Brave Will Foundation

Happy Birthday, Will!

admin — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 11:10:20 +0000

Happy Birthday 2nd Birthday, Sweet Angel. We continue to miss you each and every day. Thank you for giving us the inspiration to carry on and allow the legacy of Brave Will to continue to change people’s lives.

Be brave, be strong…we love and will never forget you.

July is Spare Change Month

admin — Sat, 03 Jul 2010 00:26:21 +0000

During the 2009-10 school year, many kids were busy doing homework, playing a sport, taking music lessons, etc. During this time, Will’s cousin Aubrie was not only doing those things, but also adjusting to living in a new state, making new friends, and figuring out what 7th grade was all about. She, like many others, have been touched by Will. Being in a new school, she felt strongly about getting Will’s story and message out to her classmates. After speaking with her principal, she started a coin drive. Aubrie took the time to go to each class, speak about Will and ask for any spare change that her classmates could donate. We are thrilled to report that this winter Aubrie collected over $100. Her incredible effort not only helped our foundation, but earned her “Kid of the Week” on B95.5.

During Will’s illness, Tammy’s hairdresser held a cut-a-thon. Her daughter Lydia (then 6) invited friends over to make jewelry and baked goods. At the cut-a-thon, Lydia and her friends sold their items and gave the money to our family to help with Will’s battle with cancer. After Will passed, Lydia, like all of us, tried to figure out how to keep Will’s memory and spirit alive. Lydia and her family go to camp every weekend and like Aubrie, she wanted her new friends to know about Will. With the help of her family and other families and children at the camp, Lydia organized a bake sale on Memorial Day weekend. She raised over $150 for the Brave Will Foundation. She too has been a “Kid of the Week” on B95.5.

Matt and I are overwhelmed with the generosity from all of you, yet we are in awe of these children. We feel so lucky to know these children will someday grow up and be a part of our foundation in helping to keep the legacy of Will going. It is efforts like these that inspire us to keep pushing forward with our mission to achieve the goals we have set. Truly, every dollar, every cent makes a difference.

The stories of Aubrie and Lydia have inspired us to make the month of July, “Spare Change month”. There are over 500 people subscribed to this website and another 1300 people following us on Facebook. What if all of us gave up that trip to Dunkin’ Donuts one morning or had dinner at home instead of going out and took that money that was saved and donated it to the foundation to help support those children that are battling every day at the hospital? Maybe your children can collect their change like Aubrie did to make a one-time donation in memory of Will.

We aren’t looking for anyone to donate more than they can afford–in fact, we insist that you don’t. We are limiting donations to either $5, $10, $15, or $20. If everyone who has followed Will’s story and the work of our foundation donated just $5 this month, we would have a very successful fundraiser.

Will’s would have been two-years-old this month on July 14th and I can’t think of any better way to celebrate his birthday than to continue to try and keep his memory alive through the endless generosity of so many people.

We have created a special Spare Change Fundraiser page on our website. On that page, you’ll find a menu that you can use to choose your donation amount and a button to complete your payment information. We will keep this page up and running through July 31st.

Please forward this on to anyone who might be interested in putting a little aside this month for a worthy cause. Thank you for your support and of course, remember to celebrate Will Power!

A Weekend for Will

admin — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 02:23:34 +0000

The Brave Will Foundation was thrilled to be part of the Children’s Miracle Network Radio and Telethon this weekend to benefit the Children’s Hospital at Albany Medical Center. On Friday, we did radio interviews on both 810 WGY and The River 99.5. It was an honor to be able to share Will’s story with the listeners, and were touched by the kind words expressed by hosts Chuck Custer (WGY) and Randi and Tred (The River). If you are interested in hearing the interview from WGY, you can click on the link below. On Sunday, we took the boys to the telethon on Fox 23 to answer phones and take donations. Ben worked very hard on the phones to raise as much money as he could in two hours. Max, on the other hand, lasted about fifteen minutes, but apparently had a great time in the control room spinning around in circles on a chair While we there, Fox 23 showed the beautiful video about Will that they produced for last year’s telethon and then interviewed us so that we could talk about the foundation and the great work that we have started. Congratulations to Albany Med, WGY, The River, and Fox 23 for raising over $2.5 million over the weekend to help all those children in need–superb!

Thank you to the Albany Medical Center Foundation for allowing us to be a part of the weekend or for giving us lots of opportunities to promote our foundation and of course, talk about our little angel Will. A weekend like that really lifts our spirits and reminds us again just how powerful the life and legacy of our Brave Will continues to be.

WGY Radiothon_part1

WGY Radiothon_part2

Pictures from the Gala

admin — Sat, 15 May 2010 03:11:25 +0000

A number of people have asked about photos that were taken at the gala. We are thrilled to be able to share with you all the incredible moments that were captured on film that evening. We simply cannot thank Erin Reid Coker and Jason Hupe from Gallery 9 North enough for the amazing photos they took throughout the entire evening. We are sharing just a small sample of the over 150 pictures they took that night on this website. If you would like to view the entire collection, then head on over to the gallery posted on Gallery 9 North’s website. Any picture you see there can be purchased directly on the website. Erin and Jason will be donating proceeds from the sale of the pictures to the foundation. So not only will you be able to preserve your favorite moments from the gala (or in some cases, your most embarrassing moments), but you will also be helping further contribute to the efforts of the foundation.

If you weren’t able to attend the gala this year, be sure to check out the collection of pictures so you know what to expect when you attend the 2nd Annual Evening of Will Power on April 30, 2011.

Evening of Will Power Raises over $28,000

admin — Tue, 11 May 2010 02:15:24 +0000

The Brave Will Foundation is pleased to announce that the total money raised at the 1st Annual Evening of Will Power was $28,294!

The total money raised far exceeded our expectations for our first year. However, thanks to an amazing, near-sell out of tickets as well as over fifty raffle items (including baseball tickets {Yankees, Mets, Red Sox}, weekend getaways {Whiteface Lodge, Longfellows, Saratoga Arms, etc.}, a wide array of services {professional photography, dinners cooked by professional chefs, wine tastings, etc.}, and so much more, we were able to make an enormous first step in reaching our goals.

There is no question the unending support that began in September 2008 continues to thrive and will allow our foundation to accomplish so many things in our effort to support children with life threatening illnesses and their families. We are eager to share with all of you how the money will be used to support those in need and share the impact that the foundation will undoubtedly have.

Again, we would like to thank our corporate sponsors, our media sponsor, our entertainment for the evening, those who donated items to our raffles, those that volunteered their time and energy in making this event just-about-perfect on our first attempt, and of course, the hundreds that attended the gala. From the feedback we’ve received, the night was enjoyed by all. We look forward to seeing everyone again next year at the second annual event to be held on April 30, 2011 and look forward to introducing ourselves to many new faces as well.

Celebrate Will Power!

Celebrate Will Power With Your Own Brave Will Foundation T-Shirt

admin — Thu, 06 May 2010 00:57:40 +0000

Show the world that you celebrate Will Power by wearing your own “Celebrate Will Power” t-shirt (long or short sleeve). The t-shirts feature the slogan on the front in the Brave Will Foundation colors. On the back, underneath the collar, the Brave Will Foundation logo and website are displayed.

You can order t-shirts directly through the Brave Will Foundation website (www.bravewill.org) on the merchandise page.

An Evening of Will Power — A Tremendous Success

admin — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 01:14:08 +0000

The Brave Will Foundation would like to extend a huge “thank you” to everyone who was able to attend the 1st Annual Evening of Will Power on Saturday night. The turnout and support was overwhelming, far beyond any expectations that we set for our first year.

Over the coming days, we’ll have more information about the money that was raised, images from the event, etc. Below, if you were unable to attend, you can view the video that was shown at the event. We would again like to thank Mike Wickham and Torie Wells from Fox 23 for the incredible job they both did in producing this video. It was more than we ever could have imagined. This video does an amazing job of blending Will’s story with the goals and mission of the Brave Will Foundation, and will serve as a powerful promotional tool as we move forward with our efforts.

Some Updates on the Brave Will Foundation

admin — Fri, 09 Apr 2010 02:22:49 +0000

Just a couple of quick updates from the foundation as we are two weeks away from our 1st Annual Gala, An Evening of Will Power:

Ticket sales for the event are going fast, but with a few still available, we are going to extend the deadline for reserving tickets to the gala. All reservations must now be made by Monday, April 19. If you ordering online, you can place orders until that day. If you are mailing in a check for the event, it must be received by that day. Tickets can be purchased on our gala page or you can download a reservation form on that same page.
Tammy and Matt will be featured on Fox 23’s In Focus. The thirty-minute show will feature interviews and information on the Brave Will Foundation. The show airs on Sunday, April 11th at 10:00 AM on Fox 23.
The foundation will also be highlighted on In the Spotlight on Sunday, April 18 at 6:30 PM on Fox 23.

One Week Left To Get Your Tickets

admin — Fri, 02 Apr 2010 16:58:33 +0000

The deadline for ordering tickets for An Evening of Will Power is April 10, about a week from today. If you are planning on attending the big event, there is still space available, so please reserve your tickets now! Information on ordering tickets can be found on the gala page of our website. You can also find a link to frequently asked questions about the event.

The gala is Saturday, April 24th from 7:00 pm- 12:00 am at the Universal Preservation Hall in Saratoga Springs, NY. There will be live music from 2096 and the Lustre Kings. In addition, there will casino games, dancing, food, and cocktails throughout the night. We have collected some amazing items to raffle off that night as well.

Tickets are $100 per person or $500 for a group of six.

Thank You Team Will Power

admin — Fri, 26 Mar 2010 14:59:20 +0000

On Sunday, March 21st, Team Will Power participated in the tenth annual St.Baldrick’s Day in Albany. The team raised nearly $3,000 shaving their heads to support the Melodies Center for Childhood Cancer and Blood Disorders at Albany Medical Center. Thank you for your support and for helping to celebrate Will Power!

You can view pictures of the team from the event here.