Posted by Connor Jarvis
Below is a sample email template for your use in soliciting the purchase of raffle tickets for this year's Chili Open. Feel free to throw me under the bus as you spam your family and friends, but whatever you do: PLEASE MAKE THE ASK. Let's come together as a club and do this not only for the kids, but also for our beloved Rotary family member, Dave Miller, who would surely be losing sleep over raffle ticket sales on a regular basis at this point in the Chili Open promotional season.
 
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Hello, all!
 
I trust that you are having a wonderful start to 2019!
 
As many of you know, I am actively involved with the Rotary Club of Akron. One of our prominent focuses as an organization is supporting special needs youth and their families. I am excited to announce that we will be hosting the 29th Annual Chili Open Golf Classic (click link for last year’s promotional video) on Saturday, February 2nd at Hale Farm & Village in Bath, OH. The Chili Open is, as I call it, one of the dog days of winter highlights in Northeast Ohio. Each year, hundreds and hundreds of individuals join us for our largest annually recurring event with the sole purpose of raising funds to support the operating budget of the Akron Rotary Camp for Children with Special Needs

Since its inception in 1924, the Akron Rotary Camp has provided a place where children with physical, mental, or developmental disabilities can enjoy programs that develop their self-confidence, independence, and social skills, while also enabling them to participate in new leisure activities that encourage children to experience the natural world while becoming more physically active. If you would like to see just how impactful this camp is for those who attend, I invite you to watch this video to hear directly from the campers. Aside from summer overnight and day-camp experiences, the camp provides respite weekends for children and their families as well as weekend retreats for special needs adults.
 
Though the “season of giving” is now behind us, the camp's need has not ended. My purpose in reaching out is to ask for your consideration to come alongside my family in supporting this year’s Chili Open and, in doing so, provide much needed support to one of the most amazing places for children and their families that I have ever seen. No, it is not Disney, but the Akron Rotary Camp for Children with Special Needs is certainly a different kind of “Magic Kingdom.” Watch the video, visit the camp, and I assure you that you will realize why it is a worthy contender with Walt’s World as “The Happiest Place on Earth.” Our fundraising goal for the 29th Chili Open is $275,000 and the generous hearts of supporters like you will help magnify the camp's impact.
 
One of the simplest ways to support the cause is through the purchase of raffle tickets – and they are some of the best that I have ever seen! At $20 apiece, they pay for themselves with a free entrée of up to $15 provided by Bravo at Summit Mall and $10 off of an oil change at any VanDevere location included with each ticket. For those non-local folks, the prizes still make the purchase well worth it (winners need not be present):
 
  1. 2019 Chevrolet Sonic LS or an $11,000 cash payout 
  2. 55” 4K Smart LED TV
  3. Fox Sports Ohio / SportsTime Ohio Behind-the-Scenes Media Package at a 2019 Cleveland Indians game
*Buy five (5) Chili Open raffle tickets (for a total of $100.00) and you will be automatically entered into the Chili Open SNOWMANIA drawing for a chance of winning $50,000 (see details on the site). 
 
 
If you have any questions or would like to learn more about the Akron Rotary Camp, please reach out to me directly or contact Amanda Warner, Director of Volunteer Opportunities & Special Events at the Camp (amandaw@akronymca.org).
 
Thank you, and we hope to see you out there on February 2nd! 
 
P.S. For additional information and sponsorship opportunities, please visit the Chili Open Website.

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