I never officially posted about this, but I thought that I should since some people read only via feeds and might not have noticed the garnish on every page of the site.
Please join me on August 6th for Blogathon 2005, where I will be posting a new blog entry every half hour for 24 hours beginning at 9am EST to raise money for Scholarship America.
- What is a "blogathon"?
<dd>It's kind of like a telethon, like you would see on PBS, except that it takes place on a web (this "weblog", aka "blog", to be specific) and it raises money for charity, not for me.</dd>
<dt>What is "Blogathon 2005"?</dt>
<dd>The Blogathon is organized by the nice folks at Blogathon.org, who provide a method for registering sponsorship and tracking participating sites.</dd>
<dt>What is sponsorship?</dt>
<dd>In a fund drive like this, you pledge to donate a fixed amount of money to my cause, Scholarship America, contingent on my completion of the requirements of the Blogathon; ie- 24 hours of continuous posts.</dd>
<dt>Who is Scholarship America?</dt>
<dd><a href="http://www.scholarshipamerica.org">Scholarship America</a> organizes community-based scholarships for students to go to college. Last year, their "Dollars for Scholars" programs raised $58 million and awarded scholarships to 34,828 students. They provide educational programs to younger kids to learn how important college can be, and how they can be sure that they are able to attend when they're ready.</dd>
<dt>Why did you choose Scholarship America as your charity?</dt>
<dd>This answer has two parts: First, I think that charity needs to start at home. How can we send our money to help other places when there are so many people in trouble right next door? Second, one of the biggest causes of trouble in this country is a lack of solid education in our youth. Helping students get over the financial hurdle required to obtain college-level skills will make our country more fit to help others.</dd>
<dt>How do I sponsor you?</dt>
<dd>Stop by the <a href="http://www.blogathon.org/blogathon.php?campaign&id=180">official Blogathon site</a> now to make your pledge. You will need to register there. You can also find many other sites that are participating. Note that when you've entered your pledge amount, you can't change it. When Blogathon is over, you will visit the URL supplied by the Blogathon site and make your donation directly to the specified charity - no middlemen.
Remember, you <em>need to register</em> before you can sponsor someone. Details on the process can be found <a href="http://www.blogathon.org/?page_id=14">here</a>.</dd>
<dt>How much should I sponsor?</dt>
<dd>I'm happy with any amount, as I'm sure Scholarship America would be, but a typical amount is about $5. The average donaton for Blogathon over the past three years was $29. But give only what you're comfortable with. My goal to reach for a total is $250. I'm currently nowhere near that, so <em>help me out</em>!</dd>
<dt>What special content are you planning for Blogathon?</dt>
<dd>I guess most folks are just posting regular entries every half hour. I'm going to try something new with audio. If that fails to pull through for some reason, I'll still have written content as expected for the 'thon.</dd>
<dt>Why should I sponsor you?</dt>
<dd>Well, if not because it's a good cause, then because <strong>I'm giving away stuff</strong>! That's right... The highest donator gets an offical embroidered Asymptomatic hat. The black baseball cap is fine quality and says "Asymptomatic.net - There must be intelligent life down here". Thanks, Mom, for making these available to give away!
Also, there may be various prizes throughout the evening - I'm still working out what they are, but I have some ideas.
PLUS - I will mention your site in the audio track during Blogathon if your donation is above a certain amount.</dd>
<dt>Why am I waiting for?</dt>
<dd>I don't know. Get <a href="http://www.blogathon.org/blogathon.php?campaign&id=180">going</a>!</dd>
