Here's a cool pic I just found on Flickr - I like these kinds of pictures. I'd like to encourage all Flickr users to upload their photos to www.SharingHope.tv - the American Cancer Society's newest video, audio, and photo sharing community. You can also share photos in the Photo Gallery right here on RelayForLife.org.

http://flickr.com/photos/rfinn/119187085/

So you're doing some video for your event this year? And you might even upload it to SharingHope.TV? Well before you do that why don't you add some music?

There seems to be plenty of emails coming in from people who are having trouble logging in.  Please make sure that you are using the correct login information on the correct website.  RelayForLife.org is a different website than your local event's fundraising site.  For a detailed explanation, click here.

Here's a creative way to use SharingHope.tv - you can create your own video blog and post it to SharingHope.tv. Then, you can embed it (from SharingHope.tv) into your own blog.

If you have a blog account with sites like blogger or typepad, you can set yours up just like karenskidsrelayforlife.org. All you need is a webcam and a blog account. You can even use your RelayForLife.org account on this site.

Video blogging allows you to create your own blog...without typing. The people who visit your blog don't have to read...they can just click play and watch you talk and talk and talk.

We just uploaded a new document that will help teams come up with ideas for their pre-event fund-raisers.  The ABC's of Fundraising document is in the Fundraising Development folder of the Relay Library...or, you can find it in the Team Captain Toolkit.

If you do all of your fundraising prior to Relay For Life, you can eliminate the hassle of collecting pledges after the event.  Each team member is encouraged to set a minimum goal of raising $100 plus registration fee.  There are a ton of great fundraising ideas in the Team Captain Toolkit for both the team and the individual to help you meet your goals.  Be creative, have fun, and ask everyone you know or meet to help support your effort.

When planning your event, don't forget that there will probably be some children that attend as cancer survivors. Make sure that you don't overlook these incredibly special people. Imagine what it must have taken for these children to have to face a disease that so many adults have a difficult time with.

These children are heroes who have been forced to fight a battle so early in their lives. They deserve just as much recognition and consideration as every other cancer survivor at your event.

Some ways you can honor these special children at your event are:

1. Make sure you order enough child sized survivor shirts.
2. Have purple Relay balloons to give to the children.
3. Let the children lead the Survivors' Lap.
4. Make sure that some teams have child-friendly activities at their tents.
5. Let the child-survivors play for free.
6. Have a special cake/cupcakes/treat in the Survivors' tent for the children.

If you received a private message from Gladyss Mumah....delete it. This is a hoax...or a scam. The user has been blocked from RelayForLife.org...and you should NOT contact this person. Please delete any message you may have received from Gladyss Mumah.

Over the next couple of months, RelayForLife.org will undergo a site upgrade that will allow us to install features to help prevent this type of activity from happening. Until then, we thank you for your patience and understanding. Our site moderators and I continuously monitor the site for any spam or tasteless content and always take immediate action when these types of things are posted.

Please report any questionable content to me.

It's an issue that many committees face every year. At what point do you start talking less about fundraising and more about the actual event? Unfortunately, I don't have the answer.

But, from my own experience, you should never stop talking about fundraising. Your Team Captain Meeting Agendas should always include a Fundraising discussion. Teams should be encouraged to share what they are doing pre-event....as well as on event night. And when you get about 2-3 months before your event, you can talk about what's going to happen that night.

Team Captains need to know what exciting things will be going on at your event so they can share with the teams. Plus, if there are some activities that require pre-registration or pre-event preparation, teams need ample time to prepare.

The caution here is to make sure that event night activities don't monopolize your entire meeting agenda. Never forget that Relay For Life is a fund-raising event. It's the American Cancer Society's signature event that helps to fund life-saving cancer research. Don't feel bad if you keep talking about raising money...that is why most teams get involved in the first place!

Attention all geeks!  If you're interested in a cool blog about the future of non-profits and how they will revolutionize the online world, check out the American Cancer Society's Futuring and Innovation blog.

For the first time in my experience, it's a techie blog w/ witty commentary! 

Several weeks ago, you may have noticed a video on our home page that explained a new American Cancer Society website, SharingHope.tv. This week, the American Cancer Society is officially launching this new Web community that will help connect cancer survivors, their friends and family members through the sharing of user-generated videos, photos, music and artwork. SharingHope.tv allows users to create an account and upload video, audio, photos and artwork in order to tell their stories of cancer in ways that work best for them. Visitors to the site can view the content, share what they like with others, or find hope and inspiration for their own fight against cancer.

Click here for video.

Cancer survivors and their loved ones are already avid users of online community Web sites, and with SharingHope.tv, the American Cancer Society hopes to engage new and existing users of online media. “Many people share their stories of cancer on Web sites like You Tube, Flickr, and personal blogs. Now they have a chance to come together in a single online community, with an organization and an audience that really cares about cancer,” said David Neff, American Cancer Society High Plains Division director of web and interactive strategy.