Customer Snapshot
- Number of Participants: 6,923
- Amount Raised: $600,000+
- Individual Fundraisers: 101
About SOME’s Trot for Hunger
SOME’s (So Others Might Eat) Trot for Hunger is the largest and only Turkey Trot in Washington, D.C., drawing thousands of runners, walkers, families, and corporate teams to Freedom Plaza each Thanksgiving morning. With a history spanning more than 24 years, the event serves a major fundraising engine for SOME, supporting programs that combat hunger, homelessness, and poverty across the D.C. region.
The event continues to grow thanks to its mission-driven focus, iconic location, and deep community roots.
Photos from Event Photography of North America Corporation (EPNAC), So Yun Maryn, Cynthia Pyle, Angela Porter
The Goal
After several years of operating on legacy registration and fundraising platforms, the SOME’s team set out to modernize their event technology with clear objectives:
- Improve peer-to-peer fundraising functionality
- Provide 24/7 participant support
- Simplify data management and reporting
- Support a complex event with corporate teams, fundraising, and multiple race options
- Set the new race director up for long-term success with a scalable platform
The Challenge
At the time, the organization was operating with lean staffing while expanding its fundraising and partnership efforts. One consultant was overseeing several core functions, including development and sponsor relations. Some legacy systems created inefficiencies, including:
- Fragmented fundraising tools across multiple platforms
- Limited visibility into team rosters, a key requirement for corporate sponsors
- Difficult-to-clean donation and participant data
- Streamlining check-in for packet pickup for staff, volunteers, and participants
- Setting up an integrated online storefront for merchandise sales, inventory tracking, and distribution
With a new race director stepping in, the team needed a solution that could reduce complexity while increasing confidence across departments.
The Solution
SOME’s transitioned to RunSignup to manage registration, fundraising, communications, and race-day operations on a single, reliable platform.
Key RunSignup features included::
- Integrated peer-to-peer fundraising tied directly to registration
- Participant dashboards that made it easy for individuals and teams to manage their involvement
- Donation reporting tools that delivered clean, usable data for finance and leadership
- Email and automation tools to support storytelling-driven, mission-focused outreach
- Race Day Check-In App to streamline on-site operations
- Responsive, hands-on support from the GiveSignup team during setup and execution
The platform’s flexibility allowed the team to support corporate sponsors, individual fundraisers, and virtual participants without relying on
The Results
The event delivered strong outcomes:
- Nearly 7,000 participants, with projections nearing 8,000 under normal conditions
- 70%+ of participants checked in before race day, eliminating lines and reducing staffing pressure
- A smooth, uninterrupted race-day experience with zero platform downtime
- Significantly improved confidence from internal IT, data, and finance teams
- Clear, actionable donation and participant reports that leadership could trust
Operational efficiencies extended beyond technology. Strategic planning and execution helped the organization save more than $50,000 in government fees and staffing costs, reinforcing the event’s role as a major funding driver for SOME.
Why It Worked
The SOME’s Trot for Hunger team credits RunSignup with delivering both reliability and adaptability for a complex, mission-driven event.
“The participant dashboard, clean visuals, and donation reports were huge for us. After struggling with data in the past, having something that just worked — and made sense — was a game changer.”
Equally important was the platform’s ability to support collaboration across fundraising, marketing, finance, and race operations, even with limited staffing.
Looking Ahead
With a strong foundation now in place, the team plans to:
- Expand early registration campaigns using automated emails
- Refine corporate team fundraising models
- Provide deeper platform training for marketing and communications staff
- Continue optimizing inventory, reporting, and sponsor visibility
By consolidating their event technology on RunSignup, SOME’s Trot for Hunger is positioned to grow sustainably while staying focused on what matters most — funding critical services for the D.C. community.
