I'm so excited... this weekend my sister Tessa is coming to town with some of the members of the Achilles Track Club from NYC. I'm going to join them in the POW-MIA Race/Walk for Freedom so I can get a glimpse of the program and prep myself for setting up a Boston club (efforts will start a little more in July when my life is slightly less insane). I want to reach out to local groups of disabled and wounded veterans and such first because I think finding the volunteers will be easy through Boston Cares, Niketown Wednesday night crew, BostonFit, other running groups, and just general craigslist postings and active.com / coolrunning.com ads.
My fundraising efforts for this group are also going pretty well and I'm 30% to my goal because of some serious generous donations! Thanks to all! And any of you readers out there who haven't donated, we appreciate any amount — no contribution is too small. Thanks in advance... the support from my friends and family has been truly touching.
Look for a post how the race goes goes!
Showing posts with label volunteer. Show all posts
Showing posts with label volunteer. Show all posts
Friday, June 27, 2008
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
HOORAH! NYC Full Marathon!
I didn't get into the lottery for the ING NYC Marathon (apparently the odds of getting a bib for that just randomly are pretty bad). But I was accepted with guaranteed entry to represent the Achilles Track Club as a fund-raiser (which is also pretty competitive to be awarded one of these spots). Despite the pressure of having to raise $3,000, I am thrilled to be raising it for this organization particularly. Not only is it a smaller organization where I know the money will be put to good use, but also my younger sister Tessa runs with them every week. Its an organization based out of New York but with chapters across the world that supports disabled athletes (everyone from children, to people with a prosthetic, to visually impaired, to wounded veterans). Not only does Tessa rave about her fulfilling experiences with them, but I also want to use this opportunity to try to coordinate a Boston chapter. Its such a shame that with such a big running community, the closest Achilles chapter is 75 miles away!
In the meantime, I'll continue to pose as the athlete I'm really not (I'm too slow and klutzy to ever consider myself a full athlete!)... and keep on chugging towards the NYC Half-Marathon on July 27, the Sprint Triathlon in Bristol, RI on August 17, and now... FINALLY... the NYC Marathon on November 2.
Help me raise the money towards my big goal by clicking the widget to the right or by visiting http://www.firstgiving.com/melissawehrman and thanks in advance for helping a great cause.
Saturday, June 7, 2008
My First Boston Cares Volunteering Event
So this morning I biked down through Dorchester to The Bridge Home for my very first Boston Cares volunteer event. Now I have to tell you, the Boston Cares program is great and absolutely perfect for a busy girl like me... you can volunteer for single one-time events so there's no weekly commitment that you have a problem keeping. I really recommend if you're looking for volunteer opportunities to sign-up, attend an orientation (its only $20 to register)... they have events of every sort including a lot of great farming and outdoor events in the summer... they also have organizations in NYC, DC, Chicago, and probably more. My next event is Beep Baseball where I'll be helping blind children play a game of baseball!
Today's event was also up my alley — for two hours I had Arts & Crafts time with the children at The Bridge Home. The Bridge Home is an emergency residential program for children up to age 12 who have been removed from abusive or neglectful homes. With the exception of one little boy who wouldn't behave and was removed from the room (it was so sad... ) the kids were lovely. Some were quiet and self-sufficient, others were talkative and social, but they were all very sweet. We made totem-poles out of paper towel cardboard cores and construction paper. One little boy who didn't say much and seemed a little unmotivated and lost, had a spiderman toy with him. So once I made him a spiderman face for his totem-pole, he started warming up and coming out of his shell... he had me make spidermen faces in two different colors, a pair of wings, some fire coming out of the top, the whole works. He eventually started talking a little at the end and as I was leaving even asked, "will I see you soon?" It broke my heart but also made me feel so good — the next and only other session listed is already full with volunteers (there's a max of only 6 for this program) but I will keep a close eye on it to see if anyone backs out because I had such a great time with the children.
Today's event was also up my alley — for two hours I had Arts & Crafts time with the children at The Bridge Home. The Bridge Home is an emergency residential program for children up to age 12 who have been removed from abusive or neglectful homes. With the exception of one little boy who wouldn't behave and was removed from the room (it was so sad... ) the kids were lovely. Some were quiet and self-sufficient, others were talkative and social, but they were all very sweet. We made totem-poles out of paper towel cardboard cores and construction paper. One little boy who didn't say much and seemed a little unmotivated and lost, had a spiderman toy with him. So once I made him a spiderman face for his totem-pole, he started warming up and coming out of his shell... he had me make spidermen faces in two different colors, a pair of wings, some fire coming out of the top, the whole works. He eventually started talking a little at the end and as I was leaving even asked, "will I see you soon?" It broke my heart but also made me feel so good — the next and only other session listed is already full with volunteers (there's a max of only 6 for this program) but I will keep a close eye on it to see if anyone backs out because I had such a great time with the children.
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