and funds to help support NEDA can organize a NEDA Walk. It can be as simple as picking a route and asking your friends, acquaintances, co-workers and family to get donations, invite their friends, and show up to walk.
I’ve never organized a NEDA Walk before. How do I do it?
First, email walks@nationaleatingdisorders.org, expressing your interest in starting a NEDA Walk. NEDA will send you the NEDA Walk Preliminary Interest Packet, which will give you a brief overview of how to run a walk and what NEDA expects. Once you have decided that you are serious about organizing a NEDA Walk, send the required forms in the NEDA Walk Preliminary Interest Packet to the National Walk Manager. From there, you will be sent a NEDA Walk Manual that provides instructions, suggestions and resources to help you at every stage of the Walk planning and day of your Walk activities. The NEDA National Walk Manager who oversees all NEDA Walks will be there to help you with anything and everything! Get a few friends together to help out and have fun!
I’m not coordinating a Walk but I want to volunteer to help a coordinator or register to walk in a NEDA walk near me. How do I get involved?
Check the list of registered NEDA Walks on the NEDA Walk page and look for your city. Select the appropriate Walk and open the link to the registration form.
Steps to becoming a NEDA Walk Coordinator & Organizing a Walk
NEDA will send you a brief overview of how NEDA Walks operate and what is expected of you, the Walk Chair/Coordinator. Review this packet.
Establish a Walk Committee. Once you have gotten the approval of the National Walk Manager, establish a walk committee, consisting of at least a Walk Chair/Coordinator, and a committee member in charge of particpant (walker) outreach and recruitment/registrations, a committee member in charge of soliciting walk sponsorships, and a committe member in charge of media and publicity.
Select your walk location and route. NEDA strongly recommends that the walk be along a scenic route, such as a park or public square. If you need help selecting the walk locaiton, securing a walk route (for example, if there is event or location rental paperwork to be filled out), the National Walk Manager can help out.
Select a Walk Date. The walk date often depends on the location/venue availability and amount of pre-walk work involved. NEDA strongly recommends that you begin planning for a walk at least eight months before your desired date, to ensure maximum participant registrations, time for sponsorship solicitations, and walk logistics.
Once you have all of this information, fill out the NEDA Walk Information Form and NEDA Walk Agreement Form in the initial packet sent to you by the National Walk Manager, and send back to the National Walk Manager.
NEDA will then send you the NEDA Walk Manual and create a webpage for your walk, where walkers can register online and create their own personal fundraising pages.
Use the NEDA Walk Manual for instructions on handling money, individualizing marketing materials for your local Walk, and the logistics of organizing your NEDA Walk.
