Before we get started I know about much of the disdain for the “Purple Nemesis” as many of you put it but if it weren’t for that group I probably never would have started doing tris and if it weren’t for the coach I had I NEVER would have fallen in love with the sport like I have.
So going into my third year of triathlon I want to try to give something back and attempt to make this a slightly less selfish sport. My mother has Autoimmune Hepatitis and I want to try to do things to raise awareness and funds for research for the American Liver Foundation. I am hoping to hear from some of you if you have ever taken something like this on.
I am lucky enough to have recently started an online endurance mag with a friend where I reach a large number of people and where I will be doing a video blog over the next year covering an amateur’s approach to taking on the feared Silverman Triathlon. It’s a great platform to start with.
So, anyone that has ever attempted to raise funds on their own (not through a group like TNT), do you have any advice? Where should I start? (already emailed national and local chapters) Any advice is good advice at this point.
If not-for-profit, are you all set with your non-profit tax status permit with your state and local authorities? Unless they write check directly to the foundation it will be headache for you. This may make a difference to people who would be donating because in this fiscal environment, if you can’t write it off on your taxes, the number of people who will dontate simply to help you race will be rather low.
Active.com has a section of their site that is all about fundraising. It’s called their campains pages. You can set up a page on their site and direct a hyperlink to it in message to your donors. TNT used to use it until this year when they created their own in-house product to do the managing of fundraising.
I admire your drive, it will be challenging given the economy right now, you will need to get creative. I hosted a $50 buy-in Texas Hold-em paker tournament last year and made $1000 in one night. Find a nitch or an angle and shoot for the moon. Good luck.
Thanks for the advice. I’m not looking to raise any money for myself, strictly for the Liver Foundation so it seems it would definitely be best to just have checks made directly to them. I have some friends at Active.com so I’ll have to look into that angle for sure. I’m gonna see what the local ALF chapter has to say as well.