Fernside Fundraising For The Flying Pig Half Marathon

Ladies and gentlemen, it's that time. I gave you a heads up a while back that this day would come and it's finally here.

It's time to raise funds, baby!

As I've mentioned previously, I've joined the the Fernside team for the Cincinnati Flying Pig (Half) Marathon on May 1. If I'm going to run 13.1 miles, I'm doing it for a reason, darn it!

So, as uncomfortable as this makes everyone, please bear with me.

Here's the info from the organization's About Us page:

Fernside, established in 1986, as the nation's second oldest children's grief center, remains today a national leader in providing grief support services and outreach and education to the community.An affiliate of Hospice of Cincinnati, Fernside services compliment Hospice of Cincinnati's comprehensive bereavement program by addressing the unique needs of children.

Fernside provides the following services free of charge with the help of generous donors who support our mission:

• Peer support groups serving over 900 children, teens and adults annually
• Camp Erin - Cincinnati program, providing summer camp and retreat experiences
• Community Outreach, including in-school grief groups, education and training and publications

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I'll be honest with you: I haven't had the pleasure of working with Fernside, but one of my dearest friends, Sarah, has volunteered there for a while now and she can't speak highly enough of it.

Having recently lost someone very close to me to cancer, I know what it feels like as an adult with an extensive support system. I can't imagine what the experience would be like for a child or even for a child without that kind of love and support from family. I've seen first-hand what kind of care Hospice of Cincinnati provides and I'm confident that any organization affiliated with Hospice must be doing great work.

You all know how I feel about soliciting funds from others. I don't want anyone to feel pressured or "guilted" in to giving to any cause. But if you're looking for a way to give back, or even a way to show your support to me as I take on this monstrous race, here's your chance.

Now, unfortunately Fernside doesn't have a fancy online donation system set up for JUST the Pig like the Susan G. Komen organization did for the Race for the Cure. But they do have an online donation system (see bullet #4 below). And I can offer you a few other ways to give. If you choose to donate through me, I'll need your name, mailing address, e-mail address, and donation amount. I'll get back to you to arrange a way to get your check to me.

(Fernside asks for a mailing address, but I imagine this will get you a tax document and a thank you note instead of a bombardment of solicitations. Even still, if you ever get a solicitation and want off their list, just contact them and I'm sure they'll oblige.)

Here are your options:

1. E-mail me your details. Name, address, e-mail address, and donation amount. If you know my personal address, go ahead and use that. If not, please use moretoloverunning@gmail.com; I get these messages as quickly as I do my personal ones.
2. Facebook me if we're Facebook friends. Works like e-mail!
3. Call or text me (if you're so lucky to have that information ... wink wink)
   
4. Contact Fernside. If you don't know me personally and/or don't feel comfortable with me having your contact information or your money, you can contact Fernside and ask how to make a donation to the Flying Pig team. You can mention my name or not ... totally up to you. Actually, they have a website dedicated to donations. You should check it out.
   

So, there you go. There's my fundraising solicitation. You'll probably see reminders at the bottom of my posts from now until the Pig.

Thanks so much for your time and for your support! Donation or not, you're all wonderful!