Message From the Captain #12

Ahoy My Mentoring Mateys! Ahoy! Yes, it is your captain once again, Mentor Captain Art that is. Sorry I didn’t reach out to you last night. I was sipping a bit of grog at a Super Bowl Party. And how about that Super Bowl? I bet the part of Team Virginia dropping anchor in our first port o’call, New Orleans, will be in for a big party that will probably still be going on in three weeks. Wow, less than three weeks until the Mardi Gras Marathon? How amazing is that?

Well, Groundhog Day was this past week, and come Friday, I felt I was in some kind of weird Groundhog Weekend redux. It was snowing once again, training was cancelled once again, and by Saturday it looked like a winter wonderland once again. I half expected to see Bill Murray walking down our street, and to hear Sonny and Cher singing “I Got You, Babe” on the radio!

We’ll keep it short and sweet this week. First of all, I heard from several of you last week about how your mentees are doing, but not others. If you are in the latter group (you know who you are) then I’d appreciate that update from you.

Here are some reminders and ideas for this week.

* Remind everyone about the Silent Mile on the 20th. And remind them that it will be at a totally different venue for the run/walk team, so that they don’t end up going back to Byrd Park that weekend.
* This coming weekend being Valentines Day, maybe participants can come up with some kind of Valentine message to encourage people to donate. One of Team Virginia’s most loved people, Emma, was desperately ill from leukemia when she was 10 weeks old, and went into remission on Valentine’s Day nine of years ago. That could be a good message.
* Pancakes? Did someone say pancakes? Well, participants who still need to raise some funds should hop on down to IHOP on the 23rd and do a shift if they can manage it. Cate has sent out details. Raising several hundred dollars from this could make the drive worthwhile.
* The Super Bowl is history, but March Madness will be heating up soon. With all the rivalries, it might be worth a try for people to offer to wear the cap of a hated rival for an appropriate donation. Just imagine a Tarheel Fan wearing a Duke cap, for example?
* It goes without saying that anyone who has not gotten letters out most definitely should. Offer to help by reviewing their letter.
* Are participants copying you on their fundraising emails? It is a good idea that they do, because you can see if you think they need help, and you can remind them if an email seems overdue.

Well, that is about it from the Captain’s Chair this week. I hope I will actually see you (run team) this Saturday. I have a special person to give the mission moment if the weather finally cooperates.
GO TEAM!
Cap’n Art