It started with a simple question: where do we bring our teams together? That question led TexPTS to Austin Sunshine Camps and what they found there turned into one of the Austin region’s most meaningful annual traditions.
A Venue with a Mission
TexPTS was searching for a location for its first Clinic Director Camp, an offsite gathering designed to rebuild connection after the isolation of the pandemic years. They landed on Zilker Lodge, nestled in the heart of Austin. What made it a natural choice wasn’t just the setting. Every dollar spent renting the space goes directly to Austin Sunshine Camps (ASC), an organization that sponsors underprivileged youth in the Austin community and gives them the chance to experience every kid’s dream: overnight summer camp.
“We wanted to create more connection in both those groups to combat the feelings of isolation and lack of community that developed during the pandemic,” TexPTS Regional Director Tony Lauretta, PT, DPT, OCS, shares.
Community building, it turned out, was a mission TexPTS and Austin Sunshine Camps shared from the start.
From the Campgrounds to the Starting Line
What began as a venue relationship grew into something bigger. As the Austin region looked for a recurring service opportunity to anchor its outreach efforts, the Austin Sunshine Run became the clear answer.
Held every year on the first Sunday of May, the Austin Sunshine Run draws in over 3,000 participants across Austin, putting it in the running for the biggest early-summer race in the city. All proceeds benefit ASC, and for three years now, TexPTS has played a huge role in making it happen.
“We’ve sponsored the race, had a tent in the finish line festival area, and had a growing number of teammates run the race,” Tony says. The team gravitates toward races for good reason. “They promote an active lifestyle, bring people together from all over the community, and it provides an opportunity for our teammates to engage in physical activity and cheer each other on at the same time.”
The People Who Make It Happen
None of this runs without Amy Bell, the clinic director of TexPTS’s Apple Clinic, and the driving force behind TexPTS’s involvement year after year. She coordinates with the Young Men’s Business League of Austin, the camp’s founders, to bring the team into the event each year. Her efforts show in the results. For the past two years, TexPTS has earned the top fundraising group title, raising nearly $6,000 through clinic-level events.
Fundraising efforts are anything but ordinary. Think bake sales, patients paying to pie their PTs in the face, and teammates doing burpees for a good cause. Since the race takes place on a Sunday morning, clinic operations stay completely unaffected. And when the booth is packed up, the whole team carries on one more tradition: brunch together.
Why Community Partnerships Matter
The partnership with Austin Sunshine brings TexPTS’s core values to life: Serve with Passion, Do What’s Right, and Have Fun. For Tony, it’s more than a values statement.
“Each year,” Tony reflects, “I try to step away from the TexPTS booth that’s set up on race day and take it all in. To see teammates from all across Austin coming together to support a cause like this and enjoying spending time with each other always reinforces my love for working with TexPTS.”
Find Your Cause
Every brand in the Confluent Health family has a community waiting to be served, and the path to a meaningful partnership rarely starts with a grand plan. Tony’s advice for teams ready to explore their own: “I’d say that often, these partnerships don’t start with large or grand gestures or events,” Tony advises. “They often start with curiosity around what organizations like [Austin Sunshine Camps] need, and starting small often ends up with larger events like what we do with ASC. They also provide an opportunity for teammates who have a passion for a specific cause, group, or community to fill their cup while also giving back to the community. And finally, it creates connection between your teams, which only allows them to better serve their patients and communities while in the clinic.”
Start with curiosity. The rest tends to follow.
The Austin Sunshine Run takes place the first Sunday of every May. Learn more at austinsunshinerun.com.
