Saturday, February 03, 2007
Please check out my fundraising letter.........
I want to share with you the fundraising letter I sent to my family and friends regarding my Machu Picchu trek. It speaks from my heart and I am so touched by the generous response I have received from its recipients. I am very grateful to you all. Here it is:
My Dear Family and Friends,
As many of you know, I completed my first marathon in
January 2003 as a member of the Arthritis Society’s Joints
in Motion Training Team. With the support of my parents,
extended family members and friends, I fundraised over
$4000 for the Arthritis Society and participated in the
DisneyWorld Marathon. It was truly a humbling and life changing experience. I was overwhelmed by the generosity of those who made donations, I was inspired by the courage of marathon participants with significant disabilities, I was overcome with gratitude that I had the health and strength to take on such a physical challenge, and I was filled with a sense of pride and purpose that I had contributed to such a worthy cause.
When I returned to Regina I realized I had another dream I wanted to pursue. I wanted to climb a mountain! The Arthritis Society did not offer such excursions as part of their Joints in Motion program and an internet search for other similar fundraising programs was unsuccessful. I put my dream on hold, but never forgot it. Now fast forward to September 2006 when the Arthritis Society announces its exciting 2007 Joints in Motion
destinations. Included among them is a 4 day trek in a mountainous region of Peru in August 2007. It is not exactly a mountain climb, but it is a 43 km trek on stone – paved trails built by the Incas to get to the impregnable citadel of Machu Picchu, deep in the Cusco cloud forest. The trail climbs through an impressive range of altitudes where climates and ecosystems range from the high Andean plain down to the cloud forests. Although the idea of fundraising again was, quite frankly, terrifying, I knew this was an opportunity I had been waiting for. With some encouragement from Joël, my oldest son, I took a giant leap of faith and signed up for the trek.
I am sending you this letter because I believe you may be interested in supporting the work of The Arthritis Society. If you make an annual contribution to the Arthritis Society or you make charitable contributions over the Christmas season please consider making one through me to help me attain my fundraising goal of $6900. Tax deductible receipts will be provided for all donations, and the funds raised go toward arthritis education, research, and services to improve the quality of life for the more than 140,000 infants, toddlers, children, teens, and adults in Saskatchewan affected by arthritis.
I have enclosed a sponsor form with more information for your convenience. Please take a moment to peruse the various ways you may be able to help the Arthritis Society. Thank you so very much for your support!!
And here is the sponsor form that accompanied the letter:
My Dear Family and Friends,
As many of you know, I completed my first marathon in
January 2003 as a member of the Arthritis Society’s Joints
in Motion Training Team. With the support of my parents,
extended family members and friends, I fundraised over
$4000 for the Arthritis Society and participated in the
DisneyWorld Marathon. It was truly a humbling and life changing experience. I was overwhelmed by the generosity of those who made donations, I was inspired by the courage of marathon participants with significant disabilities, I was overcome with gratitude that I had the health and strength to take on such a physical challenge, and I was filled with a sense of pride and purpose that I had contributed to such a worthy cause.
When I returned to Regina I realized I had another dream I wanted to pursue. I wanted to climb a mountain! The Arthritis Society did not offer such excursions as part of their Joints in Motion program and an internet search for other similar fundraising programs was unsuccessful. I put my dream on hold, but never forgot it. Now fast forward to September 2006 when the Arthritis Society announces its exciting 2007 Joints in Motion
destinations. Included among them is a 4 day trek in a mountainous region of Peru in August 2007. It is not exactly a mountain climb, but it is a 43 km trek on stone – paved trails built by the Incas to get to the impregnable citadel of Machu Picchu, deep in the Cusco cloud forest. The trail climbs through an impressive range of altitudes where climates and ecosystems range from the high Andean plain down to the cloud forests. Although the idea of fundraising again was, quite frankly, terrifying, I knew this was an opportunity I had been waiting for. With some encouragement from Joël, my oldest son, I took a giant leap of faith and signed up for the trek.
I am sending you this letter because I believe you may be interested in supporting the work of The Arthritis Society. If you make an annual contribution to the Arthritis Society or you make charitable contributions over the Christmas season please consider making one through me to help me attain my fundraising goal of $6900. Tax deductible receipts will be provided for all donations, and the funds raised go toward arthritis education, research, and services to improve the quality of life for the more than 140,000 infants, toddlers, children, teens, and adults in Saskatchewan affected by arthritis.
I have enclosed a sponsor form with more information for your convenience. Please take a moment to peruse the various ways you may be able to help the Arthritis Society. Thank you so very much for your support!!
And here is the sponsor form that accompanied the letter:
SPONSOR FORM
ARTHRITIS SOCIETY JOINTS IN MOTION TRAINING TEAM
MACHU PICCHU, PERU TREK
PARTICIPANT: JOANNE FARMER
Your Name: _________________________________________
Address: ____________________________________________
ARTHRITIS SOCIETY JOINTS IN MOTION TRAINING TEAM
MACHU PICCHU, PERU TREK
PARTICIPANT: JOANNE FARMER
Your Name: _________________________________________
Address: ____________________________________________
City: ________________________ Province: _____________
Postal Code: _________________________
Phone Number: _(_______)____________________
Email address: ________________________________________
I am interested in helping the Arthritis Society raise much needed funds for research, education, and services for those affected by arthritis in the following way(s):
Phone Number: _(_______)____________________
Email address: ________________________________________
I am interested in helping the Arthritis Society raise much needed funds for research, education, and services for those affected by arthritis in the following way(s):
______ I will be a donor contributing $______________ Please make cheques payable
to: The Arthritis Society.
______ I will take a “Change for Change – Give Your 5¢ Worth For Arthritis Research”
jar and collect loose change to contribute to the Arthritis Society. Please
indicate the number of jars you would like: ___________
______ I will buy a package of 12 Christmas cards for $5. Please indicate how many
packages of 12 Christmas cards you would like: __________
______ I have items I would like to donate to a Giant Arthritis Society Garage Sale in
May 2007.
______ I will donate recyclable items for you to pick up and take to Sarcan with the
deposit going to the Arthritis Society.
______ I would be interested in attending a Steak Night in Regina with proceeds going
to the Arthritis Society.
Please return in the enclosed self – addressed envelope.
All donations are tax deductible.
THANKS ONCE AGAIN FOR YOUR SUPPORT!!
Please pass this information on to anyone who you think may be interested in supporting The Arthritis Society. Your help is greatly appreciated!
______ I will take a “Change for Change – Give Your 5¢ Worth For Arthritis Research”
jar and collect loose change to contribute to the Arthritis Society. Please
indicate the number of jars you would like: ___________
______ I will buy a package of 12 Christmas cards for $5. Please indicate how many
packages of 12 Christmas cards you would like: __________
______ I have items I would like to donate to a Giant Arthritis Society Garage Sale in
May 2007.
______ I will donate recyclable items for you to pick up and take to Sarcan with the
deposit going to the Arthritis Society.
______ I would be interested in attending a Steak Night in Regina with proceeds going
to the Arthritis Society.
Please return in the enclosed self – addressed envelope.
All donations are tax deductible.
THANKS ONCE AGAIN FOR YOUR SUPPORT!!
Please pass this information on to anyone who you think may be interested in supporting The Arthritis Society. Your help is greatly appreciated!
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If you wish to help provide valuable funding to The Arthritis Society and feel you can help out in any of the above ways please leave a comment on my blog and I will respond to it. The Arthritis Society is such a worthy and important cause and every donation, regardless of amount or type, is greatly appreciated!!
I have recently received 3 more very generous donations for The Arthritis Society from Carl and Vi Peterson, Therese Buisson, and Paul and Yvonne deMoissac. Thank you so much!!
I now have my name down for several hot dog sales at various locations in Regina and hope to know by mid March which dates and locations I have been allocated. I will certainly post them here once I know!! Bye for now........................
