Iron Tribe Fitness, based in Birmingham, Ala., recently reached the $500,000 mark of charitable giving. The gym has been around since 2010 and has become one of the fastest-growing chains in the country, opening more than 50 franchises throughout the U.S. since its founding.
The club has donated half a million dollars primarily to two charities: Neverthirst and Team Red White and Blue. Neverthirst is a charity that works to build clean-water wells in impoverished countries, such as India or South Sudan. Team Red White and Blue’s goal is to re-integrate U.S. veterans into normal life through fitness and other activities.
Forrest Walden founded Iron Tribe Fitness in 2010, but he also helped to establish Neverthirst, a nonprofit, leading to the connection between it and the gym. The COO of Iron Tribe, Jim Cavale, assisted the club with getting connected to Team Red White and Blue.
“A buddy of mine, Mike Erwin, was the founder of Team Red White and Blue, and we grew up together in Syracuse, N.Y.,” said Cavale. “He wanted to integrate vets into society once they came back, through fitness. It was a novel idea because when you look at most of the projects out there to help soldiers coming back — they enable them in many ways, but they don’t involve them individually.”
So began the “Workout for Warriors” event, which occurs each Veterans’ Day and Memorial Day. Members come together to do military-style exercises for 11-minute periods, representing the armistice during World War II that came on November 11 at 11 a.m.
The program has also been expanded into other health clubs after raising hundreds of thousands of dollars for Team Red White and Blue.
“We’ve created it into a system now,” said Cavale. “Even non-Iron Tribe gyms can run the system and help raise money for the cause … As Mike (Erwin) says, more troops will return from the Middle East than have returned since Vietnam. How can we integrate them into society? Fitness.”
Iron Tribe also offers veterans the opportunity to be a coach or a franchisee for the health club.
Internationally, Iron Tribe is making an impact, too. Neverthirst was the first charity the club became involved with, and since then, they have donated over $300,000 to the cause. Even though Iron Tribe has made a large impact locally in Birmingham and in the U.S., the gym’s global reach is what is important to its leadership.
“Before Iron Tribe even came to existence in Forrest’s mind, he knew he wanted to do something with a purpose,” Cavale said. “There was a passion for fitness and a passion to scale that into a business, but ultimately the goal was to connect to the purpose and not only help the local community, but to affect the world globally.”
The connection with Neverthirst was Iron Tribe’s chance to have that global impact. Each well that is built to provide safe drinking water in an impoverished area costs $2,500.
“At $2,500 each, and with us raising $207,000, that’s 83 villages that will now get a well,” explained Cavale. “That’s safe drinking water that’s going to save their lives. It’s going to save their children’s lives.”
Iron Tribe has also taken a team of clients to India, where some of the wells were built. That personal involvement is what Cavale says sets Iron Tribe apart from all of the other businesses that donate money to charity.
“It isn’t just about money for us,” said Cavale. “We like to be involved too, and our clients have done a great job of being involved. We could not do any of this without our clients’ help … Just think about what we can do. We just started franchising in the second quarter of 2012 and in less than 18 months, 56 franchises have been sold. What’s going to happen next year? Can we raise $500,000 in one day? Can we build 100 wells in one day?”
By Ashley Scoby
