For the second year Danny Talmage of Crazy Dog Events will be directing our upcoming 5K race. We sat down with him to learn more about his company and connection to Empowering Action.
Tell us about yourself.
Since I moved to DC in 1993 I have always been supportive of nonprofits including Habitat for Humanity, YFU, and Greater DC Cares. Over time I got into running and first started volunteering, then being a team captain, and later a race director. In 2003 I started my own charity race, the Germantown 5 Miler. 12 years later I started Crazy Dog Events to help charities get new races started.
Tell us about the name Crazy Dog Events.
Crazy Dog’s name came from my running partner and crazy Airedale Terrier, Snickerz. He is now 14 and is retired from running, but he loved running and would average 20 miles a week.
Tell us about your race schedule.
I am normally directing, timing, or volunteering for a race every weekend during the main race seasons of the spring and fall. In the summer and winter I volunteer as a USATF official for various indoor and outdoor track events.
Snickerz is retired from running. What about you?
I still get out for a few miles once in a while, but various injuries have hampered my running.
How did you get connected with Empowering Action?
I’ve known the founder, Kent Husted, for almost twenty years, meeting for the first time at a church in Germantown where he was serving on staff. We reconnected last year when Empowering Action expressed an interest in hosting a 5K race, and was directed to me by a mutual friend at Fellowship of Christian Athletes who had partnered with me on some events.
What excites you about Empowering Action?
I like Empowering Action for how they are helping people get out of poverty and teaching them how to have a vocation for the future. The program is well designed and helps so many in the Dominican Republic, Cuba, and Haiti. Having taken the Perspectives class I see the value of the program and know that it is doing amazing things for those that are involved.
