Lauren Mantha, a devoted runner, communications pupil and nurse at a Toronto-based fertility clinic, has developed a groundbreaking concept to unite working communities throughout Canada via a web site known as A Working Listing. This platform serves as a way to attach with and be part of native run golf equipment in a single’s neighborhood. Inside simply two months of its launch, Mantha has expanded its attain to cities throughout Ontario and into Quebec, aiming to construct a nationwide database for people trying to be part of a run membership.
Mantha took to working final Could via the Million Causes Run digital fundraiser for kids’s hospitals. After pledging to run 31 kilometres in Could 2023, she signed up for the Toronto Waterfront Half Marathon in October. Throughout her race preparation, she skilled independently, assuming that becoming a member of a run membership entailed a monetary dedication. Nonetheless, when a pal invited her to hitch one, Mantha started her journey to discover varied run teams in Toronto, documenting her experiences in a pocket book and on her social media.
“Discovering the abundance of free run golf equipment in Toronto opened my eyes to the inclusivity and accessibility of the working group,” says Mantha. “I spotted that many individuals, like myself, had been unaware of the various choices accessible, and I wished to alter that.”
Mantha’s concept, A Working Listing, (pun supposed), started as a compilation of run golf equipment and their assembly occasions, together with their Instagram tags on social media. As curiosity grew, she acknowledged the necessity for a extra complete platform. “The response was overwhelming,” she recollects. With the help of her pal Jenna, Mantha launched her web site on Dec. 16. The web site now serves as a run membership database for runners, offering particulars and assembly occasions for run teams in Toronto, Hamilton, Waterloo, Ottawa, and shortly, Montreal.
“I by no means anticipated this listing gaining such momentum,” Mantha says, reflecting on the 2 months for the reason that platform’s launch. “The assist from the working group has been unimaginable.”
Mantha is aware of the obstacles of attending a run membership for the primary time: “It may be intimidating, significantly for newcomers,” she admits. “My goal is solely to make these run golf equipment extra accessible.” Trying forward, Mantha needs to broaden A Working Listing nationwide whereas sustaining its community-driven environment. “I would like this venture to function a useful resource for all runners, whether or not they’re seasoned veterans or simply beginning out.”
As A Working Listing continues to flourish, Mantha is dedicated to her imaginative and prescient of fostering a stronger, extra interconnected working group throughout Canada. “The assist we’ve acquired to this point has been outstanding,” she enthuses. “I’m excited to see the place this journey leads us.”
She encourages all run golf equipment, no matter their location or measurement, to achieve out to @arunninglist on Instagram to be featured on the web site.
