Austin, Texas-based self-storage aggregator SpareFoot recently participated in the Austin Startup Olympics and won $250 for Kure It, a kidney-cancer research non-profit organization, after taking home third-place honors.

This first-ever annual event brought together eight startup companies to compete for a monetary contribution to the charity of their choice. SpareFoot and other startups battled in a five-hour competition consisting of quintessential startup sports, including ping-pong, foosball, an obstacle course, flip cup, Pop-a-Shot, darts, shuffleboard and Connect Four.

Were excited to share Kure Its mission with a new audience, and grateful to SpareFoot for including us in such a unique fundraiser, said Kure It founder Barry Hoeven.

"When I heard about what Barry and Kure It were doing, I wanted to find a way to help. They've kept a focused effort on a big problem, said Mario Feghali, SpareFoot co-founder and chief operations officer. For those who have lost a loved one to renal cell carcinoma or any type of cancer, it's easy to feel helpless and lose hope. But I know that our contribution to Kure It will help those families and individuals dealing with kidney disease."

Founded in 2008, SpareFoot.com lists more than 5,000 self-storage facilities in its nationwide directory, which allows consumers to find, compare and reserve self-storage units online. Through multiple websites including SpareFoot.com, SelfStorage.com, Apartments.com and many others, SpareFoot helps self-storage operators find new tenants through a pay-for-performance model. The company is backed by Silverton Partners, FLOODGATE and Capital Factory.

Kure It raises money from the private sector and redirects those funds through competitive grants to kidney and other cancer researchers. The organization has raised more than $1 million. For information on how a self-storage company can participate, interested parties should contact director Karen Jones at 949.428.7081 or [email protected].

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