Fundraising Tip - Start Your Own Team

If you’re a seasoned Mandarin MS Walk participant, or even a new one, why not try starting your own team? It’s easy to get started. Just gather four or more friends, family members or co-workers and start fundraising. Working with a team means you’ll have more support and encouragement. Click here to register your team today!

Here are a few tips for a creating a successful team:

• Build a network. Ask your friends, family, neighbours and co-workers to join the team.

• Come up with a team name. Wear team hats or shirts with the team name on them for your fundraising events.

• Keep your team informed. Pass on newsletters and emails to keep your members motivated and inspire them to recruit others.

• Create a fun atmosphere for your team before and after the event! Encourage everyone to come up with fundraising ideas and work together to make them a reality.

• Hold fundraisers as a team. It’s a lot easier to organize a fundraising event or activity when you have help! Cooperate with your fellow team members to think up fundraisers you can all contribute to.

Not yet registered? Click here to register for your local Mandarin MS Walk.

Let us know on the Facebook page or twitter page if you try this tip!

Sponsor Profile – Impact Canopies!

We would like to take a minute to acknowledge a Mandarin MS Walk sponsor, Impact Canopies Canada, for helping to ensure that the Mandarin MS Walk is a success this spring! Since 1999, Impact Canopies Canada has manufactured and distributed all qualities and styles of Instant Canopies and Instant Canopy Accessories. In 2006, Impact Images Inc., based in Corona, CA, was formed to manufacture and distribute Instant Canopies and Instant Canopy Accessories in the USA and other global markets.

Now, the company makes up the only true North American Instant Canopy Brand. With Canadian Offices in Vancouver, Toronto, Montreal, Calgary and Halifax, Impact Instant Canopies are available throughout North America.

Check out their website or Facebook page for more information

Registration for MS Summer Camp is now open!

Registration for this year’s MS Summer Camp is now open! This program offers children and youth living with MS a chance to take part in a camp that not only boasts fun and adventure, but also provide respite from the stresses associated with MS while allowing youth to share similar experiences and just be kids! This year’s Camp is being held from August 17-24. Campers will be treated to a unique camp experience in the beautiful Rocky Mountains at Easter Seals Camp Horizon near Calgary, Alberta. Thanks to the support of our generous sponsors, the Slaight Family Foundation and Fondation Bergeron-Jetté, the Camp is FREE! For more information, please visit the MS Society website.

Meet MS Walk participant John Cuddie!

Here at Mandarin MS Walk, we’re frequently amazed and inspired by the courage and perseverance of Canadians whose lives have been affected by MS. John Cuddie is one such Canadian. A Mandarin MS Walk participant living with multiple sclerosis, John hasn’t let MS stop him from staying active and doing the things he enjoys– including making an annual 1km swim across Lake Kushlong! Watch this video and hear John’s inspirational story!

Raise $125 & receive a $5 Tim Card!

When you reach the $125 fundraising level online between the dates of March 19 and March 24, 2013,* not only will you walk in style with an official Mandarin MS Walk t-shirt, but you’ll receive a $5 Tim Hortons gift card! Login to your account or register today to share links to your personal fundraising page or pledge yourself to get started.

*Reach the $125 fundraising level online between 12:00am on March 19 and 11:59pm on March 24, 2013 to be eligible for this incentive. Limit of one $5 Tim Hortons gift card per registered Mandarin MS Walk participant. Gift cards will be sent by mail.

Fundraising Tip – Engage local businesses!

Is there a café, bakery, grocer or other local business that you visit frequently? Why not ask them to get involved in your fundraising? Here are a few ways local businesses can help you raise money!

•    Request prize donations. Having a trivia night, sports tournament or photo contest to raise money? Ask a local business to donate a product or service you can use as a prize in exchange for handing out their business cards or mentioning their name at your event. This helps raise their profile in the community while giving your contest a bit of extra flare!

•    Hold a silent auction. If you can get enough in-kind donations from local businesses, consider holding a silent auction. Set up a table at your workplace, school, place of worship or community centre where people can write down bids for the various products and services donated by local businesses – all the proceeds with go to your Mandarin MS Walk fundraising.

•    Set up a donation box. Ask if you can set up a donation box on the front counter at a local business. This is an easy way to reach a wide audience and collect a lot of extra money. Make sure it includes a sign that states the money is going towards Mandarin MS Walk and a short description of what the event is about. Ask the store owner or cashier to mention it to customers.

•    Approach businesses that carry the type of supplies you need for events. Holding a bake sale? Perhaps the local bakery would be interested in donating something. Throwing a karaoke party? The karaoke machine rental business might give you a discount if you tell them it’s for a charity fundraiser! Let the business owners know that you’ll acknowledge their generosity at your event.

•    Ask for pledges. If you’re a regular customer at a local store or business, don’t be afraid to ask the store owner or employees for donations!

Do you have any tips or success stories about fundraising with the help of local businesses? Share them on our Facebook and Twitter pages!

Happy International Women’s Day!

Today is International Women’s Day and it seems like a great time to thank the many women who have played a crucial role in the Mandarin MS Walk and all of the MS Society of Canada’s work.

Multiple sclerosis affects three times as many women as men, but Canadian women have risen to the challenge. Every year, countless Canadian women volunteer and fundraise for the Mandarin MS Walk or MS Bike. The money they have raised has made it possible for the MS Society of Canada to fund research initiatives and support programs that have transformed the lives of Canadians living with MS.

Whether as volunteers or fundraisers, Canadian women have demonstrated their determination and commitment to ending MS. On behalf of everybody at Mandarin MS Walk we’d like to express our gratitude and wish everyone a happy International Women’s Day!

The rewards of fundraising

By raising money for the Mandarin MS Walk you not only help people affected by multiple sclerosis, but also become eligible for a wide range of rewards. Every Mandarin MS Walk participant who raises $125 or more will receive an official t-shirt. A variety of other rewards, including gift cards, jackets and a chance to join the MS Walk of Champions, are available at higher fundraising levels. Participants also have the option to donate their rewards back to the MS Society of Canada and become Mission First club members. For details on all the reward levels and the Mission First club head to the MS Walk website. Good luck with your fundraising!

Fundraising tip: Hold a trivia night with your friends!

Holding a trivia night is a great way to turn donating into a social occasion! Follow our simple steps and you can have fun with your friends and raise money for the Mandarin MS Walk!

1.    Decide what kind of trivia night you want to have. Do you want to use a classic game, like Trivial Pursuit or Scene It, or do you want to make your own questions that appeal to you and your friends’ interests? You could make your trivia night about anything, from celebrity gossip to superheroes to local history!

2.    Let your friends know about the event. Create an event page on Facebook, Tweet about your event and send out invitations. Let them know that they can attend in exchange for a donation to your Mandarin MS Walk fundraising.

3.    Prepare your game. If you’re writing your own questions, print them out on cards and create scoring sheets. Ask around at local businesses to see if they’d be willing to donate a prize.

4.    Have fun! Enjoy your role as trivia master and take the opportunity to tell your guests a bit about the Mandarin MS Walk and why you walk before the game begins.

Check out our Facebook and Twitter pages for more fundraising tips. If you have any ideas for trivia night themes or fundraising strategies, let us know!

Seeking answers: Why Sandra Corbett walks

Sandra Corbett was not aware of multiple sclerosis until her two sisters were diagnosed. Now, every year, she meets someone who is affected by the disease. “I have three children, and I don’t want them to worry about having MS,” she says. “My goal is to get the word out that MS exists, that people in our area have it, and that they need our help.”

Sandra laces up for her sisters, who were diagnosed within three years of each other. “There was a lot of fear when my sisters were diagnosed,” says Sandra. “We asked a lot of questions – is it where we live? Where we grew up? What we eat?” She hopes that the money raised from the MS Walk will help provide answers to her questions.

Sandra’s team, The Merry Striders, has participated in the Woodstock MS Walk since 2004. With only eight team members their first year, they raised $1500 dollars through friends and family. “We started out as a small group, but we’ve grown quite a bit since then,” Sandra says. Now in their ninth year, the team has since grown to include 37 members, raising $135,000 to date for people living with MS. “We do this to help people, and we also have fun while doing it. Every member of our team understands why we’re there. We all come away with the feeling that we have accomplished something,” Sandra says. “My sisters use many of the services that the MS Society has to offer, and I’d like to make that available to everyone who has MS.”