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| 2012 Walk to Answer TTP Together - Walking for Trevor |
Two years ago, on September 24, 2011, Kathy Downs lost her son Trevor to TTP. The day Trevor died was the same day that Answering TTP Foundation
held its first annual Walk to Answer TTP Together. Kathy took this as a sign. Last year, Kathy, with the
help of Trevor’s family, friends and co-workers, decided to register a team to participate in the Walk to Answer TTP Together. She thought it would be the
perfect way to mark the first anniversary of his death, while also helping to
spread life-saving awareness about this blood disorder that took her son much too
soon.
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| Trevor |
This year, Kathy says they have raised their donation goal to
what they brought in last year ($13,000) in the hopes of surpassing that!
In an effort to promote teams walking in the 2013 Walk to Answer TTP Together, I talked to Kathy to find out how her team prepares for the
walk and what they do to make the walk appeal to those in their
community that didn’t know Trevor. Here’s what she had to say:
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| 2012 Walk to Answer TTP Together - Walking for Trevor |
How did you initially
get people interested enough to register as a part of the Walking for Trevor team last year?
We knew we wanted to participate in the walk to mark
Trevor’s passing. We also thought it would be a positive way to get through a
difficult time with those who knew and loved Trevor. So we started asking
everyone we knew - family, friends and coworkers. The response and compassion were overwhelming! We found that lots of people who knew Trevor immediately wanted
to help. A lot of them felt they had a personal need to do something to
commemorate him and this Walk was the perfect way to do that.
Has it been more
difficult getting people interested in registering to walk with your team this
year?
This year, a lot of the same people who came out last year
want to help again. It has become something for them to participate in every year
that will hopefully have a huge impact on TTP patients. Many of our
participants have expressed that they like that they feel they’re helping people
while spreading life-saving awareness, so much so that now they are spreading
the word to their family, friends and coworkers. So hopefully our walk team will
keep growing!
What do you do to
ensure the success in the goals for your walk?
We try to generate as much awareness as we can about what we
are walking for and why before the day of the walk. We use all our social media
accounts to advertise about the walk and to ask people to register to join us
or to donate. We reach out to our
network as well to see what kind of connections they have and if they are
willing to help, we draw on that. This year a friend of ours who has media
connections has offered to help get us some media coverage in an effort to generate
even more awareness. We also email EVERYONE we know, including distant family
members and coworkers. We make sure we include all the
information we would want to know (i.e. where the money is going, why there is
a need to participate, what TTP is, etc) before donating or registering to
participate in an event like the Walk to Answer TTP Together. The more people
understand the more people are willing to help!
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| 2012 Walk to Answer TTP Together - Walking for Trevor |
What does your team
do to prepare for walk day?
We have a meeting! We all get together to discuss a game
plan for walk day. We discuss who is going to do what and split up who is responsible
for recruiting who, so there is no overlap in asking people to participate or
donate.
What makes your walk
day stand out?
A big team in matching shirts walking together helps to
garner a lot of attention! Also, I make lunch for all our participants! I think
it is a little incentive for people and it is a way for me to say thank you for
supporting our family and Trevor.
Do you have any
advice for people who want to participate and start a team?
ASK! You’d be surprised to find out how many people want to
help, especially if they know you have been directly or indirectly affected by
TTP. Make sure you tell people how rare TTP is, and that every little bit of
help they can offer can have a huge impact on bringing awareness to the cause.
Draw on the resources you have! We know we are lucky to have such a broad family
and friends network, but even we were surprised at how many people came out to
support us through registering to walk and donating money. As I mentioned
earlier, we always ensure that our communication to people about the Walk is
detailed yet concise. When people have a better understanding of the need for
awareness, what TTP is and how it affects people, they are more willing to
help!
So there you have it Answering TTP Foundation community - putting a team together and registering to walk is not so daunting.
Register yourself or your team by September 1, 2013. On Saturday, September 21, 2013 help generate life-saving awareness for TTP in
your community! The Walk to Answer TTP Together is a two-hour walk that takes
place wherever you are. The Walk does not specify a distance, as we understand
that some TTP patients can suffer long-term effects and we want to ensure that
anyone can participate in this walk, whether you walk the entire two hours or
need to stop for breaks. Register by September 1, 2013 to join us to raise awareness and funds for this medical emergency!
