Rewind only a couple of months when we decided to start fundraising. First off, even the fact that we are where we are, needing a van for our daughter is a big deal. That we do see a future for her and want to maximize for that future. When we came around to the idea, Aaron and I didn't originally want to do a go fund me because we felt awkward asking people for money when they wouldn't "get" anything in return. We warmed up quicker to the idea of having a pub night with auctions and raffles so that people would not only feel good about giving to a good cause but they would also "get" food, drinks and prizes. It is a truly humbling experience to ask for financial support.
To begin with, I didn't think we would be able to sell all of the 60 tickets. Then when the 60 tickets were almost accounted for, we called the location to ask if we had any flexibility with that number. Then they told us we could have max 70. Going into the event last night we sat at 74 people coming. That meant myself, Aaron and my brother/sister in law would go without the burger and brew portion. I figured there would be a few no shows to bring us back down to 70. I didn't get a chance to do a final headcount last night but I'm positive we had at least 85-90 people show up! They just kept coming in!
Being somewhat immobile, I wasn't able to mingle quite as much as I would've liked but I literally had a birds eye view over the event. People seemed to enjoy themselves and everything went incredibly smoothly. No hiccups, other than making sure we had enough seats. And one poor soul putting their Westjet raffle ticket stub into the wrong spot... The location was perfect.
We came out with a whooping grand total of $5006!! We have to confirm our charity money coming in and get our jeep up for sale to confirm how much we have left. But it's looking like only a couple thousand at this point! I never thought we would get this close. The fact we won't have to finance a second vehicle is a huge weight off our shoulders.
Finishing off the post on a beautiful note. The biggest, most generous donation award also came in last night. I didn't speak directly with this sweet girl, nor her dad but when we got home to count the profits there was a zip lock bag of change. Apparently when a friend of ours told his daughter where he was going to last night she said that she wanted to donate to the cause. When asked how much she would like to give, she stated she would like to give $3. While getting the funds out of her piggy bank, she changed her mind and said she wanted to give everything she had. Everything. Every last cent to her name. *Pause* Unreal. The most emotional donation for sure. This example of true, unselfish love. I'm honestly not even sure this girl has ever met Layla. To witness someone give like that with no expectations, no strings attached. It is so beautiful, heart melting and rare. I will never forget that. May this story motivate all of us in the way we live. This life is short. You can't take money or things with you. The people, the love, the moments, that is what it's all about. With a grateful heart I close this post.
"If you are broken, you do not have to stay broken."
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