GoFundMe Page Setup for Tim's TOH Ride

GoFundMe Page for Tim's TOH Ride

OK, I have set up a GoFundMe page for my TOH charity ride. I set it up as a charity page so the proceeds go directly to Mission22 (minus the GoFundMe service fees). I never have to touch the money - I believe they send it over on a periodic basis. How you help is up to you. Want to donate one time now? Sounds great. Want to wait and donate after I ride a bit? Even better. Plan to donate per site visited? That's my plan, too.

If you would like to also support Operation Tango Mike, hit me up. I plan to write a check at the end of my rally and can include anything you might want to provide, too.

Both organizations are charities registered with the IRS, so any donations you make can be written off on your taxes :)

Give or not give - please do what is right for your situation. How else can you help? Spread the word - anything you do to raise awareness is a good thing! Share my efforts if you are so inclined. I plan to keep this blog updated as the year progresses.

The rally starts April 1st and runs through the end of October. I have some big rides planned during this time. Multi-day rallies and long day rides. You might be amazed at the places I travel this year. I am definitely leaving my back yard!

That's it for now. Gotta go work to fund my addiction :). In the meantime here's some picture therapy to whet your appetite.

Long rides? You betcha. Here's 1 day of riding to get to last year's rally in Colorado.

Why ride? Why not?

Sometimes beauty just walks up and smacks you upside the helmet. So you pull over and admire it.

Where will this year's adventures take me? Last year I visited 4 states at the same time, so who knows?

A Ride to Remember

TOH Rider #132

Want to follow along? Here's a link to my Spotwalla page - it is active anytime I am out riding and remember to turn my Spot on.

Tim's Spotwalla Page

And here is a quick interactive map you can look at in the blog post.

The rally starts April 1st. We (the riders) won't know what the locations are until the list is released near April 1st.

I apologize in advance for my ramblings - I have only recently begun to flesh out what started as a small nagging thought in my head to do something to make this ride meaningful for me. The whole concept is developing as I type. Sometimes my mind goes faster than my fingers can type.

As I mentioned in my previous post, I plan to ride Tour of Honor as a tribute to all veterans with a focus on those who believe suicide is the only option. I mentioned my plan to ride for 2 charities - Mission 22 and Operation Tango Mike, but when I went to see about setting up a GoFundMe page for charitable donations, I discovered I could only have one recipient per page. I don't like complications, so here's the plan...

I am going to set up a GoFundMe page for Mission 22 (I will post a link as the rally approaches on April 1st). I still want to donate to Operation Tango Mike because I believe they do great work. I plan to donate to OTM at a rate of $10 per memorial site visited or 10% of all donations, whichever is larger. Based on the early responses I received, I think both charities will benefit from my efforts.

Both organizations deserve your support. Don't succumb to the thought that any help you might offer would be a drop in the bucket unnoticed by the charities.

And now, my ride. Here are a few pictures of my Goldwing. It has all the creature comforts you would expect from a couch on wheels :)

I'll post a few pictures of the modifications I have added to make the bike a true long-distance machine. Stay tuned.

My companion.

You didn't think I was roughing it, did you???

Tour of Honor - A Charity Ride

I signed up for the Tour of Honor (TOH) motorcycle rally this year. I have thought about it for several years now and decided to sign up since my other favorite rally is drying up. From the rally website:

"Tour of Honor is a great reason to hit the open road, honor our nation's heroes, and contribute to a few good charities. The event is a season-long, self-directed ride to memorials and monuments around the continental U.S., Alaska and Hawaii. Beginning April 1, visit as many sites as you want, with any route you choose."

TOH charities include:

- The Fisher House Foundation

- Operation Comfort Warriors

- Police and Fire: The Fallen Heroes

$20 from each rider registration is donated to one of those 3 charities. This is a truly remarkable rally in the sense that some of the entry fee goes to a good cause.


Recently a young Sailor committed suicide on a submarine. Every time this happens it affects me in ways that are hard to put into words. Many of you know my brother took his life in 2010. Most of you probably don't know he was a veteran of the Army. This time I want to do something.

I am going to dedicate my TOH rides to my brother, and to every service member who has had thoughts of hurting themselves. I plan to make it like a ride-a-thon. Anyone who would like to support my efforts can make a donation that I will contribute equally to 2 additional charities. I suggest a donation based on how many sites I visit during the rally, but if you prefer, a one-time donation would also be greatly appreciated. Every single penny will be donated. None of your money will be used to offset any of my riding expenses.

The charities I am considering are:

- Mission 22: donations are used to get veterans treatment when they need it most.

- Operation Tango Mike: established in March 2003, OTM is a community effort sending monthly care packages to deployed troops. Disclaimer - this charitable organization is run by my Aunt, Ginny Craven. Her organization does some really excellent work for our deployed troops.

So how does it all work? I am still working out the nuts and bolts, but plan to use a GoFundMe page to collect and track the donations (Note - GoFundMe does charge the organizer (me) a service fee to handle the donations). I will update everyone about every week with progress, and will also post some "from the road" updates on my longer rides. At the end of the rally I will provide a final update with the number of sites visited, total money collected and how it was distributed.

How much could it raise? Who knows! This is my first experience with this kind of effort. Here's some information you can use to plan out how much you might like to donate:

- TOH is nationwide with 7 sites per state. To be a finisher you have to visit at least 7 sites in any state.

- I think it is reasonable to think I might visit about 30 sites during the rally. I hope to collect all sites in at least Washington, Oregon and Idaho. Depending on time off and other rallies, the total could be more.

Independent of any other donations, I plan to donate $10 per site visited. I don't expect anyone else to donate that much. Please realize that even a dollar helps. Give what you think is appropriate, even if it is simply encouragement.

Want to donate? For now, just let me know how much via e-mail, Facebook message or by leaving a comment on this blog. Your help is gratefully and humbly accepted.

So that's it for now. Let me know what you think. I will post more details in the near future as I figure out the GoFundMe implementation.

If you have thoughts on my effort please leave a comment. I do moderate all comments, so don't worry if it doesn't show up immediately.