Seton NICU Reunion, Best Practices and More!

First things first, congratuations Angels for Gabriel! You have won 4 passes to the Austin Zoo for selling butterflies! You all are doing a great job of selling butterflies, and if you haven't sold one yet, don't let your child go unrepresented at the walk!

 

As we've said before, the Butterfly Garden is a beautiful part of the walk that honors ALL babies... those born healthy, prematurely, with a birth defect, and those who have passed away. All purchased butterflies are displayed along the walk route with the name of the child they represent and afterwards, donors can take the butterfly home.

For more information on the Butterfly Garden, check out:

www.marchforbabies.org/team/austinbutterflygarden

 

Don't forget! Coming up this weekend is the Seton NICU Reunion! It's this Saturday, April 21st, from 1-4 p.m. at Bailey Square Park. Take the family for an afternoon of fun and stop by the March of Dimes table where they will have temporary tattoos, games and prizes for the kids!

 

Also, tent order forms are due by Wednesday, April 25th at the latest! Remember to turn in a form even if you are planning on bringing your own tent. We want to make sure we have a space assigned to you at the walk. Reserve a tent or space by emailing sbhat@marchofdimes.com.

 

And here is a reminder about the State Incentive for a trip to Disney World! Any Texas Chapter family team member who individually raises $1000 or more online by April 30th will be entered to win a family vacation for 4 to Walk Disney World! $1000 sounds like a lot to raise individually, but it is really attainable. Last year, a very small number of people in Texas reached this goal, so your chances of winning are really high! We can do this Family Teams!

 

To help you reach your goals, here are some March for Babies fundraising best practices:

1) Email, email, email! Personalize your team page with your story. Then send it out to everyone you know telling them that every penny counts. Send follow up emails to keep friends and family updated on your progress.

2) Get your community involved! March for Babies is not an individual effort. Share your story with as many people in your community as possible. Then ask them to walk with you or even partner with local businesses!

3) Make a video to tell your story! There are several easy video and slide show making tools out there and it's a great way to share your story.

5) Post on your social media networks like Facebook! You don't have to post 5 times a day, but once or twice a week will remind friends how important the cause is to you

4) Blog about your journey! Put the badge on your blog and make it super easy for someone to.just click and donate.

5) Do a bake sale! One of our team captains caked  "Texas sized" cupcakes, decorated them with light purple frosting, and visited her neighbors. Each cupcake was technically only $1, but everyone gave $5 each, which helped her meet that year's goal.

What are your best practices when it comes to reaching your March for Babies goal?

 

Get ready, Family Teams - there are only 23 days left until March for Babies!

Here's some new for the upcoming week:

Next Saturday, April 21st, is the Seton NICU Reunion from 1-4pm at Bailey Square. Check back for more information on details of the event.

Also, our butterfly incentive has been extended! Every family team that has sold 4 butterflies by next Thursday (4/19) will be entered into a drawing to win a gift certificate to the Austin Zoo for 2 Adults and 2 Children. Butterflies can be purchased in dedication to a child for a minimum donation of $25.00/butterfly and, this year, a butterfly garden donation can count towards your personal page! Start selling butterflies for the garden because they're really a great way to reach your goal and give back to your donors. Here is the link for the Butterfly Garden:
www.marchforbabies.org/team/austinbutterflygarden
There are directions on the page about colors and what information to submit.

Another incentive we have is from the state! Any Texas Chapter family team member who individually raises $1000 or more online by April 30th (11:59pm) will be entered to win a family vacation for 4 to Walt Disney World! More information about the trip will be sent out in the Family Teams email next week.

Have a good week, Family Teams and keep up the great work!

March for Babies: One Month Away!!

There are only 32 days left until March for Babies!!


If you need some tips on fundraising, check out this March of Dimes video on the Online Fundraising Tool:

Also, congratulations to our current Top Ten Family Teams:

1. Celebrate Jett

2. MOMS Club SW/Oaks

3. ZoCo

4. Camille's Crew

5. TEAM CARTER CRUMP

6. Team Bearett

7. JaxonsTeam

8. Jason's League

9. Team Baby Isaiah

10. Team Landon and Gavin McSpadden


You are doing great work guys. I cant wait to see who will be the top teams come walk day!


A few announcements:
Our incentive this week is: every family team that has sold 4 butterflies by next Thursday (4/12) will be entered into a drawing to win a gift certificate to the Austin Zoo for 2 Adults and 2 Children. Butterflies can be purchased in dedication to a child for a minimum donation of $25.00/butterfly and, this year, a butterfly garden donation can count towards your personal page! Selling butterflies is a great way to reach your goal and give back to your donors. Here is the link for the Butterfly Garden:

www.marchforbabies.org/team/austinbutterflygarden

There are directions on the page about colors and what information to submit.

Coming soon we have a very exciting and magical vacation incentive from the state. Be on the lookout for more details on that and check back here next week to learn who is the winner of the Austin Zoo incentive!

March Madness!

March for Babies is 44 days away and Family Teams are doing great this year!

Here are some fun ways to fundraise to help your team reach it's goal:
Butterfly Garden: Sell a butterfly in dedication to a child for $25/butterfly.Butterflies will be displayed at the walk and donors can take them home! Learn more here: www.marchforbabies.org/team/austinbutterflygarden
Blue Jeans for Babies - Co-workers pay a designated amount to wear jeans to work. March of Dimes can provide stickers for this event!
Coin Boxes - Ask local companies or stores to display a picture of your team or your story next to a March of Dimes coin bank.
Profit Dinners - Ask a restaurant to help you host a profit share night. You ask your friends and family to attend and get part of the profits for every person that says they are with March of Dimes.
Matching Gifts - See if your company or a local business will match your funds!
and as always, get the word out through email!

Also, this week's fundraising incentive is a $50 Wal-Mart gift card! All teams who have raised $250 or more by next Thursday will be entered into a drawing for the $50 Wal-Mart gift card.

If you need any supplies for your fundraising, please email sbhat@marchofdimes.com.

Keep up the good work!

Butterfly Garden

This year we are hosting a new area at the Austin March for Babies.

The Butterfly Garden will be an area where butterflies are displayed with the names of babies. There will be four different colors representing healthy babies, premature babies, babies with birth defects and in memory of babies.




The butterflies will be sold for a donation of $25/each and can be purchased at www.marchforbabies.org/austinbutterflygarden.

This is a 100% donation to the March of Dimes and is a way to recognize the babies and children in your life.