Dear Friends,
The 2014 Great March for Climate Action is off and running! After 31/2 weeks of organizing, the critical elements are coming together:
– Courtney Kain, Shari Hrdina, and I are volunteering significant time five days a week.
– Others have stepped forward to tackle critical tasks:
* Forrest Determann, our website;
* Joseph Glazebrook, our legal documents; and
* Ben Allaway is laying the groundwork for some big-name events and concerts.
– Many of you have provided advice and are helping to get the word out. (Thank you!)
– And a few key donors have stepped forward to contribute a total of $40,000!
That financial cushion is a great start. But it’s only a drop in the bucket of what we’ll need to bring the March to fruition. The next big step is to establish a route, and that’s not as simple as drawing a line across the country. We need to consider a whole set of variables, including availability of campsites every 12-15 miles – for 3,000 miles!
Setting the route will take 2-3 months. It will require a full-time staff person and lots of volunteers. It needs to be in place by early summer so we can begin more intensive organizing along the march route.
To do that: We’re looking for “March Starters” – supporters willing to step forward NOW and pledge a certain amount each mile of the 3,000-mile march:
1 cent per mile ($30)
2 cents per mile ($60)
3 cents per mile ($90)
4 cents per mile ($120)
5 cents per mile ($150)
10 cents per mile ($300)
25 cents per mile ($750)
331/3 cents per mile ($1,000)
Please step-up NOW and become a “March Starter.” Donations are tax-deductible and can be made using Dwolla or PayPal, or simply by mailing a check to Great March for Climate Action, 735 19th St #1, Des Moines, IA 50314. Be one of the first 100 “March Starters” and we’ll send you a Great March for Climate Action refrigerator magnet.
You can also “like” us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter. Please share the “March Starter” drive with others eager to join the fight for action on climate change.
And please check out our website to see how else you can get involved. Thank you!
Ed Fallon