It's a small world after all

     Way back, almost a year ago, when I got this crazy notion to ride, my dream was to build a team a mile long.  At that time, in my mind 25 was huge, and if you laid them down head to toe maybe they would add up to a mile!! I wasn't sure it was possible to find that many riders but I would surely try my hardest.

   I've long since passed that number and I've learned there are a lot more people that care about this cause than I gave credit.

     

     When I first started recruiting, my friends Kelly and Jim, from an MS meeting that we go to monthly, were among a couple of the first to join my team.

     As I started asking more people, I knew it wasn't going to be hard to see my team grow.  I was pleasantly surprised when my friends Bill and Lori said they would ride.  In fact Lori said her boss, the owner of Mike's Southwest Grill would probably sponsor our team shirts because he has a daughter with MS who is also riding.  I said "Hey, maybe she'll join our team!!" 

     When I saw Lori again I asked her if she had approached her bosses daughter; Lori told me his daughter was already riding on a team, but her boss still wanted to sponsor our team shirts.

     I was bound and determined to get her on my team, but every time I asked Lori she said his daughter wasn't changing because she was committed to the other team, and I could respect that because I would hope my friends were that committed to me:)

     A few months later when the shirts came in I took a couple in to my MS meeting to give to my team mates, Kelly and Jim.  Kelly's mom happened to come along with Kelly that day.  Her mom told me that she wanted to buy a shirt, which we happened to be selling to raise more money for our team.  I was thrilled that she wanted to purchase one and gave her the shirt. 

     A few minutes later she approached me and asked how I got a particular logo on the back of my shirt.  I told her they were my sponsors.  She said she knew her husband was sponsoring a team but had no idea it was this one. 

     So as it turns out, I was spending all of this time trying to recruit someone from another team and it was my team she was committed to all along.  

     This may not be Disney World, but it sure is a small world after all:)

Have a great weekend!!

Christine:)

Sponsor number seven

   

   We had Six sponsors for our team shirts already and then Lori Coleman, one of our team members asked her boss who owns Mike's Southwest Grill and of course he said yes!!  Who wouldn't want to help us out:)  Mike knows this a great cause and I'm forever grateful for his generosity.

     Of course I had to get a picture with Lori and Bill, both team members, and of course I had to try the food while I was there as well!  I have to tell you, if you've never had grilled Tilopia tacos, they are out of this world!  They pair well with Margaritas, or so I've heard;) Check Mike's out!

Remember the fund raiser at Bob Evans today!!!!!  Thank you, thank you, thank you:)

Have a great day!!

Christine:)



     

     

Thank You Chandler Cafe!!

   

  I mentioned not too long ago that my favorite hometown coffee shop was Chandler Cafe, but I have to talk about them again because they are beyond Awesome!!  Lori Stansley the owner, also jumped on board to help make the 25th anniversary of the Bike To The Bay one to remember.

     She too wanted to be a sponsor of our team shirts.  Of course she was anxious to help us by displaying our team shirts for purchase to raise money for the cause as well.  

     
     What better selling tool than to have Kate, Maggie and the others wear the shirts to promote them further.  Watch for the cute pink frog shirts to show up at Chandler Cafe very soon.

Have a great day!!

Christine:)

msohiobike.org

Awesome!! another shirt sponsor!!

   I had never met my soon to be new friend and team member Nazih from Organic Bliss Deli and Bakery; a neighboring business of DMC, where I work.  However, I've had their food and I do know they have the most amazing organic food I've ever tasted.

     Pat, the owner of DMC knows him well and was telling him about the Bike To The Bay and how many of us from DMC were riding in it.  It wasn't long before Pat was telling me about our two new team members, Nazih and Brandon.

     It was overwhelming to see the outward support of this great community.  Of course I made it a point to go to our neighbor and thank Him in person.

     But it didn't stop there; Nazih also offered to be a sponsor for our team shirts and wants to try to sell them to help raise money for our team.  What a great guy!  My entire team is made up of amazing people!  I'm very fortunate to be surrounded by so many wonderful people.  I'm looking forward to many great things to come.

Have a great weekend!!

Christine:)

Time to talk about those fundraisers with Bob Evans

   

       So next on my agenda was to meet again with Jason, the General Manager of Bob Evans Restaurant on Monroe street, and talk about these fundraisers.  We decided if we were going to do this we may as well make it big.  Now we hope to have a meeting with some of the other managers from other locations and get them on board.  

     Of course since my big brother team "Team Sitting Bull" helped get "team leapfrog" off and rolling it's only right that they be a part of this as well.  This will be huge!!  If Reeves has his team e-mail blast and then my team e-mail blasts flyers along with Bob Evans promoting it, we can raise a lot of money for our teams!  So now our teams join forces!

We're already mistaken for twins:)

     Reeves and I will be getting in contact soon with the managers from Bob Evans to talk about which day of each month until the ride to hold our fundraisers. The people who dine at Bob Evans on behalf of Team Leapfrog or Team Sitting Bull those days will help raise money for our teams, because a portion of the proceeds will be kicked back to us for the MS Society.

Watch for details and help us team up With Bob Evans to make this 25th anniversary huge!!

Have a great day!!

Christine:)

Please sponsor us!!
msohiobike.org

It's hard to say no!

    

Wishful thinking!  No grass here...

 One thing I've discovered during this whole process of creating Team Leapfrog is that the more I ask for help the more people I find who are happy to help me.

     My next mission was to ask my insurance agent Paul Haye from New York Life if he would be interested in being a sponsor of our team shirts.  He's a really great guy so I wasn't surprised when he couldn't say no.  I just had to ask and more times than not they usually want to help me in some way.

     So our shirt backs are slowly starting to fill up with names of generous businesses!  Thank you Paul Haye and New York life.

See you in warm weather:)


Have a great weekend!!

Christine:)

Please sponsor our team
msohiobike.org

     

Our second team shirt sponsor; Yay DMC technology group!!

   

  Now that our team is growing it's time to really focus on the sponsors.  A lot of our team members are co workers from DMC technology group where I'm employed.

     The owner, Pat Sheehan and his wife Elaine are among the many riders from DMC.  Pat approached me and said he would also like to sponsor our team shirts!  Not only do I work for a great company but the owners are very generous as well:)

     Of course Elaine mentioned she would love to have a fundraiser put on by DMC to raise even more money for the cause.  We sure have some amazing team members, all with great ambition to make this year huge!

     Please help us grow!!

msohiobike.org

Have a great day!!

Christine:)

Our first official team sponsor! Thanks Bob Evans:)

     Well, going to Bob Evans restaurant every Saturday morning for the past 5 or 6 years has really paid off!  Not only do they have great food but the staff there are the most awesome people you will ever meet!

     As a rule I always get there earlier than the rest of my friends because it's a great way to drink coffee and write my posts for this blog.  The problem however, was that the internet service was hit or miss from week to week and it was sometimes frustrating not being able to  connect.

     One Saturday I saw the general manager, Jason, doing paperwork at a table and I thought I would ask him what the secret was to getting the WiFi to co operate.  He said they had been having problems with the connection on a corporate level.  I was mentioning I usually try to write my blog for the bike to the bay while waiting for my friends (and of course I had to tell him the whole story because this just might be one more opportunity to raise money for our team).  I made sure to inquire about the possibility of Bob Evans sponsoring us.

      After our brief (okay... lengthy) conversation I asked him if there was any way of getting corporate to make an attempt to fix the WiFi for future visits, even if he had to blame it on getting this pesky lady off his back.  He said he would make sure to tell them.

     The next week like clock work the internet was running smoothly so I was back in business.  I saw Jason doing paper work again and went over to thank him for helping me.  While I was at it I reminded him of our previous conversation and mentioned my team was up and running now.  Then I asked him if he would be interested in sponsoring our team and their name would be on our shirts.  He said absolutely!  

     So it's official!!  Bob Evans Restaurant is the first of hopefully many tee shirt sponsors for our team.  Jason and I are also going to get together again to discuss other fundraising ideas with Bob Evans between now and the ride.  Stay tuned:)

Have a great weekend!!

Christine:)

Please sponsor Team Leapfrog! 
msohiobike.org