Raul – I first met Raul virtually during last year’s blogathon. Since that time we’ve become good friends on and offline and he’s catapulted into Vancouver’s social media realm with enthusiasm and a bright spirit that everyone can appreciate.
Raul’s website: Hummingbird604
Raul’s cause: BC Cancer Foundation
Raul’s Blogathon Motivation: “I struggled a long time to decide what charity I would choose, but I recently learned from my mother that her sister (my Aunt) had been battling cancer for a while now. I have lost both my Grandmother and my Mom’s only other sister (who was like my second mother) to cancer, currently one of my local friends is afflicted with it, and with the news of my aunt’s illness, I have decided to fully dedicate my Blogathon 2008 efforts to the British Columbia Cancer Agency, and to undertake Blogathon in memory of my late Aunt, my Grandmother and to motivate and encourage the people I care for to keep fighting, especially my Aunt.” [Hummingbird604]
Blogathon Post #1 – Read all Blogathon Posts
Overnight, and since my last post, two shifts have started for Blogathon Vancouver 2008. To help keep the bloggers going I have some pledge totals that I have received on the form that I’ll share here…
Duane Storey: $205 (and growing by the minute)
Danny Dang: $15 (and growing by the minute)
Raul Pacheco: $26 (and growing by the minute)
My Pledges so far: $688
And Shane has been keeping track of his own pledges that are at a whopping $1056. In an email to me Shane said there was a $500 pledge that came in just as he was about to fall asleep on his keyboard but this kept him going. Everyone has done such a great job so far and for some, there are only about 12 hours left and for others like myself, Blogathon is still just beginning.
Sunshine Shift (ending at 10pm tonight)
Raul, Shane Gibson, Karen Hamilton, Danny Dang, Mehnaz Thawer, Jenn Lowther/Nadia Nascimento, Barbara Doduk, Chris Richardson, and Duane Storey.
Swing Shift (ending at 5:00am Sunday)
Isabella Mori, Ayeza Garcia, Colleen Vince
When I start my Blogathon (when I get back to Vancouver today) Ill be featuring the participants and their blogs for the first couple of posts, adding notes about their causes. There will be some overlap so hopefully we can get some nice traffic going between all of use.
Please visit the other blogger’s site to check out their content and keep them going – as Shane’s inspirational pledge proves, all we need is a little motivation for our charity to keep us going.
Tip for participants:
Have at least one blog post or a note in your sidebar about your cause and why you are doing this. People would like to know your cause and how they can donate directly if they are not going to pledge (see Karen’s site for an example, although don’t worry about a graphic if you don’t have one). Putting a link to the charity’s website at the bottom of each post also helps.
Other updates:
Duane has put together a big mega feed for lots of blogathoners and I will be starting my Blogathon with mini profiles of each of the participants as of 11:00am PT.
Blogathon Vancouver 2008 will be kicking off in mere hours with the first shift starting their publishing marathon at 10:00pm PT. I’ll be catching what I can here in the Mountain Time Zone and will be picking up my shift tomorrow upon my return.
Raul, Shane Gibson, Karen Hamilton, Ayeza Garcia, Isabella Mori, Danny Dang, Mehnaz Thawer, Jenn Lowther/Nadia Nascimento, Barbara Doduk, Chris Richardson, Colleen Vince and Duane Storey.
The other shifts are 5:00am Saturday – Sunday and 9:00pm Saturday – Sunday.
It’s been a challenge to put this all together but I truly have to hand it to everyone who signed up (and Isabella for starting up a Facebook event) – you guys have already done so much for your causes and I know everyone will do great. Should any readers feel inclined to pledge, please head to my Blogathon page and chose the blogger you are supporting from the drop down menu. If you would like to donate right here and now, visit the blogger’s website for online donation information. Duane and I are both supporting the Union Gospel Mission and you can choose “Miss604 Blogathon” from their online donation drop down menu. Good luck to all.
In an effort to lead a more healthy lifestyle, John and I have teamed up with Fitness World who will be sponsoring our workouts and nutritional plans for the next 12 months.
Although I’ve always enjoyed an outdoor workout, sometimes you need a little more motivation. Nothing compares to running through the dewy trails of Stanley Park with morning birds chirping overhead, however I figure it’s time for more action and dedication on my part so I’m hoping being with the club with help me with that.
Last week we got a tour of the facilities downtown and this week I had my first workout. I’m not trying to lose a ton of weight (I like my curves) but I would just like to not be out of breath when we walk up the stairs to our apartment… things like that. It’s all about being healthy, which makes me happy – and this is the point.
I’ll be checking in sporadically over the next year with “Fitness Friday” updates featuring my progress and by the end I’ll include a photo of me bench-pressing John. Okay… maybe not but I hope to see some results.
Earlier this week I had a poll on my site about the potential smoking ban on Vancouver beaches. Contrary to past articles I have written that have had heated discussions about smokers and non-smokers alike, I was (pleasantly) surprised to see the conversation shift to a matter of litter, as opposed to one about air pollution.
Discarded cigarettes not only litter the sand on beaches, they also cause environmental damage; whatever can be swept up on the beach will also be dragged out to sea with the tide and more than likely gobbled up by a creature after that.
Photo credit:
Keira on Flickr
For 15 years the Vancouver Aquarium has been organizing the Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup. Over the span of a week (September 20-28, 2008) volunteers can gather on local beaches and on the edges of lakes for one massive effort to remove litter and help restore the natural environment.
The program allows and enables participants from all walks of life to be an environmental steward for a day. By choosing a shoreline, participants can register to cleanup and record all the litter found at that shoreline. All data is returned to the Vancouver Aquarium for tallying. All tallied data is forwarded to the International Coastal Cleanup to contribute to worldwide results. In 2006, Canada was the 2nd largest cleanup in the world! [Cleanup – FAQ]
Anyone can sign up on the Shoreline website and initiate or join a cleanup in their area. Looking at the current map, Vancouver, West Vancouver and North Vancouver seem to be pretty well covered already but we have much more shoreline around that could use our help ie. Surrey including an available (not yet initiated) cleanup site at Semiahmoo Bay.
The Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup is, naturally, a nation-wide initiative even though it is formed by the Vancouver Aquarium. You can search by city on their website and follow event information and details on their blog if you would like to get involved this year.
