The summer is prime time for social gatherings of all types: BBQs, picnics, pool parties, family reunions, cottage retreats, golf days, birthday celebrations and anniversaries. While you’ve got everyone together, why not encourage them to make a pledge to your Parkinson SuperWalk fundraising efforts – or join you by participating in SuperWalk too.
If you’re hosting a summer gathering, tell your guests (in advance) to forget about a birthday or anniversary present and to nix the hostess gift and ask them to support your SuperWalk campaign instead. If you’re emailing your invitation, add the link to your SuperWalk page, so they can make their pledge as they RSVP. Be sure to have an envelope for cash and your paper pledge form handy at the gathering too.
You may even want to sell tickets to your event and let everyone know that the proceeds will go to Parkinson SuperWalk. That’s what Sharon Lowe has done the past couple of summers. She turned her usual poolside luncheon for a group of girlfriends into a fundraiser – Poolside Pedicures for Parkinson’s. Last year the event raised $715 and Sharon raised more than $2,000 for Parkinson SuperWalk in total.
“It was all great fun. We had a lot of laughs, as we usually do when we get together,” says Sharon. “And all of my friends know how important the Parkinson’s cause is to me because of my brother. Her younger brother Quentin Lowe, now 45, was diagnosed with young-onset Parkinson’s disease (YOPD) eight years ago. This year Sharon may charge a bit more for her event tickets and gather her friends for a women’s networking event of some kind, since most of her friends are business women.
So consider asking your friends, colleagues and family members to support your SuperWalk campaign, when you’re together having fun in the sun. In addition to supporting a wonderful cause, your fundraising efforts could make you a winner like Mike Zegers of Toronto. Mike won a $500 Roots card for the SuperWalk Early Bird Draw held May 31. While pleased with the prize, Mike’s motivation is his late father.
He writes: “Parkinson SuperWalk is an opportunity for me, my family and friends to remember my father Marinus Zegers, who courageously battled with Parkinson’s disease for more than 15 years. One of my father’s great wishes was that future generations, including his children and grand-children, would live to see a cure and not face the debilitating consequences of the disease as he did. Contributing to Parkinson Canada through SuperWalk is my attempt to help turn that wish into a reality. Parkinson SuperWalk brings awareness to the disease, raises funds to support people living with Parkinson’s and funds initiatives that are working towards better medication/treatment and ultimately, a cure. Participating in Parkinson SuperWalk has allowed me to connect with others who have Parkinson’s or are affected by the disease, share my awareness and experience with others, support the initiatives of Parkinson Canada and to further cherish the memory of my Dad.”
Parkinson SuperWalk offers walkers plenty of chances to become a winner, and an Everyday Hero to people with Parkinson’s across Canada.