SUCCESS!!!

Thank you, thank you, thank you to everyone who made it possible for us to donate $875 to the American Heart Association! That is phenomenal for our first year!

Thanks, again, to Key Sports, Erin and Blake Photography, DJ Double R, and the Kanoe Cafe for the timing, food, music, and memories, and to Katie Strayer, David Tantlinger, Beth Wendt, Cody Smith, and Karin VanZant for their online donations!

Though this was displayed on race day, I want to yet again feature all of our amazing sponsors, and of course ... all 93 people who registered for the race!!! You each have a special place in my heart ... and on next year's race track ;)

In case you missed it ... results can be found at:

http://www.keysports.net/team_smitty_5k2011Overall.htm

Thank you all so very very much!

Race Week

Ok folks, pre-registrations are in, and we already have 53 participants!!

We have also received donations from 22 generous individuals and corporations!

Things have come together beautifully ... now all that's needed is more smiling faces and some good old fashioned SUNSHINE!

Hope to see you there!

One more month!

Time is truly like a roll of toilet paper—the closer you get to the end, the faster it goes! Things are coming along BEAUTIFULLY! Since I last posted, the following strides have been made (pun intended):

• DJ Double R has agreed to donate his time to provide music for the event!


• Tipp City's Kanoe Cafe has agreed to provide baked goods!


• Generous donations have been received from Velekia Davis and Thomas Surveying, Inc.


• Jenny Spencer has provided a donation, a set of AVON for the door prize raffle, AND set up an online AVON fundraiser for us! To participate, follow the directions at the bottom of this post.


• We are up to 22 race participants! Remember, you can print and mail this registration form, or register online here.

Remaining Donation Needs:

• Fruit (oranges, apples, and/or bananas work best).


• We can never have enough sponsorship--remember, the more sponsorship we have, the more money goes to American Heart! It benefits your company, too--you have your name featured on communication about the event, and literature or coupons can be distributed in the race-day goodie bags!


• Most importantly--registrations!! The more, the merrier!!

To buy AVON to benefit Team Smitty, go to www.youravon.com/jennyspencer, click on "My Online Events", find "Team Smitty 5k" and click "Shop this Online Event". **Most Important**: enter HEART5k as the promo code at checkout--we receive 30% of sales! Remember, summer is just around the corner, so if you need to stock up on sunscreen and bug repellant, now is the time--and what better way then for charity?

As always, a BIG THANK YOU to all of you who continue to ensure this event's success!

62 Days!

Thought it would be a good time to give everyone a snapshot of where we are:

Sponsorship: A big thank you to our first set of sponsors, listed below. We have raised $315 so far! We still have a long way to go, so if you have a business affiliation that would like to be part of this event, we would love to have you! Also, if you cannot participate or volunteer, please consider being a sponsor as well. I would love to have as much money go to American Heart as possible!

Current Sponsors:

The Barn Pizza, Dr. Douglas Jacobs, Dr. Estella Gallardo, Rick Peters Excavating, Ken Benne, & Candace Morris

Door Prizes: Door prizes at this time include: gift certificates for The Barn pizza, season tickets for Wittenberg basketball, and season tickets for Wittenberg football!

Participants: We have 8 registered participants so far. It may not sound like many, but it's a solid start, especially for outside of the 60 day mark. As a reminder, you can print and mail this registration form or you can register online.

Other Needs: Other than what has already been mentioned, we are also in need of food donations for the refreshment stand. Bagels/Fruit/Bottled Water/Etc.

Thank you to everyone for being sooo supportive so far!!

Volunteer Spotlight II: Erin and Blake Craig Photography

I want to take a minute to spotlight our finish line photographers--Erin and Blake Craig Photography.

Erin and I went to high school together, and she did not skip a beat in volunteering to play this important role. Plus, their pictures are GORGEOUS!

Check them out at http://www.erinandblakecraig.com/ . They're also on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Erin-and-Blake-Craig-Photography/106818639382591 .

Thanks so much, Erin and Blake!!!

Volunteer Spotlight: Girl Scout Troop 30318

Thank you to everyone who has already volunteered to assist with the Team Smitty 5k!




To show our appreciation, we would like to spotlight the efforts of our water girls--Girl Scout Troop 30318! These lovely ladies will be handing you your water cup, as well as setting and cleaning up for all of our hydration needs.

While they eagerly await their first volunteer opportunity, they are busy busy busy with their cookie sale! Please see the locations they will be selling their cookies below. Support those who are supporting us ... and satisfy your tastebuds at the same time!

• March 4th: South Limestone Kroger, 6:30 - 9 p.m.
• March 6th: South Limestone Kroger, 12 - 3 p.m. & East Main Kroger, 3 - 6 p.m.
• March 11th: South Limestone Kroger, 4 - 6:30 p.m.
• March 12th: East Main Kroger, 3 - 6 p.m.
• March 13th: Tuttle Rd. Wal-Mart, 9 a.m. - 12 p.m. & 4 - 6 p.m.
• March 18th: South Limestone Kroger, 4 - 6:30 p.m.
• March 19th: East Main Kroger, 9 a.m. - 12 p.m., Hobby Lobby (Upper Valley Rd.), 9 a.m. - 12 p.m., and Bechtle Ave. Wal-Mart, 2 - 4:30 p.m.
• March 27th: Lowe's (Bechtle Ave.), 10 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
• April 3rd: Lowe's (Bechtle Ave.), 3 - 5:30 p.m.

Looking forward to seeing you there ... let's work together to meet all of our goals!!

Polar Bear Dreams & My Business Card Beam

Hi folks!

Just wanted to quickly share two things with you.

1. We now have business cards! In abundance! Please take a handful and pass them out to anyone and everyone you know! Also, be forewarned that when I see you, you will be given a business card :)
2. I am inspired. My super awesome friend Amy Lauren, who lives in Florence, SC ran a 5k 01/21** called The Polar Bear Run that raised $11,000 with 150 participants. Please join me in aiming for that level of success!!

**Her 5k re-cap is here

http://proudpatriot07.wordpress.com/2011/01/25/run-like-a-polar-bear-race-recap/

Online Registration Available!

Online registration is now available at:

www.active.com/5k-race/springfield-oh/team-smitty-5k-2011





Note: there is a convenience fee for online registration. If you would prefer to print and mail your registration, that form is available at www.keysports.net/Team%20Smitty%205k%202011.pdf

Chicken Suit

My friend Nick has agreed to be a course marshall under one condition: he be allowed to ride his bike in a chicken suit (if you know Nick, this is no surprise). I have explained that often, a person leads the race on a bicycle; however, I do not have a chicken suit available for him.

If you, however, would like to donate a chicken suit to the cause, please let me know. I certainly think that would make our race memorable.

Let's put Nick:

In here:

The Basics

Is getting fit and/or giving to charity part of your New Year's Resolutions? Then do I have the perfect opportunity for you!

April and I are hosting the Team Smitty 5k Run/Walk in honor of the one-year anniversary of our dad's quadruple bypass surgery.

Not only will it be professionally-timed race, but we will have refreshments, a DJ, and a professional photographer that will be taking finish line photos!

You can be apart of this celebratory fundraiser in several different ways:

• IF YOU HAVE ANY BUSINESS AFFILIATIONS: See if they would be willing to sponsor, either financially or with a gift card or gift to be included in the Door Prize Raffle! Just send me your e-mail address & I can send you the Request Form that outlines any and everything they would need to know. All sponsors will be recognized on the Donor Spotlight Board at the event.
  
• IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO BE A RACE-DAY VOLUNTEER: Send me a message and I can fill you in on the several different jobs that will need manned at the event. We can find one perfect for you!
  
• IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO PARTICIPATE IN THE RUN/WALK: Go to www.keysports.net, click on "2011 Events", and scroll down to May 21st. From there, you can print off a registration form that you can mail in with your registration fee to be guaranteed a t-shirt! You can also register at the event.
  
• IF YOU CANNOT ATTEND OR VOLUNTEER: I can send you the link to a web site in which you can donate directly to the American Heart Association as a virtual member of Team Smitty.
  

Of course, we would love for you all to be in attendance so that we can come together to celebrate Dad's recovery and ensure more people have success stories like his! Thank you ahead of time for your time and generosity!