Sorry for the off-topic post, but this is where I blog, and I think this warranted a blog post somewhere. Last night I played my first night in this season's edition of Good Cause Volleyball at Our Lady of Fatima High School, and I was taken aback when I remembered how much fun it can be to raise money for kids in tough situations. We play volleyball once a week, and try to drum up sponsors to help cover the gym rental and, more importantly, contribute to two very important childrens' charities: The Tomorrow Fund and A Wish Come True, Inc. The goal, of course, is to have enough sponsors that our own playing fees go directly to the charities, instead of simply covering the gym rental.
Here is the letter Steve and Mary Ann have put together to send to potential sponsors:
Dear Prospective Sponsor,
We invite you to become part of a fundraising effort for two children’s
charities through our Good Cause
Volleyball group. This group’s purpose is to enjoy playing volleyball while
raising money for The Tomorrow Fund
and A Wish Come True, Inc.
The Tomorrow Fund is the only
local non-profit organization that provides daily financial and emotional
support to children with cancer and their families, from the day of diagnosis
throughout the entire course of treatment. A
Wish Come True, Inc. is a local non-profit organization that grants wishes
to medically qualified children, ages 3-18, who have a life-threatening illness
and live in the RI/Southeastern MA area.
Our group consists of mature
men and women who play the sport they love while supporting children’s
charities. We play one night a week at Our
Lady of Fatima High School in Warren, RI. Gym rental fees support the
school’s athletic program.
Our group is using a “co-sponsorship” approach to pay for gym rental ($110
a night) while simultaneously fundraising for charities. We ask you to consider
a $100 sponsorship with $50 going
towards gym rental and the other $50 going to The Tomorrow Fund and A Wish
Come True, Inc. We hope that sponsors will find the $100 request
reasonable--though any amount of
sponsorship will be appreciated. Players will also be fundraising through a
nightly playing fee and a voluntary “Bad
Serves for a Good Cause” program
that donates $1 for each bad serve hit on a night of play. Players write “Bad
Serves” checks directly to the charities. Last season our total contribution to
the charities was $2,500. We hope to
surpass that amount this season.
Since The Tomorrow Fund, A Wish Come True, Inc., and Our Lady of Fatima High School are all
registered non-profit organizations, sponsorships
are completely tax-deductible.
By writing three separate
checks--$50 to Our Lady of
Fatima High School, $25 to The
Tomorrow Fund, and $25 to A Wish
Come True, Inc.--sponsors are assured their support is going directly to
these organizations. The group is committed to play with no costs beyond gym
rental and will contribute any balance of players’ fees to the charities at the
end of the season.
We hope you see this as a “can’t lose” chance to help a group of
volleyball players raise money for two worthy, local children’s charities. Acknowledgement
of your support will come directly from The
Tomorrow Fund and A Wish Come True,
Inc. We look forward to hearing back from you and appreciate your
consideration of this unusual sponsorship opportunity.
Sincerely,
Steve Brosnihan
Mary Ann Escobar
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Now, the $100 is just a suggestion. If you want to give $5, that's cool; if you want to give $500, that's cool, too. Every penny counts.
If you enjoy playing volleyball and are in the RI/MA/CT area, of course you are welcome to join us as well. We typically play on Friday nights at 7:00, but that can shift from week to week depending on Our Lady of Fatima's athletic schedule.
If you'd like to get involved, please let me know by e-mail, or leave your contact info here and I will get in touch with you:
aaron (dot) bertrand (at) gmail.com
Okay, back to your regularly scheduled program...