Firstly: The MS
Walk takes place, rain or shine! (But pray for good weather!)
In preparation for
the Walk:
Convert cash contributions that you received into a check
or checks (make checks payable to the "National MS Society").
Make sure that you've written the following on the memo line of each check that you will be handing in (both checks that you wrote and those that other
people gave you): "Walker:your name, Team: Hot Flashes, Walk MS Westchester or Rockland2023"
If you're going to be
handing in self-sponsorship money for more than one person in the
family at the walk site, either bring a separate check for
each person who's turning in money, or use a single check and a
Donation Distribution Form to indicate how that money should be
allocated. Click Here to get a Donation Distribution Form.
If you received a Check-In
Envelope in the mail, fill it out, including writing in the amount of
money that you will be placing in it. Note: If you joined
too close to the date of the Walk or didn't get a Check-in Envelope for
some other reason, you will pick one up at the Walk site and fill it in
there.
Please make a separate calculation of the total amount that you
have raised as of the day of the MS Walk, including on-line
donations to sponsor you, checks mailed to the MS
Society prior to that date, checks turned in on the morning of the Walk, and pledges
made to you that have not yet been
collected. Write that total on a separate piece of
paper. Don't hand this in at the Check-In table,
but bring it to the Hot Flashes Team Tent (more on this below).
If you find someone else who would
like to join the team,
ask them to come on the morning of the Walk and register
on-site. When they fill out their registration form, they should
put "Hot Flashes" as the name of the team and "Alan Legatt" as the team
captain. Please try to recruit additional team members.
On the morning of the Walk:
Dress appropriately for the weather. Bring a hat,
sunglasses, and sunblock if needed. Dress in layers if it will be chilly. The 3-mile walk takes
about 1 hour, during which you'll be out in the sun (if it's sunny).
If you have a Hot Flashes team T-shirt from a previous
year, please wear it. I'd like to try and make sure that
there are enough so that anyone who doesn't have a shirt from
a previous year can get one.
Try to get to the Walk site
promptly at the designated check-in time (8:30 AM for Westchester, 9:00 AM for Rockland), as there will probably be a lot
of people (we hope) and
long lines to check in.
Check-in, turn in the money you've raised, and
come to the Hot Flashes Team Tent - look for the bright yellow
shirts with the red
flames on the front.
At
the Hot Flashes Team Tent:
There will be papers with the team roster on a number of
clipboards. Find your name or, if you're not on the
list, write in your name in one of the blank spaces at the end, and put
a check after it to show that you were there.
Enter your total fundraising amount (the amount turned in
on or before the day of the Walk plus as-yet-uncollected pledges) in the
appropriate space next to your name.
If your e-mail address is missing or inaccurate, please
write in your correct e-mail address. Please print clearly!
Take a team T-shirt if you don't have
one from a previous
year. Put it on and wear it during the Walk.
There may be an area where young
people can make signs
with the team's name to carry on the walk. Please go and do
this if you'd like to, and if that area is set up at your Walk site.
There may be other activities for children (face painting, a bouncy
house, etc.) - enjoy them.
Feel free to wander around, get some of the food that is being distributed, visit the restrooms, etc., but
please try to be back at the Hot Flashes Team Tent a half hour before the walk itself starts for a team picture.
The MS
Walk itself:
The starting time of the
walk itself is 10:00 AM for the Rockland and Westchester sites.
A 3-mile walk takes roughly 1 hour (obviously, some
people will walk slower, and some will walk faster).
If you have difficulty walking, feel free to stay at
our Team
Tent. The MS Society has actually suggested that someone stay at each
Team Tent during the Walk, to keep and eye on our stuff and on our team
T-shirts, and I welcome people will will stay with the team tent to the
team.
After the MS Walk:
We'll total up the fundraising amounts that you wrote in at
the team table and announce the total after the walk, so please try to
stop by the Tent and hear it. I think you'll be pleased.
And please remember that one can continue to get sponsors
after the MS Walk (I typically raise about half of my total after the
Walk itself). We will until September 30, 2023 to turn in
the money that will count towards the team totals and towards
the premiums being offered by the MS Society. So don't stop fundraising
after the MS Walk itself. Wear your team T-shirt often (some team
members have gotten contributions when other people saw them
wearing their team T-shirt and asked about it; other people saw
the team T-shirt, asked about it, and ended up joining the team
themselves).
