Oh, 2020 - damn, you were terrible in many ways. But we Nesters, HV, and Volée still GSD and grew in important directions. And yes, we even had some fun - Covid, you can't take that from us!
A LOOK BACK AT 2020
January: We launched the Volée App!
February: Trials By Fire marathon Olympic Trials epicness: 24 Oiselle racers and infinite fans going bananas!
March: BTS our logistics and shipping team totally kicked ass with systems migrations and ultimate Covid flexibility. The best crew!
April: One of our core values is: be weird. Therefore we are contractually obligated to celebrate April Fools Day! This year: EmpowerMEN statement tees, delivered with a wink.
May: V-Formation! With no in-person events to plan, our fearless team leader Carolyn organized an informative and energizing day, complete with DJ Sed's dance party!
June: We were incredibly honored to sign Alison Mariella Désir as an Athlete-Advisor; such an amazing addition to the team!
July: Our HV team leaned into sharing their stories, including powerful writing about being a Black athlete in the US from Kendra Chambers and Angel Piccirillo.
August: After many months of development, we were excited to offer extended apparel sizing on a collection of core pieces of fan favorites and make each of these individuals feel good as hell!
September: Womxn Run the Vote! Talk about epic (are we allowed to say that twice in one blog?): 10,000 participants, >$270,000 raised for Black Voters Matter, a festival of connection and civic-based learning. Can we do it again?
October: We were delighted to open a scholarship process for joining the Volée team; in total including 50 gift Volée membership purchases we were proud to offer 162 Volée scholarships!
November: Our first print piece! Bird Machine, oh how we love you! From the deliciously oversized pages to the bright crackle accents to the original writing from Kara, Lauren, and Alison, this one is going to live on our coffee tables.
December: Our Bras for Girls Donation program donated its 10,000th bra! A portion of each Volée membership directly contributes to the Bras for Girls program - with your help 10,000 girls have been directly supported since 2017! And we're going bigger in 2021!
In looking back, we are grounded by deep gratitude for the communion and friendship offered by this stellar community of women. Yes, running is our common thread, and also this team is building something powerful that extends beyond running and improves so many lives. We love you! We are excited to turn the page to 2021 together.
MORE STORIES
Reflecting on the Year of the Underbird
This past August, we launched our Year of the Underbird program: an open application for aspiring Olympic Trials marathoners, with a promise to select 5 women for a 6 month contract encompassing a stipend, gear, storytelling, and community support. As we reach the end of our flight with our selected athletes, we invited each of them to share a few reflections on their past 6 months as teammates.
Black History Month: Celebrating Our Athletes
We are honored to support five exceptional Black women athletes challenging norms in the running industry: athletes, advocates, and powerful voices in the sport. We invited each of them to reflect on their journeys through sport: how their identity has affected their development, and how they hope to impact the rising generation of athletes. Hear from Madie Boreman, Kendra Coleman, Brenna Detra, Carmen Pelar Graves, and Ari Hendrix-Roach.
Learn, Grow, Pass It On: Increasing Access to Adaptive Sports
Paralympian, pushrim athlete, and Oiselle Haute Volée, Jenna Fesemyer, continues to pave the way and inspire the next generation of wheelchair athletes. She is committed to increasing access to adaptive sports, including access to equipment and training resources, and recently co-hosted a wheelchair clinic for young athletes in Columbus, Ohio.