Event Updates
August 25, 2020
We are so grateful you registered to participate in the 2020 Strength In Our Streets fitness competition. From all of us here at Wheeler Mission, thank you for your support! President/CEO, Rick Alvis, explains the importance of this event — especially this year — to Wheeler Mission and our community:
“This year’s Strength In Our Streets is more important than ever. Since the onset of the pandemic, Wheeler Mission has tirelessly served on the front lines of homelessness, addiction, and hunger. Throughout this crisis, we’ve received men, women, and mothers with children with open arms and provided the food, shelter, and care they desperately need. For 2020 to date, Wheeler has faithfully served 6,680 people. We have not — and cannot — do this alone. The funds raised during the annual Strength In Our Streets competition are vital to ensure that men, women, and children continue to receive the help they count on. We greatly appreciate all of the teams and the athletes who are stepping up in 2020 to encourage the guests at Wheeler Mission to NEVER GIVE UP! This is a year like none other, and I’m excited to see all of the virtual action on October 10th!”
Yes, he said VIRTUAL. Due to the challenge of finding a host venue, the uncertainty of what COVID might bring in October, and our priority to provide a safe event for everyone, we have decided to go virtual with our 2020 event. AND we are excited about the possibilities this will bring to the event! Here is what our program partners at Naptown Fitness have in store for the 2020 event:
"NapTown Fitness is excited to team up with Wheeler Mission to bring Strength in Our Streets to fitness facilities across the Midwest. Transitioning to a Virtual Competition will have its challenges, but the number of opportunities this provides far exceeds those challenges. We can't wait to see teammates working together in their own gyms crushing the SIOS Workouts via Zoom, Facebook, and Instagram live. This will be an action packed weekend and now we can reach more people and make a bigger impact for our community." -Jared Byczko, NapTown Fitness
Who: Teams of 10 (plus 2 judges) will still be in play to keep with the SIOS tradition. We will be lifting the team registration restrictions to allow any team that is interested in competing to register! So no cap on the number of teams, and gyms don't have to be an affiliate of CrossFit!
What: A one-day, virtual fitness competition with four workouts to complete with your team throughout the day. All workouts will be compliant with social distancing guidelines to uphold the safety of all athletes choosing to participate in the event.
AND DON'T FORGET! FUNDRAISING IS THE FIRST EVENT (happening now!) AND WILL BE SCORED!
When: At 8:00 AM on event day, Saturday, October 10, 2020, we will begin with a virtual kickoff with Event Staff, the NapTown Fitness event programmers, and all of the team captains. This will be a time to ask questions about any workout, demonstrate and clarify movement standards, and announce the standing for the Fundraising Event. This will lead into the first workout event to be performed by all teams at the same time. From there, teams will sign off and have until 2:00pm to complete the remaining 3 workouts in any order. There will be a closing meeting at 2:30pm where we can announce spirit award winners, fundraising winners, and thank everyone for their participation. Event winners will be announced the following week once scores have been confirmed.
Where: Participating teams will be performing the workouts for the day in their team gyms. Workouts can be performed inside or outside. Host gyms will require basic fitness equipment (Concept2 rowers, barbells & plates, pull up rig, wall balls) in order for teams to complete the workouts.
How: If you are looking to win any prizes, you will be required to video your team completing each workout so our event team is able to check the legitimacy of scores on the leaderboard. You will have 48 hours to submit the videos and the leaderboard will be finalized the following week after we have confirmed scores. Winners will be announced later in the week.
As you can see, a lot of thought and consideration for everyone's safety is going into the planning of this event. Our Event Team here at Wheeler Mission is also working hard to make this a fun, engaging, and rewarding competition for the athletes and teams. We will keep you updated as plans and programming solidify. Be sure and follow us on social media and visit our website — StrengthInOurStreets.com — for the latest information. If you have any questions, you can also email us at info@strengthinourstreets.com. Our team is here to help!
Thank you again for supporting the men, women, and children experiencing homelessness in our community through participation in this event. Looking forward to seeing you virtually on October 10th!
On behalf of the entire event team,
Tammy Ellis
Director of Special Events
Wheeler Mission
