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The 2010 RAB Pledge Drive

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It’s that time again, time to announce our plan to use RAB’s popularity for the betterment of mankind. Last year we managed to raise $1,500 for Joe Torre’s Safe At Home Foundation, and the year before we were able to raise $1,050 for The Jorge Posada Foundation. This year’s charity of choice was founded by one of the newest Yankees, Curtis Granderson.

The Grand Kids Foundation was established in 2008 as an educational-based organization that helps purchase books and school supplies for needy families, and also provides equipment and facilities to baseball programs that help keep inner city kids off the street. You can learn much more about the foundation at it’s official website.

Last year we based the pledge drive on the number of runs scored by the team, and the year before it was the number of strikeouts by the trio of Phil Hughes, Joba Chamberlain, and Ian Kennedy. This year, I’m going to go with the number of times that the charity’s founder reaches base in 2010. The idea is simple, you guys pledge a certain amount of money for every time Curtis Granderson reaches base on a hit, a walk, or a hit by pitch, and at the end of the season we’ll collect it all and send it on in to Grand Kids.

Even in what was considered a down season, Granderson still managed to reach base 231 times last year. So, if you pledged just $0.05 for each time he reached base last year, your donation would have been just $11.55. A $0.10 pledge would’ve had you on the hook for just $23.10. Every little bit helps, and you can see how easy it is to help out without breaking the bank.

We collected the donations at the end of the year via PayPal, personal check or money order the last two times we did this, and we’ll do the same thing this year. If you wish to pledge – and we hope you do – just send an email to me at mike (at) riveraveblues (dot) com, letting me know how much you wish to pledge. Please put something like “Pledge Drive” in the subject line to make the admin work easier.

Thank you in advance, and let’s go Yankees!

Open Thread: A letter from Safe At Home

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That up there came from the thank you letter I received from Joe Torre’s Safe At Home Foundation today. As you probably remember, we donated $1,500 to the foundation as part of our 2009 Pledge Drive a few weeks ago, though I wasn’t expecting any kind of thanks. You can see the full letter here, though it’s tough to read from the pic. Don’t worry, I did transcribe the thing, so you can read it after the jump. It’s not overly personalized or anything, but it’s the thought that counts.

Otherwise, here’s your open thread for the night. No basketball tonight, just the Olympics. You know what to do, so have fun.

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The 2009 RAB Pledge Drive Update

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Way back in April we announced our plans to use the popularity of RAB for the betterment of mankind by starting the The 2009 RAB Pledge Drive. It’s the second year in a row we’ve raised money for a noble cause, this time Joe Torre’s Safe At Home Foundation. Think what you will of his baseball management abilities, there’s plenty of reasons why we should get behind Torre’s foundation, which helps fight domestic violence and gives children from abusive households a safe haven.

The idea of the pledge drive was simple. For every run the Yankees scored this year, you’d pledge some dollar amount, whether it be $0.05, $0.10, whatever. The Yankees obliged by leading the league with 915 runs scored, and most who pledged were kind enough to include their postseason runs scored as well, and some even rounded up their donation beyond that. The generosity of the RAB community never disappoints.

We raised $1,050 for The Jorge Posada Foundation in 2008, and I’m proud to announce that we raised $1,500 for Joe Torre’s Safe At Home Foundation in 2009. I rounded my pledge up just to make it nice round number again, just like last year. A screen cap of the rather bland donation confirmation page can be seen here. I included a note saying that it came “From the readers of RiverAveBlues.com,” however that apparently gets noted nowhere. Their donation setup is pretty weird; instead of making one big $1,500 donation, it was 1,500 donations of $1.00. Whatever.

Thank you again to everyone who pledged, and also to those fellow bloggers who spread the word. We greatly appreciate everyone’s help and support. We’ll surely do it again in 2010.

If you missed out on the pledge drive but want to donate, visit the Safe At Home website.

Open Thread: A night with Joba

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No, not like that you pervs. This is actually for a good cause.

Camp Acorn is a summer/winter social and recreational program for children and young adults with multiple disabilities. They offer a therapeutic and instructional program that develops fine motor, gross motor and transitional skills, all while building confidence and self esteem skills. All activities are adapted to the individual needs of each camper. You can find out more about the program at it’s website.

Next Monday, Camp Acorn is hosting a kickoff dinner to begin the camp’s capital fundraising effort and raise awareness about the camp’s programs and the population it serves. Those who attend will get a chance to meet Joba Chamberlain, as well as other athletes. Here’s the details:

  • Date: November 16, 2009
  • Time: 6:30 – 9:30 PM
  • Location: The Venetian, 546 River Dr., Garfield, NJ 07026
  • Ticket Price: $175/ticket, $1,400/table (table of ten)
  • Attire: Business Casual

Yeah, it’s a little pricey, but it’s for a great cause. If you’re interested, head on over to the website to register for a spot. Seats are limited.

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Here’s your open thread for the evening. We’ve actually got a pretty decent MNF game, as the Steelers are in Denver to take on one-loss Broncos. The Knicks are in action too, and there’s also a new episode of House. Talk about whatever you want, just be cool to each other.

Damon Runyon 5K at Yankee Stadium

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An email dropped into my inbox yesterday, asking to promote the upcoming Damon Runyon 5K at Yankee Stadium, which will help raise money for cancer research. I figured this qualifies as my good deed for the day (kidding, kinda). The event will be held on November 15th, and you can learn all about it at the foundation’s website. If you’re a runner and have the inkling to do something good, here’s a great chance to do so while hanging out in the New Stadium.

Open Thread: 2009 Pledge Drive Update

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Safe at Home LogoBack in early April we announced our plans for The 2009 RAB Pledge Drive, which we’re using to raise money for Joe Torre’s Safe At Home Foundation. The basic idea is that readers pledge a certain amount of money for every run the Yanks score this year, then at the end of the season we would collect all the pledges and donate every cent to Safe At Home. We ran a similar pledge drive last year, raising $1,050 for The Jorge Posada Foundation.

To date, we’ve had 24 kind readers agree to pledge, good for $1.72 per run scored. Even though they didn’t have Alex Rodriguez for the first month of the season, the Yanks have scored 495 runs, the most in baseball. That means we’ve already raised $851.40 for Safe At Home through 88 games. We’re currently on pace to raise over $1,500 over the course of the season.

If you haven’t pledged yet but want to do so, just shoot me an email at mike (at) riveraveblues (dot) com, and make sure you put Pledge Drive or something to that affect in the subject line. Most people are pledging five cents per run, but you’re more than welcome to pledge more or less. Every penny helps. Regardless of your feelings towards Joe Torre, I think we can all agree that domestic violence is something no child should have to endure. This is a chance for you to do something and help some poor unfortunate kid out there. Thanks to everyone who’s already pledged, and thanks in advance to anyone who plans to pledge in the future.

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On a much lighter note, feel free to use this as your open thread since we have no Yankees baseball. Feel free to chat about whatever you like here, just be nice.

Open Thread: Updating the 2009 Pledge Drive

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Safe At HomeBack in early April we announced our plans for The 2009 RAB Pledge Drive, which we’re using to raise money for Joe Torre’s Safe At Home Foundation. The basic idea is that readers pledge a certain amount of money for every run the Yanks score this year, then at the end of the season we would collect all the pledges and donate every cent to Safe At Home. We ran a similar pledge drive last year, raising $1,050 for The Jorge Posada Foundation.

To date, we’ve had twenty kind readers agree to pledge, good for $1.19 per run scored. Even though they’ve only had Alex Rodriguez for just three games this season, the Yanks have scored 172 runs, tied for the fifth most in all of baseball. That means we’ve already raised $204.68 for Safe At Home through just 31 games. We’re currently on pace to raise just about $1,070 over the course of the season.

If you haven’t pledged yet but want to do so, just shoot me an email at mike (at) riveraveblues (dot) com, and make sure you put Pledge Drive or something to that affect in the subject line. Most people are pledging five cents per run, but you’re more than welcome to pledge more or less. Every penny helps. Regardless of your feelings towards Joe Torre, I think we can all agree that domestic violence is something no child should have to endure. This is a chance for you to do something and help some poor unfortunate kid out there. Thanks to everyone who’s already pledged, and thanks in advance to anyone who plans to pledge in the future.

On a much lighter note, feel free to use this as your open thread since we have no Yankees baseball. The Mets-Braves game is on ESPN, and you’ve also got a pair of potential elimination games in the NBA playoffs on TNT. I’ll be kickin’ it with House and 24. Whatever your flavor, feel free to chat about whatever you like here. Just be nice.