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Nine13sports shifts gears to help Indy community during pandemic

He’s helped thousands of kids learn and love to ride bikes at schools and events around Central Indiana, but during the pandemic, Nine13sports geared up to help Gleaners and Second Helpings. Tom Hanley, CEO, Nine13sports joined us today to tell us more about how their organization has switched gears during this time.

Nine13sports completely pivoted in the wake of COVID-19. Hanley and his team completely transformed the organization from a health & fitness nonprofit into a logistics & operations organization.

They’re usually all about using bikes as an education tool – going into schools throughout Central Indiana to teach kids about health and fitness. When schools starting closing because of the Coronavirus, Hanley shifted gears and created a new model to deliver food to those in need.

While Nine13sports was on target to serve 60,000+ students this year, they are now serving 150,000-200,000 pounds of food throughout the community, alongside Gleaners and Second Helpings. Not only did they pivot their services to stay in business, but they rolled up their sleeves in an effort to help the community.

Their organization started 8 years ago to use the bikes as an education tools. As of 2019, serving nearly 60,000+ kids. They typically teach kids about the health benefits about bikes and more; now they’re helping feed the community. Their entire curriculum was built on going into schools and serving kids.

The pandemic caused the organization to pivot in March when COVID-19 hit. As of mid-March when schools were closing from an extended time, Hanley was faced with the decision on how to keep Nine13Sports open.

He built a model to use his staff, trucks and distribution site to help the community. They’re partnering with Gleaners, Second Helpings and Indy Hunger Network to help deliver food throughout the community to people in need.

They do have plans to pivot back to their original mission when schools reopen safely.

More about Hanley:

He founded Nine13sports in 2011 after a career as an elite-level track cyclist winning 4 national championships while attending Marian University. In the aftermath of the commercial vehicle accident* that ended his cycling career, Hanley decided to change the direction of his intended career path of becoming a lawyer. As the city of Indianapolis rallied around him, he made it his mission to give back to the city in the best way he knew how… using the power of the bicycle. Nine13 has grown from a one person operation serving about 1,000 kids in its first year, to an 11 person team serving over 50,000 kids annually. Hanley started Nine13sports to make the lives of Central Indiana kids better and continues to lead the team making it happen.

For more about Nine13sports, visit the organization’s website.