Fishing with kids with Autism/Aspergers

[Braun]

So last year I got a call from a close friend of mine who works for a non profit organisation that works with kids with developmental disabilities. The organization is called Autism Aspergers Friendship Society (AAFS) and they work primarily with kids from 4 -21 with autism and aspergers. She asked if I would be willing to help come out for a couple of weekends to Our Lady Queen of Peace ranch and help with a bunch of outdoor activities. They do everything from hiking, camping, and alot of water activities with the headline being fishing. I went out and it was probably the funnest day of fishing I have ever had and I didnt even catch a single fish. I was running around untangling rods, changing bait, unhooking fish, and convincing kids that their dont need to run off and show their friends there fish and that the should let him go. If anyone ever gets a chance, take a child with a disability fishing; you definitely leave the water with a great insight on how much fun it is to do what we do.

As a non profit organization, they need to get funding from somewhere. On April 16, AAFS is hosting a Poker Tournament to raise money for their programs, such as the weekend summer programs at the Queen of Peace ranch, and upgrading their clubhouse.

They are looking for 2 things: Poker Players and Pledges. There is a registration fee (casino has to get something out of it) for players; AAFS DOES NOT generate any funding from the registration fees. Where they raise funds is through players finding pledges. I was told that this event is crucial for them this year because they had to cancel other fundraising event earlier this year which means less money in the organization. I will be playing in the tournament and collecting pledges. I was hoping that some of you follow outdoorsmen would be interested in playing or better yet, pledging. The pledges do not have to be send directly to me, they can be sent to the AAFS club house to the exec. director. Every little bit helps and makes a difference be it $5, $10, $20. PLEDGES WILL BE GIVEN A TAX RECEIPT FOR THEIR PLEDGE.

If you want more details, shoot me a PM and I can answer any questions and give any information needed



**** to anyone interested in playing; included in your registration is 1 free alcoholic drink (and/or unlimited pop) and also, each player will be going home with a prize pack of some sort with a value of $25-$40. Prizes have been donated by various companies and individuals around the city, they are accepting donated items for prizes as well and i hear there is almost always a few fishing packages. I heard last year one major prize was a guided trip on the bow.

[Braun]

I will post more about the tourney if there is interest

[Bound2Fish]

I would be interested, please post more info. Thanks

[ironbadger]

Me too!

[Braun]

Thats awesome guys. I'm at work right now but I will post more information tonight. There are only a limited number of spots for players. but the idea is that the more players they have, the more pledges that will be brought forward. Like I said everything helps. If a person could get 100 people to donate $5 thats still 500 that will be useful for a very good cause. If you want to make a pledge pm me your email and i will email you directions and a pledge form(you will be issued a tax receipt. After I post more about the game, if your interested in playing PM me and i will send you the registration info.

[tacklerunner]

Yes please post more details. I assume since you're from the South you are referring to the Ranch in Bragg Creek vs the one in Edmonton.

[chubbdarter]

please post the addy and details of how to address the pledges or donations....i'll be happy to send one in.

Thanks for helping the kids

[Braun]

Attached is the poster that is up for distribution. It runs over the fundraiser details and specs. I have pretty much given all the information that I know of/that has been given to me. It truely is a great cause and the AAFS organization is a one of a kind, first class association.

If you have any further questions feel free to ask and if I do not know the answer, I can retrieve them very easily and quickly. If you are interested in registering to play, the information is on the attached poster but also let me know Just because they want us to keep track of who we bring in to the tourney.

If you want to pledge, email me at 7.braun@gmail.com and I will forward you the pledge sheet that you need to fill out. I was advised not to directly post the pledge sheet just because we are required to keep track of who pledged what so there is no confusion or issues when the tax receipts are issued. You do not have to send me the cash/check; it can be forwarded directly to the AAFS clubhouse but I am supposed to keep track of who pledges what.

As mentioned before, the registration fee for players does not goto the AAFS organization. The true fundraising aspect of this tournament is the pledges. So to those of you who wish to play, keep this in mind in the days leading to the tournament.

I thank anyone and everyone who took the time to read this thread and helped out a great cause. I will definitely be posting pictures of some of the fishing trips this spring

[Braun]

Yes please post more details. I assume since you're from the South you are referring to the Ranch in Bragg Creek vs the one in Edmonton.

Yes it is the Ranch in Bragg Creek. It is a great place for organizations such as this. It provides alot of cool experiences for all kids, disability or not.

[DarkAisling]

Have the pledge form sitting on the table in the kitchen here at the office. My co-workers filled it up with $10 pledges. We're at $50 so far (with my $20). I've just had to print up form #2. :)

[Braun]

Thats an awesome problem to have. I think I have spoken to everyone who has expressed interest in pledging, if I havent emailed you or if you want to pledge, send me an email (7.braun@gmail.com) or send me a pm with your email address and I will forward you the info. Remember I need to know what donations you are including in the letter you are sending to AAFS.

[DarkAisling]

Thats an awesome problem to have. I think I have spoken to everyone who has expressed interest in pledging, if I havent emailed you or if you want to pledge, send me an email (7.braun@gmail.com) or send me a pm with your email address and I will forward you the info. Remember I need to know what donations you are including in the letter you are sending to AAFS.

One more pledge was added to the list today (for a total of five, including me). I'll do a "last call" on Monday morning and get the pledges in the mail Monday afternoon :) I'm quite pleased with our little office right now.

[Braun]

Thats awesome Aisling, Thanks again for makin the effort!!


To all those who I have sent pledge form to, Please mail them April 11 and dont forget to let me know how much is enclosed in your pledge letter so I can update my master sheet.

If anyone else wants to pledge and hasnt gotten a form, PM me


THANKS ALL!!!!

[Braun]

Alright guys, Aisling is really the only person I have heard from. The initial response was pretty good but it died off fairly quick. It is a really great cause. I spoke with the director of the association this past weekend and he said that any money raised from the forum can go directly to their outdoor program. Additionally, he said he would love to have anyone interested to come out and help at the ranch because alot of the kids want to fish but we usually end up not having enough people who know how to handle fish helping out.

It truly is a great cause and it benefits great people. Because the tournament is on the 16th, It would be ideal if anyone who wants to pledge to mail them in by the 11th. every little bit counts even if its $5. if i could get 10 people to donate $5, that is still 50 going to a great cause. and it is win win because you will get issued a tax receipt.

Let me know if you are interested and we can make arrangements.

[tacklerunner]

PM sent

[DarkAisling]

In the mail :)

[Bound2Fish]

Hey Braun, what is the deadline for donations? Are you playing in the tournament as well?

[Braun]

I am playing in the short stack tournament at 7pm on april 16. There is no solid deadline for donations. I am taking all the cash donations I collect from friends and I hand them in on the tournament date. Because I am collecting from some people who do not personally know me, I arranged for them to mail it/ drop it off at AAFS via mail. Ideally it would be preferred that donations sent by mail arrived before the tournament. mailed by the 11/12 would ensure it is there by the tourney. However, as long as I am aware of the pledge I will record it on the sheet I submit and if it arrives late, it shouldn't be an issue

[Braun]

Hey guys this is a huge push to remind anyone who was interested and has just brushed it off because I posted about this 3 weeks in advance of the tournament. The tournament is next saturday. AAFS has received a few pledges from a couple forum members and that is awesome! However, the initial response was great but that seemed to taper of at just that, an initial response.

So if anyone is interested in helping out this cause (amount doesnt matter. 10 people donate 5 bucks thats still 50 that this organization can put to good use and you will still get a tax receipt for it.) let me know and i will give you the mailing information. Because the tournament is next saturday, it would be ideal to have any pledges in the mail early this week. PM me, email me(7.braun@gmail.com), hell if i wasnt so nervous about receiving spam mail from chubbdarter and gustav mahler i would even post my cell number so you could text me if you feel like being that lazy. ha!


Thank you to those who have sent in a pledge. Keep an Eye out this summer as I may be asked to recruit some help for a couple fishing trips.



Also, I forgot to mention that if you want any more information regarding AAFS, they just launched their new website which has more information on it and is more user friendly

http://www.aafscalgary.com/
Cody

[LacLaBicheNS]

In the mail :)


I tried to send you a PM, but your inbox is full... wanna make a little room?

[Braun]

do you mean me or Dark Aisling

[LacLaBicheNS]

do you mean me or Dark Aisling

I meant dark aisling... figured she'd see my post

[Braun]

she also gets an email everytime a message is bounced from her inbox telling her to clean her inbox.... just for future reference so you wont have to post on a thread about something completely unrelated

[LacLaBicheNS]

she also gets an email everytime a message is bounced from her inbox telling her to clean her inbox.... just for future reference so you wont have to post on a thread about something completely unrelated

thanks.. don't know what I'd do with out you

[gl2]

just thought i would give this a bump...........lets help this great cause.

[Bound2Fish]

Will they have sign up, the day of the tourney?

[Braun]

I do not believe so. The registration deadline was the 8th of april, but if you are interested in playing still, i can try to find out if we could still get you registered.

[Bound2Fish]

Can you find out how many seats they have left and if they would accept others? I am currently in the middle of reno'ing my house and just havent had the time nor been able to make a firm commitment. Thanks Braun

[Braun]

yes we can make room for some players. I will be playing in the short stack tournament at 7pm on saturday. The response from the organizer was "the sooner we have players registered the better so we can have them collect pledges". As mentioned above, AAFS does not receive money through player registration fees. Its the pledges that count. (HINT HINT TO ANYONE WHO IS STILL FOLLOWING THIS THREAD....... STILL TIME TO GET PLEDGES IN)


Emails me for information regarding pledging. 7.braun@gmail.com


Bound2fish I will PM you