Last Minute Opportunity

“Fundraising is very, very time-consuming.”~Arlen Specter  

Dear readers: 

For most of you who have been around long enough, you know that I have been doing my best this season to raise enough funds so that I and the other assistant captain of the team can go to the USA HOCKEY DISABLED FESTIVAL  in Boston this  coming April.

Our original cut date was supposed to be the 31st of January. However with just a week and a half remaining and the lack of donations in the past few months (sadly), the two of us honestly did not see that we would reach our goal in that short amount of time.

We had even trimmed our goal by $1,000 and we’re still under 25% of reaching the full amount. We just did not know the right people to ask for donations and the nation’s economy is still pretty bad.

But all reasons and politics aside, we still want to thank those who read about our campaign through the blogs and thank those who tried to help spread the word. 

We also want to thank Author Jodi Ambrose and those good people up at Cape Cod Cookie Company for offering their personal incentives for this fundraising campaign. It was a fun deal for those to give to a good cause. 

Now we know that the website link will always and forever be available to receive further donations. We haven’t figured out how to “delete” the campaigns.

I will have it in the Blogroll for a little while longer, but I after this post …. I will not be advertising the link. Eventually though, it will be removed from the Blogroll. Unless its found a different purpose later on in the future.

If you still wish to donate or are the kind of person that likes to wait until the last minute, NOW IS THAT TIME!!!

We will be letting the ship sail at MIDNIGHT PST…. tonight!! For those of you who do donate and I receive the e-mail that you had done so before the cut off date, then your donation amount will be considered towards those incentives. 

And for those of you who find it too late and still wish to donate, I think that the idea that we had was to hold the money for the next season in case there are plans to go to the next tournament in 2015. So your donation money will still go towards the Austin Blades sledge hockey team, specifically for me and for my partner in crime in this adventure. We thank you in advance!!! 

No matter what, we will always be thankful to everyone who supports us, whether it be financially or moral support or whatever. We love you all. Thank you most sincerely!! 

 

Our donation page:

http://www.gofundme.com/2t2pvs

 

Puck Off

Ladies and gentlemen:

We have something new for you.

For the low cost of $20, you can pre-order your very own “PUCK OFF!” t-shirt as you see here.

For a limited time, you can pre-order your very own t-shirt. Orders must be collected by the 4th of August.

The goal is to sell twenty t-shirts in that time.

It is low (for now) so that we can monitor how well this campaign goes for the next few weeks.

If we do not reach our goal, then the t-shirts will not be made and any customers who have placed an order will not be charged.

It fits the perfect hockey fan in this world. And its divinely vulgar. Just like hockey can be at times. Vulgar, but not offensive.

So show your support, pre-order your very own t-shirt today before time runs out!!!

http://teespring.com/puckoff

Boston Dreams: Updates #01 Through #03

 

There’s good news, ladies and gentlemen. Sports fans!!

This afternoon, I was in contact with The Cape Cod Cookie Company.

They were willing to share the fundraising site for my dreams to play sledge hockey in Boston in 2014.

The Cape Cod Cookie Company has graciously offered an incentive. Whomever donates the biggest amount, shall receive a dozen assorted cookies for FREE!!!

I have personally ordered cookies from this company in the past and their cookies are absolutely delicious. And they aren’t the packaged-sized cookies. These baked goods are BIG!

The Cape Cod Cookie Company is from Massachusetts. The owner of the business and I have known each other for many years. I am thankful for their added incentive which came as a surprise.

And then earlier this evening, I received word from the ever beautiful and lovely Jodi Ambrose.

In previous blog posts, you have read about my whacky relationship with the author.

Jodi Ambrose also states that whomever donates the biggest amount, shall receive a set of her Sex & Intimacy books for FREE. Jodi’s offer will go to the TOP TWO donations. Not just the the top donation, but the two most donated amounts.

There’s a $5 donation already sitting there. Can you top that????

I thank Jodi for this wonderful and generous incentive.

The third update is to inform you that a Facebook Community page has been set up for this fundraising drive. It will probably have more exclusive news and updates as the fundraising continues.

I am really excited to share these updates with you and hope that you will give what you can to help my teammate and I to get to the tournament in Boston in 2014. Everything is appreciated.

Spread the news!! FREE cookies and FREE books. Join the Facebook page. How can you possibly go wrong? You can’t!!

Stay tuned for further updates. Thank you as always.

http://www.gofundme.com/2t2pvs

Fundraising Fury Part I

Money does not grow on trees. Even though it grows on trees since it comes paper which comes from trees. 

Fundraising is increasingly more and more difficult in current times. And right now, that is what I am having to do for my sledge hockey team. The team has gone through a lot of super highs and super lows. Especially through last season.

Last week, I set up an account on a fundraising website. The funds raised are going towards getting myself some brand new equipment (Sled, sticks, etc.) since most of these things are loaned to me. And I feel that if something should happen to the team that the program is gone, I would not be able to keep up with the sport on my own. And to be honest, with all the things that happened last season- it was a real fear for me that it would happen. After we lost our ice, the only time we ever got back on it was when we hit the road.

The site began off with a surprising BANG. It received four donations within the first 24 hours. But since that time it has not received another donation. And I believe that’s just the way it goes. I was totally shocked of learning that I had what I had in the first place. I didn’t think that I would receive the first donation for a month. And in reality, I received the first in one hour!

Fundraising is all about who you know. And with that, brings me to the meat and potatoes of this blog post.

In 2009, the whole world was introduced to a woman who later would be known as “Octomom”. This woman from southern California was pregnant with octuplets. It was truly a wonder to behold that someone was carrying that many children in her womb. People reached out and she nearly became an overnight sensation.

She now has a total of 14 children. All of them were born through IVF.

Last night, as I was looking at the website in general, I saw a fundraising campaign that had the name of “Octomom” with it. I took a look at it and what did my eyes behold…. a fundraising campaign for her to pay for a new house for her children. Her goal is $150,000.

It stumped me. I was completely floored.

What happened to her? What happened to all of the fortune and fame that she has been receiving in the past three years?? What’s been going on with the children???

At first, I thought that this was a scam. But as I investigated further I would realize that there was a chance that this was for real.

This morning, I received that confirmation as I went and searched for her. At the top of the search results were articles about how she posted on a fundraising site to get money for a new home. It’s REAL!

I became more baffled as I would also find that she filed for bankruptcy because she owes nearly $1 MILLION in debt. And part of that is $30,000 in back rent on the house that she was living in. NOW, that that house has been foreclosed on.

How in the world does a woman who receives overnight celebrity status suddenly owe that much money? And what in the world has she been doing with all that fortune and fame over the past several years?

The last bit of news that I actually paid attention to, she was stripping in clubs. She’s put out a music single. And she got paid to do a semi-nude photo shoot to go along with an interview for a British magazine. Although she did decline a million dollar offer to do a porn film. However, Wicked Productions has worked with her on a solo/masturbatory film, which has yet to be released.

What happened to all of that money? Why aren’t the bills being paid??

And is there anyone in the world that is thinking the same thing that I am at this point… that she rode the celebrity party train until it derailed, rather than doing the right thing for her children?

I will say this: I do not put ANY of this on her children. She had eight children at once, which is a bit of a fascinating medical miracle. They are the first set of octuplets to have survived their infancy in history. And yes, I believed that at the time of their births, she was going to need all the help she could get. She went from six children to 14.

What drives me batty is the fact that she went through IVF treatments in Beverly Hills, California. She’s a single mother of all these children, and the fact that she remains a recipient of food stamps and Social Security disability. Even through all of the things that she received from strangers worldwide, the different deals she was given to make money…. now you are trying to tell me that she is broke and thrown out of her house and begging for money on a fundraising website?

These children didn’t ask for this!

And so the conniption fit ensues.

My opinion is that she became this well-known mother of many children, was in our faces for days and weeks back in 2009, and yes- thankfully, these children survived. But through all of the things that she was given or offered which gave her fortune and fame, she’s broke. Filed bankruptcy. And my opinion is that she totally couldn’t handle it and pissed it all away.

Let me repeat that fundraising is all about who you know. EVERYONE knows “Octomom”. But not everyone knows ME.

And that is the difference that she has received (at last check) $1,787 out of her $150,000 goal in the first 3 days. Meanwhile, I am still steady with the four donations that I have received in six days. And those four people who did donate have been personally given my words of appreciation.

I do not know what kind of mother she is to her 14 children. Neither do I know the full extent of her situation. I do not know what it is like for her behind closed doors. It just appears on the surface that she is back in the news because she’s experiencing rough times because of her own decisions and receiving the consequences. And quite possibly, biting into the vein of charity because of it. So yeah, I am admitting that there is a chance that I am 100% wrong about all of this.

And ending on a personal note: Thank you to my wonderful friend Lisa, who allowed me to get out the initial venting and frustration about all of this very late last night. The conniption fit here in this blog post probably would have been a lot worse if I had not got some of this out. I do apologize for drawing first blood on the F-bomb.

 

 

 

 

 

What The Puck?!?

“He tasks me! He tasks me, and I shall have him! I’ll chase him round the Moons of Nibia, and round the Antares Maelstrom, and round perdition’s flames before I give him up! Prepare to alter course!”~ Ricardo Montalbon in “Star Trek II: Wrath of Khan”

Night two of sled hockey activities ended last night with great success.

Even though we were not on the ice to play, we were there for a very important fundraising event. The beloved “Chuck-A-Puck”. Our team stayed within the concourse of the arena selling pucks for this event. Myself, along with a few other team members were shouting to the crowds to get them to come and buy pucks. A couple of us, ended up losing our voices by the time it was all said and done.

We do not have an official word and its too early to tell, but several people have estimated that we sold enough pucks for the event, that it would pay for at least one hour of ice time.

That works for us!!

It was a new experience to go through. Up and down the entire concourse shouting and yelling, “Chuck-A-Puck, two dollars, six for ten!!”. Non-stop for nearly two hours.

The youngest member of our team, who I think is under the age of six, used all of his charm to get people to come to the tables to buy. Suddenly, we have someone who is irresistable! Go ahead and try to tell him “NO”. It can’t be done. I think I am going to ask his mother if I can borrow him for a few hours and go to the park or the grocery store or something.

The kid is quite the business man!! He worked tons of angles from the element of surprise, to running straight up to people and asking them to buy pucks. I mean, whatever he was doing, it worked.

Doing Chuck-A-Puck for a fundraiser can be fun. But it’s definitely not simple. There’s a lot that goes into it. But having as many people to volunteer as we did, was a great help.

When we were finished selling, we were told that we could stay and watch the third period of the game between the Oklahoma City Barons and the Texas Stars. We were all getting ready and were excited to watch some hockey for FREE. But nooo.. we weren’t done. We were also employed to assist with the thousands of foam pucks that were launched at a target located at center ice. Gathering them all up was quite the task as well. But I personally did not go out onto the ice for the clean up. I stayed in the tunnel to watch. And since I did that, I was given the task to find the numbered puck that went along with the winning puck that made it closest to the target.

Luckily for me I looked up at the Jumbotron and there was a cameraman there to zoom in on the back of the winning puck. We were previously told to focus on the last three numbers of puck that were on pages and pages and pages of a giant list. When I looked up at the screen, I caught the last two numbers.

I was given the winning puck by the cheerleader that I had been chasing down for a photo in the past two nights. And sure enough, those of us who had lists were told to search hard and fast. The faster we found the winning person’s name, the better it was for everyone.

It didn’t take but five minutes, perhaps even a lot less than that. The winner was in my stack of papers. We found out that he had bought only two pucks. And one of them was the winner. Lucky guy. Those involved with the event were shocked that I had found the name so fast.

They called it very successful. One of the most successful Chuck-A-Puck events that they’ve had all season long.

And then after all of that, we were allowed to watch the third period. Tickets were being held captive by our team’s new leaders. She taunted us for about 30 minutes with them before she distributed them out to those who were planning on sticking around.

She gave me one, but then took it back and then gave me another. Her decision to switch tickets would work out in my favor.

I got to sit right up against the glass. And, the one cheerleader that I just couldn’t get a decent photo with, was there doing her thing. There I sat for much of the rest of the game, playing with my camera that seems to be malfunctioning for one reason or another, and not paying close attention to the game.

That would be a mistake.

Being so close to the corner, near the goal. I was attempting to take photos of my feet, just to test out the camera to see if i could figure out what was going on. And because I was not paying attention. I jumped clear to the moon when there was a body check up against the glass. The very same glass that I was sitting in front of!

Needless to say that I put away the camera from that point and watched the rest of the game in silent humility.

After the game, it was time for a quick check on the camera to see if it corrected itself. But no. So, I ran off to find a team member to see if they would take their cell phone and get a photo that way with the one remaining cheerleader that I had attempted at least four or five times in two nights to get something decent.

I ended up leading the team member all the way to the opposite side of the concourse. I started to feel bad about it, but then I was constantly reminded by the quote in the movie Star Trek II: Wrath of Khan … switching it up to fit the situation that I was being tortured because I just couldn’t get it done.

Necessary Evils of Fundraising

“The British Red Cross asked me to help them spearhead a fundraising campaign for the victims of the war in Nicaragua. It was a turning point in my life. It began my commitment to justice and human rights issues.”~ Bianca Jagger

Wildly enough it is that time where I am finding in my personal life to go out in this great big world and ask for donations.

Fundraising always sounds like a thrill but only on the surface. Once a person actually goes out and tries to earn donations for a specific cause or reason, they are either successful or they are not.

So here I am- my schedule becoming busy this month as there are many things that I am about to be involved with my sledge hockey team in order to raise funds so that we can pay for ice time for practices.

This is the beginning of my fourth season. Already in the two sessions we’ve had, I have been ultimately successful ON the ice with five goals scored. But this season is rather different as I have not in seasons past, had to go out and raise funds just so we have ice time for practice.

The team received an e-mail saying that if we get no more money, there will be no more hockey this year. Which really sucks. I mean really really really really sucks! I was looking forward to advancing this season as a player and working ever harder towards my personal goals in the game of sledge hockey. And now it appears that there’s nothing??

I’m not entirely sure how that could be, but it is.

I am happy to report that so far I HAVE been successful. I have brought in $500 in donations. (And with the price tag of $200/hr for ice, that’s another two times on the ice and its only November and hockey is supposed to go on until May.)

My own personal goal is $1,000 so I think I should be happy that even at this early stage I am already half way there to reaching my goal. $1,000 would give us a month straight of ice times. Yes, I am proud of that. And I hope that I will continue to be successful.

But fund raising isn’t really all that simple and easy. You have to be able to accept a lot of people telling you “NO” or giving you answers in which they are saying one thing but are meaning another. And usually that too, is a “NO”. But then some times you find that person that will say “YES”.

Over and over again though, you have to deal with the disappointments before you can land something that is desired. That’s just the way it is.

I have seen from my own personal experiences that a lot of people get frustrated and sick and tired of hearing “NO” all of the time. And from that, they give up and stop trying. But seriously, there’s not a person on this planet that has earned anything by giving up.

That desire to dust yourself off and keep trying has to stay strong when asking for donations. There may be a lot of locked doors, but eventually you’ll find one that isn’t.

As for myself and my team, we are not in a financial position to cover the expenses needed each year on our own. Even though we are under the umbrella of a 501(c)3… we must find our own ways to come up with money to support the team, at the very least cover the expenses of our ice time. And thus the fund raising becomes a very necessary evil.

Whether or not I make it to my personal goal of $1,000.. I do not know. If I do not then I know that I have been able to contribute towards two times more on the ice this season. And that of course is two more times that we didn’t have before.

Personally though, it kind of bothers me that I have become successful this quick so far. There was an announcement that I had brought in all of this money in front of the team. Now hopefully that was used to show the rest of the team that if I can do it, they can do it too!! I have this rotten fear that if the team doesn’t have that desire within, and they give up too quickly that they will just assume that I will do it all. And that is not fair to me. So I’m getting out this frustration about it here in this blog post.

I do not want to become the one person that the team leans upon. At least not in this sense. I am a leader of the team ON the ice, but I don’t want to have “to do it all” OFF the ice as well. That would take a lot of time out of my personal training and strength conditioning to do so.

To be fair, we will have other activities coming in 2012 where the fund raising WILL be a team effort. But for now, its off the ice and going from person to person, business to business to look for funds.

I love play sledge hockey. I love being a part of this team. I do not mind being a team leader. I just don’t want to be the team’s automatic “do-it-all”. Instead I would want to encourage them by my actions of success to have them get out and do it as well.

There definitely is no “I” in “TEAM”.

It’s Time!

“All of the sports have a safety net, but boxing is the only sport that has none. So when the fighter is through, he is through. While he was fighting his management was very excited for him, but now that he is done, that management team is moving on.”~Gerry Cooney

 

Here I sit in absolute soreness! And I’m smiling about it every time I grunt or groan.

 

The time has come to begin the 2011-12 sled hockey season for my team. It was definitely a work out as the team hasn’t really been in shape. But you know what? Nobody on the team is going to complain because we finally were able to get back out on the ice since last May. (And for me even longer, probably February of this year.)

 

I can admit that I am out of shape for this kind of excercise and activity. But once we get going, everything should be just fine. Each of us were just as sore as the other. Although a few of us might be even more so, because they had trouble staying up on the ice.

 

We warmed up, we did some drills, and then we got down to business. Unfortunately while drawing up the team in half and then playing, I found myself to be amongst two players. One of which hasn’t been on the ice for very long. I cannot say anything bad about him because I do not know him at all. Only that he is a very young player.

 

And the other player who should probably be off of ice entirely. Not to say that his skill isn’t great or that he sucks, but his foul attitude and the way he treats the assistants because he is that player’s brother, really does bother the rest of the team.

So anyway, after it all was said and done, I ended up with a hat trick. For those of you who do not know what that hockey term means, a “hat trick” in hockey means that I scored three goals in one game.

 

The day started out to be very difficult though when I had heard the news that our team captain was out for three months, due to a broken ankle. He broke it while participating in wheelchair basketball. So because he went and got wreckless in one sport and ended up with an injury, he’s not going to be participating in THIS sport for several months.

 

The personal relationship that I have between myself and the team captain is at best- strained. But I do try to keep a lid on it when I am on the ice. Still though, hearing that he wasn’t going to be joining us for the first few months, did cause me to grumble.

 

The sled hockey program has been going on since 2005. I have been playing since 2008. And I LOVE IT!!! Even after being named co-assistant captain of the team last season, I’ve still done whatever I could to help the team, both on and off of the ice. And I do need to work on that grumbling even when I am off of the ice.

 

This year though, we have an new addition to the team. I believe I’ve mentioned it before. Someone is coming in and taking care of the “behind the scenes” stuff for the team. Setting up dates and events and what not.

 

After our little icy war yesterday, we gathered outside and met with the family who has come in to help. We would all find out at the same time that we are about to embark on several different activities and events that would be so helpful for the team in the long run. More exposure and more face time with the general public to let them know that yes, we may be disabled, but we’re kicking your butts when you are standing there on the ice with us and we dance around you in semi-circles.

 

And it was confirmed that this team now is going to travel. The thought of it is quite exciting. A lot of the major activities and events however, will happen in the early months of 2012… and that is fine with the team, we’re just so happy that we get the opportunity to do this.

 

The sad part was hearing the news that with all of the fund raising opportunities that we have received, we are going to need a minimum of $3,000 this year. It will pay for the time on the ice for THIS season as well as for a few times from the last season.

 

Yesterday, was our first day. We had six people there. So I suppose that if each person can raise $500 a piece, that would take care of the minimum.

 

So if it comes down to having to use this blog to get the word out, in order to raise sufficient funds, then I will do it!

 

The other thing that was so disappointing was that our other co-assistant captain told me in the locker room that he will not be able to go with us on our first road event, which is in November. Meaning, I will be left to be the leader of the team. And I think that I can do the job, what is the sad part is that he is a very powerful player. So without him and without our team captain, we’re gonna have our butts handed back to us on ice. Leading the team is one thing, carrying them is another. To be honest, I am not looking forward to that. We can lose 100-0, but I’m not looking forward to doing all of the work on the ice. 5 against 1 is never fair.

 

So stay with me. The excitement comes and goes. Particularly after each Sunday when I have hockey. The soreness is always to come that night and into each Monday afterwards.

 

The events will begin in November. Then we’ll do more stuff in January and March.  I’ll never forget that feeling of playing on the ice in front of a sold out crowd of over 6,000 people for just a few minutes at an AHL hockey game. Probably the best night of my hockey career. And we’ll get to do that same thing again.

 

If you are willing to help. Leave a comment. Even if its fundraising ideas. All feedback is much appreciated.