[pct-l] hikefor.com - hiking for a cause

[Mike Cunningham]

I hike to hike. This is for my own personal satisfaction. I do not hike for charity. If I wish to donate to a charity, I do so. I do not badger friends, aquaintances or strangers to donate.
 
hm
 

________________________________
 From: Paul Mitchell <paul at bluebrain.ca>
To: pct-l at backcountry.net 
Sent: Wednesday, January 30, 2013 6:33 AM
Subject: [pct-l] hikefor.com - hiking for a cause
  
Hi all.



In 2010 I quickly built and launched http://www.hikefor.com/ a couple weeks before
kick-off time.  Here's what it was all about:



A)     Hikers sign up and all hike for a single cause.

B)     Sponsors pledge a per-mile donation.

C)     At the end of the season sponsors make their donations based on miles
completed.

D)     100% of funds go directly to the NPO.



In spite of the limited time to get the word out and no media coverage or
partnerships, a bunch of awesome hikers took up the torch and collectively
raised $6k+ for a fantastic cause: Kleiwerks international, an amazing
little NPO that used the money to "train trainers" in Haiti with techniques
for building safe, natural housing.  Really, what these people achieve is
phenomenal; I was so excited to find a charity that I trusted would make
good use of the money!  



In 2011/2012 I didn't have the energy to put another 100+ hours into all the
necessary upgrades for the site to accommodate new causes & new users, but
now I'd like to renew the site for 2013, and with a bit more lead time to
get the word out this year, I think we could raise a lot more than $6k for
some worthy cause(s).



I have a bunch of new features and upgrades in mind, including:



A)     Possibly allowing hikers to pick from multiple causes instead of just
one

B)     Possibly allowing hikers to split their donations between more than
one cause, for example: 20% to the PCTA, 80% to SPCA (or cancer research, or
whatever)

C)     Hikers automatically receive a business card design they can get
printed so they have cards to give out to people they meet along the trail
(I had a bunch of Hike for Haiti cards printed and some sent out in 2010,
but I can't afford to cover all these expenses myself this time)

D)     Improved journaling features

E)      Hike planner

F)      Partnerships hopefully with PCTA, MEC and REI, more peeps on the AT
side, etc. to get the word out

G)     Get hikefor certified as an NPO so donations can be made directly to
hikefor and passed on to charities - trying to track all the donations once
they were finally made in 2010 was almost more work than building the site
in the first place!  It would be nearly impossible once there's more than
one charity being donated to.



So, the reason I'm sharing this with you all is for your feedback, and to
see if anyone would like to help!  Most specifically, here's what I could
use help with:



A)     programming - I can do it, but I would sure love to not have to!  

B)     contacts with potential partners - anybody know someone at MEC or REI
or anywhere else who might want to help?

C)     applying for NPO status in Canada and the USA - I've read it's a
complicated and lengthily process!  I could use help with that most of all.



What I'd like hikefor.com to be is the ideal solution for anybody heading
out on a hike who wants to dedicate their hike to a worthy cause.  2010 was
a good start but barely scratched the surface.  Let me know if you have any
ideas or can help out!  Even just some encouragement would be helpful! 



Thank you!
Paul Mitchell - Potential178

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