Dear Family and Friends: It’s your brother, cousin, son, pal, tech, recording engineer, bandmate, Frank.
I’m sending you this note because despite my generally skeptical nature, I’m currently involved in a fundraiser for a topic I care a lot about, and I'm asking for your support. So for a change from my usual self-absorbed ways, I’m now on a soap box because I’ve joined a team of cyclists this summer to do something I’m not sure I can do—ride a bike 560 miles across the entirety of New York State over the course of seven days, to raise (in total among team members) at least $17,500. That’s a lot of money, but it's to benefit people with AIDS, which like cancer can affect anyone — child or adult, gay or straight, saint or sinner. Of course getting all Sally Struthers on you isn’t my idea of a convincing appeal. Instead I’m going to be perfectly honest: For too long I’ve helped a few charities in ways that didn’t require a personal connection. I would feel guilty, write a check and pray that I was doing something “right.” And while sending cash can be a huge force for good (which is lucky, since I’m now asking YOU to write a check!), as soon as I became involved in this cause it opened my eyes. I realized that I KNOW people who are HIV positive, who are living with a condition that once was a sure death sentence but now, because of treatment advances paid for partially by similar fundraisers over the past two decades, are holding their own. And that's fantastic, but it makes it far too easy to ignore the threat the disease still presents, and to avoid taking the next step of funding research to develop an actual cure. So I'm stepping up—or rather sitting down and pedaling with my team (there's more info about them below), for those 560 miles in the Empire State AIDS Ride this August. Which is where you come in: The riding will be hard, but the bigger challenge will be raising the money. It won’t take much from any individual. I just ask you to give something, anything—and most importantly, I need you to FORWARD THIS NOTE to anyone in your circle who won’t be aggrieved by the idea of sending in a few bucks. I realize no one has a lot of expendable income these days, but if you can direct even a small chunk of yours towards this great cause, and encourage a couple of other people to do the same, I'll be grateful. TO DONATE go to the below link and click on any rider or “team contribution” to donate. Go here: http://tinyurl.com/ohnuyp OUR TEAM: http://www.theproject19.com/esar/index.html There’s another aspect to this equation that I want to alert you to. It’s called Project 19 (more here: http://tinyurl.com/o6lyem) and it’s a collective of local artists trying to do two great things (more like 100 great things) simultaneously. That is, to pursue the arts, make careers of it, and help the less fortunate at the same time. You can read more about it below, and if you’re in the Hudson Valley, attend an auction of their work on July 19 to raise money for the Empire State AIDS Ride. PSSSST! These artists are world-class; if you attend you’ll be helping the cause and also potentially acquiring some phenomenal works as well. Project 19 For years the members of Project 19 have been pursuing careers in the creative arts as well as athletic avocations. We’re fine artists, photographers, furniture designers, writers and interior designers. And for years each of us has pursued these individual avenues with reasonable success—at least enough to be considered “accomplished.” However, each of us has reached a plateau—success itself is no longer the satisfying endpoint it once seemed. We want to do more than make a living. We want to help others; we want to enrich the lives of those who cannot easily do for themselves. The purpose of Project 19 is to shine a greater light on human creativity, but the underlying principle, its foundation, is about helping people, about showing how the arts and charity can fuel each other and work toward the common goal of bettering our community. http://www.theproject19.com/members/index.html Thank you for any help you can provide. Sincerely, Frank P.S. !!!! For those inclined to rock there will be a benefit concert at Valentine's Music Hall in Albany NY (www.valentinesalbany.com) on August 7th featuring a reunion of the notorious one-off band known as "Pumped for Dumplin". This 4 piece is comprised of Martha Kronholm, Katie Haverly, Nick Matulis, and myself. It's the kind of absurdity that blooms about once every 5 years, so please indulge. More to follow about this show, please save the date!
