Here we go again...

Well, it is that time of year again - the time where you will start to see perhaps annoying amounts of facebook posts and emails from me about my fundraising efforts! However, this year I have decided to take it one step further and fundraise for not one, but two events and also two different charities. I ask for your help to support me with a donation for not one, but two events this year. I invest a considerable amount of my own time, energy, and resources (yes - I donate to myself and pay for the flights to get to these crazy events) because these are causes that I believe in and wholeheartedly support.

 Event #1 - The Bourbon Chase
(Click HERE to donate)
The first event for the year is the Bourbon Chase and it takes place in just a few short weeks on September 28th and 29th. The event is a 200 mile relay run - a journey across the Bluegrass State and our team of 12 runners will work together running three times each to complete the course. I will run three separate times with a total distance of 17.7 miles. My first leg will be on Saturday afternoon and is an even 6 miles, the second leg will take place some time in the middle of the night (around 1am) and should be an easy 5.3 miles, and my third and final leg will be Saturday morning around 10am with a final distance of 6.4 miles.

Okay - so that sounds fun and easy, right? Just under 18 miles split over three runs in less than 24 hours  through Kentucky's historic bourbon distilleries, across majestic horse country, and through enchanting small towns. We are also running to support the National Hospice Foundation - an organization with a mission to support quality and research initiatives, hospice care provider education, caregiver services, and with a vision to create a world where everyone facing serious illness, death, and grief will experience the best that humankind can offer.

Event #2 - The Alaska Polar Bear Jump

(Click HERE to donate)

This year will be my 5th year jumping in the frozen ocean in Seward, Alaska on the third Saturday in January all to support a cause that I am truly passionate about. This November will mark the 10 year anniversary of my grandfather's death to the cruel disease that too many of us have been touched by - a disease that we know as cancer. The American Cancer Society has made great progress in the past 100 years to eliminate suffering from cancer and to provide funding for research to make treatment of cancer possible. Thanks to donors like you, in the four years I have participated in this event, I have been able to raise over $10,000 to support this organization and am excited to add to that number again this year. 

Team ACS walking the parade just before the 2012 jump

My teammate Brenda and I just before the jump in 2011

 What can you do?
Support me with a donation! Many of you have been faithful to donate to the Polar Bear Jump for the past 4 years. This year I ask for a little more. I would ask you to continue to give to the American Cancer Society at the same level you have in the past (or more if you would like!) and also make a contribution to the National Hospice Foundation above and beyond your usual gift. My goal this year is to raise a total of $3,000 - with $750 for hospice and $2,250 for ACS. So this year, I ask you to join me and give just 25% more to support another life-changing charity. Here is what I did - when I register for Polar Bear, I always donate $125 to myself to start my fundraising efforts. This year, I did the same - $125 for Polar Bear - but I also made an additional donation of $31.25 (25% more) to the Hospice Foundation. I can't do this without you and I am so thankful for your support!

Here are the links again to donate:

BOURBON CHASE            POLAR BEAR JUMP