Write a commentThe counting and collecting is done, and organizers have announced that the March 30 St. Baldrick`s Day in Oswego County head-shaving event raised approximately $94,100 towards finding a cure for childhood cancer.
"We're very pleased with the total," said volunteer event organizer Dan Witmer. "We knew that donations were down in some areas that had supported us very well in the past, but we were also optimistic about the number of shavees, fundraising teams, and the activity on the website."
This year marked the eighth annual event Witmer has helped organize. Together, those eight campaigns have raised more than $360,000 for the St. Baldrick's Foundation.
"Everyone was asking the night of the event, 'What's your total? How much do you think you raised?' but it took a while to collect from all the people we had supporting us. The Oswego Sub Shop sponsored a St. Baldrick's Night, Ruby Tuesday's had three nights of fundraising for us, Kohl's donated $500, and we had Paul's Big M and Gibby's selling St. Baldrick's shamrocks. Even with a great group of volunteers, it takes time to gather all those donations and complete the paperwork," explained Witmer.
The goal for 2014 was to collect $100,000, but committee members aren't disappointed about falling just short of that goal. "We did better than 2013, so there are no regrets," said Sandy Pike, co-treasurer for the event. "We'll get there, hopefully next year," she said.
Unlike past years, St. Baldrick's is keeping all web site accounts open and active through the end of the calendar year, so there is still a chance to meet the original goal. "We're talking about it," said Witmer. "We'll see what comes through the website, but maybe we'll have a chicken barbecue or other smaller events between now and then, so we just might hit that $100,000 mark yet."
To learn more about the St. Baldrick's Foundation, or to make a donation, go to http://stbaldricks.org.
