Many of you will know KiteKook well from kiting with him on Dallas Rd and some of you will only know him from his witty posts. Not all of you may know though, that he has Cystic Fibrosis.

CF is the most common genetically fatal disease affecting children and young adults in Canada. Paul is an exceptional man in many ways. I won't embarass him here with a list but will just say that he is one of the lucky few with CF that has been able to celebrate a 40th birthday. Of the 30 or so CF friends that Paul has known in his lifetime, he can count on one hand the number who are still alive.

In honor of his 40th year, Kitekook (also known as Paul Underhill) has set his sights on raising $40,000 "to support the the organisation that has largely been responsible for keeping me alive" I'd really like to support Paul in achieving his vision and his goal so thought I would invite the wind community to help support Paul too!

Please take a moment to read my blog for more details about Paul's fundrasing team, called "Vive et Ama - Live and Love" http://www.elementscentre.ca/blog

If you feel touched, moved and inspired and would like to make a donation towards the CF walk on May 30th to raise money for CF research, you can do so here http://my.e2rm.com/personalPage.aspx?re ... Pref=en-CA

And after reading my blog, you've been completely blown away by what an amazing guy Paul is and you'd like to join team "Vive et Ama" as they walk on May 30th, you can click here http://my.e2rm.com/TeamPage.aspx?Lang=en-CA&TSID=262848

As of today, team Vive et Ama has raised $5268. Paul has 33 friends and family on his team already.....let's get the wind community behind supporting his goal too!!

Thanks everyone.

Please count me in .... I would be honored to join in the walk and donate 100$.
See you May 30th.
And thanks for reaching out and letting us know Steph.

Thanks for your support Pat! You can make a donation online here http://my.e2rm.com/personalPage.aspx?re ... Pref=en-CA on Paul's sponsorship page. We're going to be up in Tofino that weekend celebrating our 10th wedding anniversary but will be doing a satellite walk on Chesterman's to support with a small gang of folks....we'll be with the Victoria walkers in spirit!

Thanks to Kus for his generous donation too!

I am in.

I just threw down $100. A happy guy on the beach always.

Wow! Thanks, Chris and Steph, for starting this thread.

I'm not big on talking about personal challenges, but this 'challenge' is actually really about trying to make an impact for the kids who deal with this and might not ever get a chance to kite or windsurf unless they find a cure or control.

So, thanks to all who join the team and/or donate, and I would also like to stress that it would be awesome to walk with however many of you would like to join - and don't think you have to have met me either! Just click on that last link Steph posted, sign in to join, and boom - you are a member of Vive et Ama!

BTW, there are prizes for top fundraisers that have been donated by people around town (dinner at Lucy's, haircuts, etc.) More on that later...

THANKS AGAIN!

Big thanks to Colin and BWD for their generous donations and to Russiandood for his offer of support with the walk. So far the wind community has donated $400! Thanks everyone....let's keep this thread going and give Paul the support he deserves.

I included a quote from Paul on my blog that explains why he's asking for everyone's help this year (a one time fundraising blitz)......

Many of you are familiar with Eva of 65 Red Roses (check out the trailer if you haven't seen the movie http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ulsm7Ai-yZY&NR=1). She is an inspiration to me, and she died yesterday. It's too late for her, and realistically, for me. But to help the kids of today so they don't have to face the trials that Eva has - that is the real reason behind my drive to fundraise for Great Strides this year. I thought sharing this with you might help you (and those you email for fundraising) to understand.

Thank you for your very generous donation, BA!

We're so pleased to see the support so far for Paul and the CF walk. Please keep the momentum going!

Cheers!
Chris

Thank you CJ for your generous donation!

Major Announcement:

AC has very generously donated a prize for the top fundraiser from the wind community, of ONE FULL DAY KITE LESSON at Nitinat Lake from <a href="/http://www.strongkiteboarding.com" target="_blank">Strong Kiteboarding</a>!!! [I believe this is transferable, but not 'sellable", is that right Dwayne?]

So, the way this will work is that any one who joins the <a href="/http://my.e2rm.com/TeamPage.aspx?Lang=en-CA&TSID=262845" target="_blank">team</a> will be eligible, and who ever raises the most from those who read BWD will be the winner!

ALSO - A key thank-you to those who have already donated, and for the very generous size. I am working on getting a prize (or prizes) for biggest donation from BWD as well, so we'll see.

THANKS AGAIN!!

Paul

Cool!- Way to go AC. 3 weeks left until Great strides walk!.. Giddyup!

Its the least that i can do.

BWD has very generously offered to donate a brand new HD Go Pro helmet camera as a draw prize for anyone who has donated from the BWD community towards Paul's team for Cystic Fibrosis!

Anyone from the BWD community who donates (or has already donated) at least $20 gets entered into the draw for the camera. Each person will only be entered once for the draw.

Again, the link to sponsor Paul and donate is:

http://my.e2rm.com/personalPage.aspx?re ... Pref=en-CA


This 1080p HD video helmet cam shoots in selectable HD resolutions, has a rechargeable Li-Ion battery pack and takes up to 32GB SD card. It would be great for both kiteboarding and windsurfing as well as surfing, mountain biking, snowboarding, kayaking, etc.


http://www.goprocamera.com/index.php?ar ... oductid=29]

GoProGoPro’s HD Helmet HERO is the world’s highest performance wearable 1080p HD video and still photo camera. Professional quality 1080p / 960p / 720p HD resolutions record at 30 and 60 frames per second (60 fps in 720p). Record up to 2.5 hours on a single charge and up to 9 hours total on a 32GB SD card (not included).



What's Included With The GoPro Helmet HERO HD?

* 1 HD HERO Camera (5 megapixel)

* 1 Rechargeable 1100 mAh Lithium-Ion Battery

* 1 Waterproof Quick-Release Housing (180’/60 m)

* 1 Headlamp-Style Head Strap

* 1 Vented Helmet Strap

* 2 Curved, 3M™ Adhesive Mounts

* 2 Flat, 3M Adhesive Mounts

* 1 Three-Way Pivoting Side Arm Assembly

* 2 Quick-Release Buckles

* 1 USB Cable, 1 Component Video (HDTV) Cable, 1 Composite Video + Audio Out Cable

* Warranty: One Year

Thanks BWD!!!

Thanks Dave!!

Awesome gift, fantastic idea. I'm starting to believe we may be able to pull this off! I am currently looking for more prizes to give to donors awarded on a random basis, just to encourage everyone who can afford it to chip in a bit.

For clarity, this helmet cam will be awarded to someone who has donated, and the kite lesson (transferable) to someone who joins the team. I am also hoping to track down more prizes for those who join the team (of which I am happy to report several of the BWD community have joined up!).

Thanks Again!!!

Thank You Geoffrey, for the fantasticly large donation!!

I didn't think anyone could beat BA for the largest donation, but there is a new leader on the score sheet!!

Thanks again!

Paul