Sunday, August 17, 2014
Welcome Back Blogathon for Prestun 2014!
It's been a while! Let me explain what's going on. About a year ago, I began following the progress of Prestun Seibel. Like myself, Prestun was diagnosed with neuroblastoma and has been battling it for the last two years. I've read every post on his FB page Prestun Seibel Journey Kickin Neuroblastoma Butt.
The last two weeks things have been dire for Prestun. His parents set up a gofundme to cover his medical costs as well as travel to NYC. I shared the plea and added my own story hoping my friends would give. Some shared, but it wasn't enough. Then I came up with an idea: bring back the blogathon. Do something to hopefully raise awareness and more importantly get Prestun's family the funds they need. And so I posted an event on FB saying that I would bring back the blogathon to help raise awareness and funds.
What happened next was unexpected. Three other bloggers said they would join me. Others spread word of the event. And now on August 22nd at 9 am, I will be holding a blogathon to hopefully raise money for Prestun's gofundme.
How does a blogathon work?
The first Blogathon was held in 2001 to raise money for charity. The event was so hugely successful that every year bloggers joined until it became a global event. (For more on the history of blogathon, go here. )
The rules are simple. On the appointed day, each blogger posts every 30 minutes from 24 hours. Bloggers can have themes (interactive games, artwork, tributes, trivia), but others just post whatever is rattling around in their noggins. What they post doesn't really matter as long as they post every 30 minutes for 24 hours. Leading up to the event, bloggers get "sponsors" to pledge to give money to their preferred charity. I often raised money for neuroblastoma research for previous blogathons.
Basically, this is just like sponsoring someone on a cancer run or a walk for heart event except instead of doing anything physical, we just have to keep on blogging. And stay awake.
How do sponsorships work?
They are on the honor system. The money pledged goes DIRECTLY to Prestun's gofundme. You pick a blogger, pledge an amount of money that you can either post in the comments or email me at misslapin@gmail.com. I'll be making a spreadsheet so bloggers can see how much they have raised so far. The pledge is basically a promise to donate if the blogger completes the thon.Once the thon is over (or even during), head on other to the gofundme page and place your donation. No donation is too small. Even a dollar helps.
What if I can't donate?
I'm sure quite a few people want to donate, but just don't even have a spare dollar lying around. No worries. Spread the word. Invite people to the event, post this link, write an update about Prestun's battle. The more people who know about the event and what Prestun needs, the more likely we are to find donors.
You can also help by leaving comments on the participating blogs. Particularly those late night hours (say around 4 am) it's rough and having someone leave a note of encouragement means a lot. I'll be playing moderator so I'll try to come up with activities and challenges to keep the bloggers going, but your support is key. (This is also my first time moderating a blogathon so...be gentle.)
What if I want to blog for blogathon?
If you want to participate, send me an email at misslapin@gmail. This site will be updated with a sidebar featuring ALL participating blogs and a spreadsheet of donations. If you don't have a blog already, you can easily get one for free through wordpress or blogger. No prior experience necessary.
What to expect this week:
The last two weeks things have been dire for Prestun. His parents set up a gofundme to cover his medical costs as well as travel to NYC. I shared the plea and added my own story hoping my friends would give. Some shared, but it wasn't enough. Then I came up with an idea: bring back the blogathon. Do something to hopefully raise awareness and more importantly get Prestun's family the funds they need. And so I posted an event on FB saying that I would bring back the blogathon to help raise awareness and funds.
What happened next was unexpected. Three other bloggers said they would join me. Others spread word of the event. And now on August 22nd at 9 am, I will be holding a blogathon to hopefully raise money for Prestun's gofundme.
How does a blogathon work?
The first Blogathon was held in 2001 to raise money for charity. The event was so hugely successful that every year bloggers joined until it became a global event. (For more on the history of blogathon, go here. )
The rules are simple. On the appointed day, each blogger posts every 30 minutes from 24 hours. Bloggers can have themes (interactive games, artwork, tributes, trivia), but others just post whatever is rattling around in their noggins. What they post doesn't really matter as long as they post every 30 minutes for 24 hours. Leading up to the event, bloggers get "sponsors" to pledge to give money to their preferred charity. I often raised money for neuroblastoma research for previous blogathons.
Basically, this is just like sponsoring someone on a cancer run or a walk for heart event except instead of doing anything physical, we just have to keep on blogging. And stay awake.
How do sponsorships work?
They are on the honor system. The money pledged goes DIRECTLY to Prestun's gofundme. You pick a blogger, pledge an amount of money that you can either post in the comments or email me at misslapin@gmail.com. I'll be making a spreadsheet so bloggers can see how much they have raised so far. The pledge is basically a promise to donate if the blogger completes the thon.Once the thon is over (or even during), head on other to the gofundme page and place your donation. No donation is too small. Even a dollar helps.
What if I can't donate?
I'm sure quite a few people want to donate, but just don't even have a spare dollar lying around. No worries. Spread the word. Invite people to the event, post this link, write an update about Prestun's battle. The more people who know about the event and what Prestun needs, the more likely we are to find donors.
You can also help by leaving comments on the participating blogs. Particularly those late night hours (say around 4 am) it's rough and having someone leave a note of encouragement means a lot. I'll be playing moderator so I'll try to come up with activities and challenges to keep the bloggers going, but your support is key. (This is also my first time moderating a blogathon so...be gentle.)
What if I want to blog for blogathon?
If you want to participate, send me an email at misslapin@gmail. This site will be updated with a sidebar featuring ALL participating blogs and a spreadsheet of donations. If you don't have a blog already, you can easily get one for free through wordpress or blogger. No prior experience necessary.
What to expect this week:
- Sidebar with participating blogs posted here as well as Prestun's gofundme page
- Spreadsheet of "pledges" for various bloggers
- Friday morning 9 am we kick this thing off!
