{"id":3308,"date":"2021-02-25T12:48:27","date_gmt":"2021-02-25T12:48:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ie.depaulcharity.org\/?page_id=3308"},"modified":"2021-03-04T15:16:43","modified_gmt":"2021-03-04T15:16:43","slug":"marys-fundraising-story","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/ie.depaulcharity.org\/marys-fundraising-story\/","title":{"rendered":"Mary’s Fundraising Story"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Mary Clarke completed Depaul\u2019s 10,000 Steps a Day Challenge last year while raising \u20ac1,800 for people who are homeless in our services. Read on to find out about the secret to her fundraising success.<\/b><\/p>\n

I first became interested in homelessness when I lived in New York in the 1980\u2019s. There were so many people living on the streets in Manhattan and I would always stop and chat to them on my way to and from work. I organised a clothes drive for the homeless in New York at one point with a group of friends. We put up posters in our workplaces asking for donations and it was a great fundraiser.<\/span><\/p>\n

Last year I saw an ad on Facebook for a challenge in support of people who are homeless and that\u2019s how I got involved with Depaul. I figured that it might be something that I could do as I had fundraised before for various causes and I wanted to get involved in supporting homeless people again.<\/span><\/p>\n

I really enjoyed taking part in the challenge, everyone in the Facebook group<\/strong> was so friendly and supportive. I calculated how many miles I had to do to reach 10,000 steps every day and then used google maps to create walks to meet that goal. I incorporated my walks into my walk to and from work and sometimes I walked at lunchtime and in the evenings. I am lucky enough to live near the River Dodder in Dublin and did some fantastic walks along its banks.<\/span><\/p>\n

I shared selfies and photos of numbers of steps reached on my Fitbit, or even of things I had seen on my walks because I wanted everyone who had donated to know that I was actually actively doing the challenge. I never actually asked anyone to donate but just shared all these pictures in my Facebook Fundraiser.<\/span><\/p>\n

I had hoped to raise \u20ac200 but people were so incredibly generous that I kept raising my fundraising target<\/strong>. People that I had known over thirty years ago in New York donated very generous amounts as did people that I have known from every part of my life. Not everyone was in a position to donate but their supportive comments really kept me going through my walks.<\/span><\/p>\n

My main advice to anyone who is thinking about taking on a fundraising challenge is to let everyone know that you are doing it and that you would welcome all support. It’s not a competition, the only person you\u2019re competing with is yourself. Some days will be a lot harder than others so be gentle with yourself don\u2019t beat yourself up if you don\u2019t reach your daily goal.<\/span><\/p>\n

I would totally recommend doing a fundraising challenge to anyone, it helps people who are homeless, it\u2019s good for your mental health and it\u2019s so good to get outside!<\/span><\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n

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