Bob Reflects on Running 50 Marathons

Completing 50 marathons was a goal I set three years ago. I thought this kind of commitment and effort would demonstrate my strong desire to raise money for treatments and a cure for NF. I wanted “to be the change I wish to see in the world.” I have been raising money as a member of the NF Endurance team since 2000. (This was back when we were wearing green running singlets instead of the sporty, sleek, neon yellow ones we have now.) I needed to raise the bar higher to keep my donors attention and interest. I took a cue from Shakespeare, who wrote:

Then marvel not, thou great and complete man,
That all the Greeks begin to worship Ajax;
Since things in motion sooner catch the eye
Than what not stirs

I decided that I would set a goal of running 50 marathons and raising $50,000 to catch the eye of my donors. I do RUNFOR A REASON. Go to: www.504NF.com (smile here) and you will see several of my reasons.

For every marathon, I paced myself, finished strong, and never forgot that it’s not the speed but the purpose of the journey. This really kept me motivated and helped me to avoid a running injury. I also want to say that for every single marathon I picked up the pace at mile 20 or 22 , felt the warmth of God’s smile, experienced an almost overwhelming sense of freedom and joy, and an intense emotion of feeling alive. I thought I was the happiest person in the world! Yet there were some times during the run when the lives of my NF heroes came to mind. I thought of their struggles and pain living with NF, and I literally cried. If someone asked me my finish time, I would have to say, ”Well, it could have been better, but I stopped a few times to shed some tears.”

Having now achieved my goal, I will candidly say that I’m elated, or let’s say relieved and grateful for the gift of running and the gift of my health. I also find myself thinking, “What’s next?” I certainly want to keep running until a cure is found, and after that will want to raise money to make NF treatments affordable. The answer? My running never ends!

Well, marathon 51 was last weekend at the Surf City Marathon so only 49 to go for 100. Woo Hoo!

Bob Skold
Team Development

How the Houston Hot Undies Run Raised $9000

Carissa with Undies Run Poster

This entry was written by Roxanne Thomas.

The inspiration for the Houston Hot Undies Run came from a fellow CTF supporter named Chad Leathers. He helped organize Cupid’s Undie Run in DC back in February. When I saw Cupid’s Undie Run on the NF blog, I thought, “Wow! That looks wildly fun and a little bit crazy!”

How did our Hot Undies Run come to be in Houston, Texas? My daughter and I are an NFE “team”. Carissa is a 5th year graduate student in the MD/Ph.D program at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston. In the fourth largest city in the country, we hoped there would be many people who would agree that an undie run sounded wildly fun and a little bit crazy. I called Carissa and she loved the idea.

Our next step was to find sponsors. Carissa and I are members of Brian O’Neill’s (BON) Running Club in Houston. BON Running Club’s president Dave Lee, and Brian O’Neill’s Irish Pub loved the undie run idea and enthusiastically agreed to host, sponsor, and help us organize the event. We were fortunate to be chosen as one of four charity events they organize each year.

The inaugural Hot Undies Run took place on August 21, 2010. The 2-mile, non-competitive course was run in a 110-degree heat index, but that didn’t stop 500+ participants from coming out to support the Children’s Tumor Foundation. The undies theme was embraced with a wide variety of undies and creative accessories. Many groups competed for a “Best Dressed Group” prize. Two other pubs along the route joined in on the fun with “hydration stations”. At one point, a fire department crew cruised by and noticed the run. They stopped, and all the firemen got out to cheer on our runners!

The runners really enjoyed a great after-party with music, food, drinks, and raffle prizes. One of the most touching moments was meeting two young ladies and one young man in their own NF jersey and CTF t-shirts who came out to walk the event with our runners. All three had an NF touch in their lives.

Creative costumes on the course

Carissa and I had never organized an event before, but we were able to raise over $9000 for the Children’s Tumor Foundation. We were so fortunate that many people jumped in to help us. (Especially Dave Lee, with his experience organizing races.) Organizing an event of any kind does take a lot of time and energy. The pre-event jitters can certainly compare to, or top, pre-race jitters! If you can, share your fundraising idea with someone who is experienced, can work with you, and help you learn. Carissa and I couldn’t have done this without the many people, sponsors, and volunteers who helped us.

We are grateful for all our NF Endurance team members who support and empower each other by sharing ideas and working together towards ending NF, rather than just living with NF. We are very glad that Chad Leathers and his friends shared their idea and truly appreciate the always supportive and fun staff at NF Endurance, who keeps us all running strong.

They say everything is bigger in Texas, and the hearts in Houston were especially big that day!

Roxanne and Carissa Thomas

See more pictures at:

http://mynfenduranceteamphotoblog.shutterfly.com/

9 Secrets of Fundraising on Facebook.

Photo by Vivianna_love (Flickr)

Picture this. You are preparing for your next fundraiser and say to yourself, “I know I can handle the training, but how can I do a better job of fundraising?”  The answer is to work on your storytelling.  Every day we are bombarded with ads, news, emails, tweets, and pokes. There are many things that catch our attention, but few things that KEEP our attention. When we invite people to hear our story, it is important to remember emotional connections lead to donations.

Facebook has taken an increasing amount of our already limited attention spans. This leads many people to think, “Great! I can just repeatedly post about my fundraising efforts on Facebook, and people are sure to donate!”  As with everything in life, it is a bit more complicated than that.

Yes, Facebook can be an effective fundraising tool, but you can’t approach it in the same way you might approach a written letter. Fundraising on Facebook is about telling your story in an engaging way and inviting your donors to be a part of that story. All the Facebook apps in the world can’t replace the power of the story only you can tell.

Here are a few quick tips to help you get started:

Use Facebook to regularly update friends and family on your training and fundraising efforts. Don’t put the same message up on your Wall every time. Let your friends and family know where you are in your training and fundraising. Be excited about what you are doing! People want to see their friends and family accomplish great things. It inspires them to do great things themselves.

Example of an effective update.

Tell your story using photos and video.

Have you fundraised using Facebook? Share any tips, tricks, or ideas that have worked for you in the comment section.