More raffle ticket buyers and sponsors!

Me and my buddy Jenn Chow!
Me and my co-worker Vielka!

Edward and Leanna, the cool cats at the Box office of The Second City!
Edward and Leanna nerding it up
Naaz and me at Far Coast Lounge!
me and Patricia Wong
My co-worker Rafael and myself

Final Prize Packages and Rules

As of now, all raffle tickets will cost $10 for 1 or $20 for 3. As it stands, those who have already donated $10 or more will receive a ticket and will be given the correct amount of tickets (eg. if you donated $100 you get 15 tickets etc.)Furthermore, the way the prize packages will be awarded as follows for the three grand prizes:



TRANSFORMERS GEEK
- 1 statue of Unicron donated by One Million Comix
- 1 box of Transformers the movie collectible card game by Hasbro proudly donated by The Hairy Tarantula collectibles and pop culture shop

- 1 Transformers movie guide and 1 Transformers encyclopedia donated by Katherine Lau


- Masterpiece Optimus Prime MP-01 by Takara
- Optimus Prime Generation 1 re-issue by Takara and signed by box art artist Pat Lee
- Transformers Binaltech BT-01 Smokescreen by Takara
- Transformers Binaltech BT-02 Lambor (Sideswipe) by Takara
- Ultra Magnus Generation 1 re-issue by Hasbro
- Smokescreen Generation 1 re-issue by Hasbro- Hoist Generation 1 re-issue by Hasbro
- Jazz Generation 1 re-issue by Takara with box art signed by Pat Lee

- Transformers Generation 1 Volume 1 Hardcover Published by Dreamwave, signed by writer Chris Sarracini, penciller Pat Lee and a head sketch of Optimus Prime in the front cover.

- 1 uncut and unfolded foil cover of Transformers vs GI Joe published by Dreamwave Productions with art by Don Figueroa and signed by Pat Lee
- 1 poster of Transformers and GI Joe characters done by Pat Lee- 1 mini-poster of Transformers vs GI Joe: Divided Front with art and signed by Pat Lee
- Transformers Generation Volume 1 first print comics published by Dreamwave Productions
- Transformers: The War Within first print comics published by Dreamwave
- Transformers: Armada first print comics published by Dreamwave- 1 Megatron through the ages poster with art by Don Figueroa by Dreamwave Productions and signed by Pat Lee
- 7 free day passes to The Digital Underground

TASTE OF LESLIEVILLE/RIVERSIDE - gift certificates from the premier spots to eat out, have drinks and lounge around in Leslieville and Riverside! (from West to East)
- Dark Horse Cafe
- Pop Bistro
- The Burger Shoppe
- Soma Restaurant and Lounge
- The Citizen
- The Comrade
- Babycakes cupcakes by Kubo Radio
- Barrio
- a gift basket donated by the Cajun Corner
- Leslieville Cheese Market
- Baldini
- Leslie Jones
- Sushi Marche

The "CITY LIFESTYLE" prize package includes:
- one 2GB Silver iPod nano
- 1 lovely table runner donated by Leigh & James
- 1 pair of movie passes to any Cineplex Odeon/Famous Players movie theatre
- 1 pair of day passes to The Digital Underground
- 1 $10 gift certificate to Far Coast Lounge in Yorkville (one block west of Bay/Bloor)

The Runner up prizes are as follows:
THE SECOND IN THE CITY prize package consisting of:
- 1 pair of passes to any show from the hilarious guys at The Second City
- 1 pair of movie passes to any Cineplex Odeon/Famous Players movie theatre
- 1 $10 gift certificate to Far Coast Lounge in Yorkville (one block west of Bay/Bloor)

4 MOVIES IN THE CITY prize packages that includes:
2 movie passes to any Cineplex Odeon theatre

3 COFFEE, TEA, OR MOVIE prize package that includes:
- 1 gift certificate to Far Coast Lounge, 1 movie pass to any Cineplex Odeon Cinema

1 $20 Gift certificate to Chapters-Indigo donated by Katherine Lau

1 $20 Gift certificate to any Loblaws owned supermarket donated by Wendy Huang

The prize winners who are not present for the raffle draw will be contacted via phone or email.You cannot win more than one of the three Grand Prizes.Those who are closely connected to me are not eligible to win. Eg. close friends, family, etc.

What we've been up to!

Jason at Soma Restaurant and Lounge presenting a $50 gift certificate! For some odd reason, I keep on bumping into him at various venues through the Leslieville/Riverside neighbourhoods.. I think he may be stalking me.. lol. j/k :)

The friendly folks at Cajun Corner! Left to right are Glen, Karen and me.
The people from Hello Toast! saying a warm "Hello!" Left to right are Tony, Linda and me.
The Comrades at The Comrade! Left to right are me, Dean, Nikki and Ryan... awesomely cool cats! This picture looks like an album cover for a up and coming indie rock band :)

The totally chill guys at Barrio Lounge! Left to right are: Kevin, Yau-see, me and Mike

The supremely cool Michael Lee who is the Operations Manager at Scotiabank Theatre presenting the initiative 15 movie passes on behalf of Cineplex Odeon Cinemas!


Well! It's been quite the whirlwind these past few days! Recently I've picked up gift certifcates from Soma Restaurant and Lounge, The Comrade, Barrio, Hello Toast!, and Cineplex Odeon/Famous Players!

Besides the aforementioned sponsors, I also have gift certificates Baldini Italian restaurant, Leslieville Cheese Market, as well as an uber-awesome gift basket donated by the Cajun Corner.

As it stands, the other sponsors who have contributed to the cause, but where I'm still awaiting for due to scheduling conflicts are the lovely folks at Kubo Radio, and The Burger Shoppe.

I have also been in talks with the fine folks over at the Dark Horse Cafe, Pop Bistro, The Citizen, Sushi Marche and Leslie Jones. All of them have tentaviely verbally agreed to support the initiative and our fundraising efforts.

Furthermore, I am been in talks with the folks at Fare Bistro, I'm still trying to talk to the people at The Second City. After having attended roughly 7-hours of the hilarious and immensely enjoyable 24-hour The Second City That Never Sleeps show in benefit of the Therapeutic Clown Program at SickKids, added to the fact that I'm a student there will help me get these awesome guys on board.

As for the people who have politely declined being a part of this initiative or haven't replied are as follows: Pulp Kitchen, Reliable Fish and Chips, The Real Jerk, Dangerous Dan's and Tomi-kro.

I am glad things have progressed as far as they have. I have less than a week before I camp outside of Scotiabank Theatre (formerly Paramount) at John and Richmond Sts. I find that after having landed official SickKids fundraising event status, having the majority of the Riverside and Leslieville bars, restaurants and lounges on board, I have the clout, legitimacy and momentum to make this entire initiative to be a force for SickKids. Having Hasbro Canada, Far Coast Coffee Company and Cineplex Odeon add that the "knock-out blow" so to speak to make the prizes really sweet!

I'm pretty tempted to keep all this stuff to myself, but I can't ;) I'm sure the prize winners will thoroughly enjoy their prizes and at the same time have the peace of mind that their money went to a worthwhile cause.

I just had some insanely delcious sushi from Sushi Marche.. seriously.. it's some good stuff!

Amendments to raffle

As of now, all raffle tickets will cost $10 for 1 or $20 for 3. As it stands, those who have already donated $10 or more will receive a ticket and will be given the correct amount of tickets (eg. if you donated $100 you get 15 tickets etc.)

Furthermore, the way the prize packages will be awarded as follows for the three grand prizes.

1st person chosen from the raffle will get their choice in the three grand prizes offered.
2nd gets choices of the remaining two.
3rd gets the last of the grand prizes.

There will also be smaller prizes that will consist of Cineplex Odeon movie passes and free play passes to The Digital Underground.

REVISED EXPLANATION OF WHO WE ARE AND WHAT WE'RE ABOUT

How the TRANSFORMING FOR SICK KIDS Initiative came about, our ultimate vision and purpose can be explained in three ways:

I chose to raise money for the Hospital for Sick Kids because 15 years ago, when I was 10 years old, I was implicated in a bike accident that resulted with me having to undergo neurosurgery done by Dr. James T. Rutka to remove a blood clot on the right side of my head, resulting in 40+ stitches that can still be seen today. Had I not been under the excellent care of Dr. Rutka and the SickKids nursing staff, I would not be here amongst you.

I have LOVE and have a childhood PASSION for Transformers (the cartoon and line of toys). Since my birthday is coming up on July 4th, and I already feel materially fulfilled, the idea struck me that instead of receiving gifts why not give something? I arrived to the conclusion that I will be raising money in conjunction with the upcoming release of the Transformers live-action movie on July 3rd.

After having grown up in the neighbourhood of Leslieville/Riverside in all of my soon to be 25 years, I can confidently and proudly say that I LOVE MY NEIGHBOURHOOD. Having seen it change and grow throughout the years, I have a vested interest in seeing my neighbourhood and surrounding community prosper. So far I have procured a prize package from the majority of the restaurants, bars and lounges in my neighbourhood.

OUR DESIRED OUTCOME:

To raise awareness for the SickKids Foundation and what they do in terms of raising money to support pediatric medical research
Since I haven’t undertaken anything of this magnitude or have any prior experience in terms of not-for-profit fundraising, I have set a target of $5000 as a modest amount.

THE PRIZE PACKAGES SO FAR:

We will be raising money through a raffle format, ticket prices have been set at $20 each, and ALL PROCEEDS will go directly to the SickKids Foundation.
So far I have put some of my personal Transformers memorabilia and other items as part of prize packages. I have 3 main prize packages that are still works in progress as follows:

ULTIMATE Transformers Geek - I have donated a part of my personal memorabilia to start off this prize package. I have secured HASBRO CANADA as the premier sponsor (money and toys, which will soon be revealed) as well as retailer sponsors such as One Million Comix and Hairy Tarantula.

Taste of Leslieville/Riverside District - this prize package of gift certificates and gift baskets made possible by the fine sponsors of the Leslieville/Riverside District neighbourhoods. So far we have The Burger Shoppe, Soma Restaurant & Lounge, The Comrade, Babycake Cupcakes by Kubo Radio, Leslieville Cheese Market, Cajun Corner, Barrio, and Hello Toast
"City Lifestyle" – I bought and donated a 2 GB iPod nano for this prize package, as well as secured sponsorship from Far Coast Coffee company (located one block west of Bay/Bloor, a Coca Cola owned company), a $20 gift certificate to any Loblaws companies, a lovely table runner from furniture store Leigh & James, as well as a $20 gift certificate to Chapters-Indigo.

I am currently in talks with the fine folks at the Second City to donate gift certificates to their wickedly funny improv shows. Furthermore, I have talked to the people the Scotiabank Famous Players Theatre for movie gift certificates and they will be letting us know what their generous contribution will be shortly.

WHAT WE WILL BE DOING TO PROMOTE THIS INITIATIVE:

We plan on camping out for 3 days and 3 nights (from June 30th – July 3rd) outside of the Scotiabank Theatre (formerly Paramount) to be first in line for the 12:01 AM showing of Transformers at the high-traffic intersection of John & Richmond Streets. We are still pending permission by the City of Toronto to get the official go ahead.

We have also created a FACEBOOK (a social networking site) group aptly named, TRANSFORMING FOR SICK KIDS, which can be found through a simple search or at http://ryerson.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2360543937. ANYONE AND EVERYONE is welcome and encouraged to join. Currently we have 207 members in this group and it continues to grow.

To get more widespread publicity, myself and my team are planning to go outside of 102.1 The Edge radio station, located on Yonge and Shuter Streets with huge signs indicating our cause in order to get free publicity on the Dean Blundell Show at 6 AM on either June 25th or 26th (don’t worry Sophie, I’ll be at work on time ;)


HOW YOU CAN HELP:

The truth of the matter is although I’m not financially able to make a significant monetary donation to fund their pediatric medical research as I’m about to be fresh out of school. I am however, able to muster every bit of determination, wit, charm, intelligence and social skills within me to inspire others, create awareness for this cause and to ultimately make something HAPPEN.

If you feel you would like to buy a raffle ticket or make a donation of any amount you want, I would be greatly appreciative of your generous contribution to this cause.

As we are an official SickKids Fundraising event, we are also able to issue tax receipts for any donations $10 or more in order to have your donation be tax deductible

So far, I have raised $1055, which is $3955 from our ultimate goal of $5000. To contribute and donate to this cause, myself and my team have pledge forms ready.

Plus, for every person who donates in person, with your permission I’d like to take a picture with you and acknowledge your generous donation of any amount, which will be posted on the TRANSFORMING FOR SICK KIDS Blog and Facebook Group.

Updates, more sponsors and other odds & ends

Another donor! Pictured above is an old friend of mine, Mike Kim.

It's been a hectic few days. One of the outcomes I envisioned for the initiative's event, where I could camp out for 3 days might be slightly toned down due to legal issues. I had went to Cineplex Odeon's Scotiabank Theatre (formerly Paramount) to get their approval and blessing for the event and possibly get sponsorship with them donating a few movie gift certificates.

I did get sponsorship from one of the manager's named Mike and he had told me they would donate a "generous amount." I am still awaiting his reply. With regards to camping out overnight, I was basically told was that the sidewalk isn't Cineplex Odeon property, but rather the City of Toronto's and I'd have to talk to the City of Toronto or Toronto Police Services in order to have the event go on without any problems.

I called the City of Toronto, and their Right of Way office, which issues permits to close down streets for events, and the lady who had answered me said that I would need to talk to Toronto Police Services.

I call Toronto Police Services, and was directed towards their Community Response Unit at 52 Division. I ended up talking to a Mr. Rod Fraser and he had told me that the Sargeant responsible for these issues was out on the road. I left my contact info with Mr. Fraser in hopes that that Sargeant will reply to me

I know it's a HUGE thing to ask from the Toronto Police Services, but with the sheer fact that I got the go ahead and approval by SickKids will be able to count as "clout." Anyways, I've a contingency plan in the works to make this an awesome event.

Stay tuned kids!

More sponsors!

Hey all, time for another update! So as you can see by all the purdy pictures I posted, I was able to drum up a little more support! The featured sponsors are Cajun Corner and Leslieville Cheese Market.

Cajun Corner, is a quaint little place where you can get REAL Cajun food in Leslieville, Karen, one of the owners of this fine establishment was kind enough to commit to a gift basket donation filled with all sorts of Cajun goodies on the spot, and was even kind enough to wrap it up and make it all pretty :)

Michael Simpson, the long-haired gentleman who owns a pretty wicked Scion car, was generous enough to give a free "Night School for Cheese Fans" voucher.

The cute chick, Katherine Lau, was supremely cool to pick up not one, not two, but THREE gifts to donate to the Initiative's prize packages. The first is a Transformers Movie guide, the second a Transformers encylopedia of sorts, and the third a $20 gift certificate to Chapters-Indigo!

As you can see on the bottom picture, The SickKids Foundation has sent me their promotional materials which I will be utilizing during my stint outside of Scotiabank theatre.

So far for the "Taste of Leslieville" prize package, I've assembled:

• a gift basket from Cajun Corner
  
• a voucher to "Night School for Cheese Fans" provided by Leslieville Cheesemarket
• a $25 to Baldini Italian restaurant
• a $50 voucher by the fine folks at The Comrade (Dean, Nikki and Ryan)
  
• an awesome table runner provided by the fine folks Leigh & James (also Dean and Nikki!)

There's more to come, just wait and see :)

Accountability

As promised, a lot of the concern about running a not-for-profit initiative is how the funds are properly accounted for. Here's a screenshot of the funds collected to date.

More sponsors!

BIG Announcements!

Yesterday I received an email at 7:32 AM from a gentleman who turns out to be a senior brand manager at a prominent company. He had expressed his and his company's interest in becoming involved with the TRANSFORMING FOR SICK KIDS Initiative.

I won't reveal who it is officially until I craft together the prize package. After having submitted the proposal on last Friday afternoon, I really was quite shocked to check my email to find that they replied. Once I assemble and finalize the prize package, I'll make the awesome announcement!

The other big announcement was that I landed Official Sick Kids Event Status! I decided to drop by the SickKids Foundation at 525 University Avenue on the 14th floor in order to expedite the approval process, set up a face-to-face meeting and to . Thankfully, Katie - the Community Involvement Coordinator - took some time out of her day to speak with me briefly. I had told her about the Initiative and my time at Sick Kids when I was implicated in my accident, as well as who I had been in contact with for sponsorship. I think the tipping point was when I had dropped the fact that I had secured the prominent company, she knew I wasn't messing around. Later that day at 7:32 PM, I received a email indicating that the Initiative had been approved as an Official SickKids Fundraising Event!

The TRANSFORMING FOR SICK KIDS Initiative is LEGITIMATE NOW! Booyah! :D

Pix of donators!

Top image is Loretta Ho, second is my co-worker John Huynh. The third one is me being a dork at work. Credit Carla for taking this pic. :)

Keepin' on truckin'

Above is a picture with me and Sal - the owner of Baldini, Leslieville's quaint Italian restaurant - presenting me with a gift certificate of $25

Sooo.. it's been another interesting and productive day while exploring the neighbourhood and looking for more sponsors.

I talked to a couple more restaurant/store owners today and here are the people I had secured gift certificates with for the "Taste of Leslieville/Riverside" prize package I'm assembling:

• Karen at the Cajun Corner agreed immediately, I didn't really have to go into my whole "pitch." I appreciated her being so warm, friendly and open to supporting this Initiative. I'll be picking up the gift basket she's donating her on Wed, June 13th. I told her I was headed to Leslieville Cheese market next and her specific words were to say, "Karen sent me over to guilt you into helping us out." ... lol.
  
• Next up was Michael Simpson over at Leslieville Cheese Market, and he was receptive. I gave him my proposal and business card and explained to him further what I was doing. He agreed (I think it might have been the guilt tripping that worked.. thanks Karen!)
• Walked over to The Burger Shoppe to meet with Mustafa and pick up the gift certificate. He was out of town in New York City. Oh well, he must have forgot. I'll meet with him later this week.
• Saw Peter on the street, the owner of Soma Restaurant & Lounge to discuss the gift certificate. I think it might have been the awkward approach. He didn't seem to happy, I guess it was a bad day for him. He told me to see him sometime on weekdays.
• Met with Sal, the owner Baldini - the only Italian restaurant in Leslieville/Riverside. He read the proposal from the last time I met with him and he presented the gift certificate to me right there and then. The picture shows my gratitude to him.
• Next up was Hello Toast, this cozy little restaurant known for its brunches. I had talked to the owner, Tony Barnaby and he agreed on the spot to provide a gift certificate that entailed a free brunch for two. He told me to pick up the gift certificate with his business partner (wife?) Linda tomorrow.

Pretty productive stroll around the neighbourhood. Secured 3 more sponsors to make this a truly great prize package that is representative of the majority of bars/restaurants in my neighbourhood. I'm feeling pretty good.

Another addition to the prize packages!

I just picked it up about half an hour ago at Chapters-Indigo with my gift certificates and plunked down a little more to pick this up. Hopefully this will sweeten the raffle a little bit more for donators.

The two pictures below are the "Transformers geek" prize package that I've built so far... the Optimus prime sketch is in the Hardcover comic, signed by Pat Lee.

Movie release date changed!!!

So it turns out after burying myself underneath all this work with regards to the Initiative, I just found out that the Transformers movie will be released one day earlier and not on my birthday :(

Oh well.. no biggie, I guess it just means I get an early birthday present from Hasbro. hehe. :)

The news of the day...!

Okay, so I signed on another two sponsors today. Far Coast Coffee located one block west of Yonge and Bloor and Hairy Tarantula located one block south of Yonge and Gerrard.

To tell you a little bit about my encounter at the cool cats at Far Coast, I first started frequenting this place after having found out about it after winning a $50 gift certificate from the Leave the Pack Behind contest at Ryerson. I didn't really know what to expect but they I was impressed with the rustic feel of the place, and how meticulously well thought out this joint was in terms of being "green." Anyway, over time, I got to know a couple of the staff there, Aaron the Stats guy from UofT, Ryan the recent graduate from Ryerson's ITM program. Nas(?), the journalism graduate from Ryerson and Tara, the girl with one of the warmest smiles I've ever seen in my life. I have to say they kinda helped me in securing this sponsor, as I was chit-chatting with them for a bit, before I decided I wanted to speak to their store manager and get down to business.

I asked for his name from Aaron, to which he replied, "Mike." I nodded in acknowledgement, then scooted over along the counter to the gentleman who looked to be tabulating or organizing the store's receipts. As usual, I went into my pitch off the cuff, and he was receptive to it.

I shared with him my geeky passion of Transformers, and he reciprocated with some dialogue from Top Gun, the movie. It turns out he remembered the entire script. lol. I felt we bonded. I gave him my business proposal and my business card. He said he could hook me up with a bunch of gift certificates. Sweet and score! I thank him kindly, say bye to everyone and I'm back to work... 15 minutes on top of my 15 minute break. oops.. ;)

Next store I try, Indigo books. This was relatively quick and painless as they do their charitable donations through their corporate head office. Turns out the CEO, Heather Reisman has a WING named after her for her contributions to the Hospital for Sick Kids. lol. Damn.. I thank the manager that I talked to and leave with my tail between my legs.

Finally at the end of the day after work, I dropped by Hairy Tarantula and asked a gentleman by the name of Nina if I could speak to Leon and told him I'm a friend of Franz. I was told to wait about 20 minutes because he was coming back from their west end sister-store, HairyT West.

20 minutes pass, and there you have it, Leon shows up. He pretty much tells me to cut to chase as he was already primed by Franz. After telling him what I was using the money for he looks into himself says, "cool." Reaches down for a box, and as I'm wondering what he's doing, he cuts open the box and presents to me a box of the new Transformers 3D Battle-card game, which is presented by JUGGERNAUT.. the cat. The pictures tell the tale of the exchange.

Sponsors secured to date!

So I went out for round 2 yesterday afternoon, and... the results were mixed. Don't get me wrong, I did secure sponsors as the title of this blog entry indicates, but what I mean by "mixed" is the awful feeling of being rejected. I knew that there was the certainty that a couple people that I would approach might be so receptive to such proposals, but when you have such an attachment to a cause, it's not easy to say, "okay, fine, I respect what you have to say, have a fine day sir/ma'am."

This illustrates the human tendency of being attached to an outcome when you've put effort into anything. You WANT to have it go in your favour. And by not having something swing towards favour, you have a sudden feeling of less, or not being validated because of your conviction of the cause being so noble/worthy.

To date, I'll start with the complete and utter failures in terms of me selling the proposal and stirring up interest for the cause. My first destination was Baldini. I had come prepared, all spiffed up and ready to fire on all cylinders, fully expecting to see "Tony," a man who purported himself to be the owner of the Italian restaurant, when in fact he wasn't and was just a waiter.

This was the exchange:

Me to waiter: Hi! Is Tony here??
Stewart (the waiter): Huh? Who's that?
Me: Oh, is this place under new management?
S: not to my knowledge...
Me: Can I speak to the owner?... (fully expecting Tony to come out)
S: okay
S: Here's Sal, the owner

When I meet Sal, the owner, I'm doubly flabbergasted as he was brown, and I never recalled Tony being brown.. only as a short, lanky and gay Italian male.

Sal: What's your business here?
Me: *going into my pitch off the cuff* ... wasn't the prettiest one as I was thrown off big time.

Anyway, cutting to the chase, I amicably and politely tell him that I hope he considers the proposal, fully expecting that he wasn't gonig to be receptive at all. I move along to the next spot - Dangerous Dan's.

Dangerous Dan's is the local greasy spoon. Big fat guy, that I had addressed as "Dan." Needless to say, he wasn't really receptive as he does a good amount for charity apparently, working with Queen Alexandara Sr. School up the street. I think the interaction may have went downhill, not for how I delivered it, but it had to do with his name.

Next stop, The Booze Emporium, they're not open yet so I'm off to The Burger Shoppe. I've checked this place out once and I have to admit their burgers are tasty. A fresher and simpler alternative to Dangerous Dan's, revolving around a 50's is theme. They will definitely become a neighbourhood rival for "Top Greasy Spoon", as they had a good amount of traffic flowing in and out. So I make my way into the small restaurant, and present myself to Mustafa - the owner, we met before and had made some small talk, starting with my usual "Welcome to the neighbourhood!" whenever a new bar/restaurant opens up.

After talking to Mustafa for a while, he's warm, friendly and seems to be receptive, and he offers to donate a gift certificate to The Burger Shoppe. NICE! Another one for the team. I'm happy and I shake his hand vigourously, and we make plans to meet so I can pick up the gift certificate at 2 PM this upcoming Saturday.

Soma Restaurant & Lounge: drop by and re-introduce myself to the cute bartender, Courtney. She has a nice smile, I smile back in kind, but course asking if I could speak to the owner for a business proposal. She agrees and tries to get the owner, but to no avail - he's just about to step out. Feeling rejected, I say thanks for finding out for me, maybe I"ll drop by afterwards for a drink and politely excuse myself for the next and last place to check out on my list.

Pop Bistro - worst reaction yet, it was either Mark or Joe (can't remember whose name was who's), probably wouldn't even give me the time of day because the restaurant was "closed" even though the door was open. I guess I came in at the wrong time as he was about to step out. He wanted to shoo me out of there and get me to bugger off, which I politely do and move on to the next stop.

The Real Jerk - a trendy Caribbean restaurant that has been a cornerstone of the Leslieville/Riverside Community for well over 15 years, most notably recognized by the huge smiling Sun logo on the front of the building. I had dropped by here once to have some Oxtail, recommended by Clay, the owner's son.

I made the pitch to him, and he seemed very receptive. He appreciated my politeness and still remembered me from way back when I last visited him in January. I guess I made a good impression. He said he'd pass it on to his parents, and they would probalby be more than receptive to donating a gift certificate. Not a yes, but still not a no. I'm feeling good about it.

By now, I'm pooped, and I go back to Soma for a shot of tequila and a martini to unwind. This has been one of the more challenging things I've encountered this year - going into a business, and asking for something, for which they have no immediate tangible benefit, only the promise of benefits in the future. I banter with Courtney the bartender a bit more, definitely no flirty vibe, darn it.. must be my energy level. We share about our passions for retro 80s music and she recommends me an 80s group I've never heard of before that she had played on the stereo system - Level 42. I quickly jot it down. Chill out a bit more, and then call up Bonnie to arrange a meet up as I know she's good with Advertising as she was a graduate from the OCAD program for Advertising Design.

We end up going back to Barrio, not for alcohol, but for drinks, and it was an AMAZINGLY productive meeting. She definitely knows her shit. Got a lot of new and fresh insights. After this session, we ending up parting ways, with me giving her a huge bear hug, and inducting her as an official part of the team. Her working title officer name is "BoonieTron" I will come up with something better and more geeky later on.

So to update you on the current situation, I've secured One Million Comix, Barrio, The Burger Shoppe and Kubo Radio and their Babycakes cupcake brand.

Next up, I'll be going back to Booze Emporium, hit up The Comrade, Leslieville Cheese Market, Joy Bistro, Pulp Kitchen, the local Starbucks, Amato Pizza, and the Indigo in my workplace building. Should be fun...

THE WORKING LOGO SO FAR! Thanks to Franz for conceptualizing, drawing and colouring the current logo.

My foray into the REAL world

After finishing the business proposal about 3 hours ago, I felt time was of the essence and set out to drum up support for this cause. It's one thing to conceptualize an idea, communicate the vision, and get support from family/friends. It's whole other thing when it comes to approaching small entrepreneurs/businesspersons in your neighbourhood.

The first restaurant that I had visited was Kubo Radio. I have been a patron of this place for over a year. I would consider this place my local watering hole. Their wait staff consists of friendly people once they warm up to you. I readily endorse this place and bring all my friends to it because it has a great atmosphere and vibe, as well as an innovative menu prepared by Chef Mitch (I don't know his last name).

The proposed the idea to Mitch, and he was very receptive of the proposal and gave kudos to me, which I thank him for, but he had told me to get in contact and email Leslie, as he's the owner/proprietor of Kubo Radio. He told me that he was really busy and that his business partner from LA had come to town, but told me to email him, to which I replied I already did. He said he'd get in contact with me to meet up for a few minutes so he could hear my pitch. I *really* hope this works out as I have the highest respect for him and his wait staff.

Next up was Barrio - a lovely bar to hang out and take dates on. lol. They weren't open yet, so I went next door to a neat Vegetarian restaurant by the name of Pulp Kitchen. I had talk to Susanna, the manager there at the time, and she said the owner wasn't around, but told me to fire off and email and said good luck to me in this "worthy cause." I thank her, got a business card and went to the next place.

Undeterred, I dropped by Joy Bistro, which was a 20 second walk away. They were first of the new wave of "quality" restaurants, bars and lounges to set up shop in Leslieville. I had talked to what looked like to be the manager there and asked for "Dan" - the owner. He quickly corrected me and said his name was in fact, "Ted." Really big fuck up on my part, and definitely a step in the wrong direction. I apologized and exchanged pleasantries, with the manager telling me Ted was busy and that he'll get him to give me a call afterwards. I'll try to touch base with Ted again, tomorrow.

Afterwards, went to Carbon Computing. They were polite, and weren't as receptive, as they were there to "make money." I told Alex, the Retail Manager there, that I wanted to talk to the owner. Instead, he offered the card to a Cory Vosper, the Marketing Coordinator. I'll email him and ask him to escalate it to the owner/proprietor of their company. I'm crossing my fingers for that one.

Finally, I went to The Comrade, this really small, yet charming lounge, that is inspired by Vietnamese influences. Whatever your imagining right now, you're way off. You have to see in order to feel the charm and character that this place exudes. Anyway, that was going off on a tangent.. they were closed on Mondays, so I'm going to pay them a visit tomorrow.

So far, my realizations have been numerous:

• I need to dress in business attire to ooze some sort of credibility - wearing birkenstocks, jeans, a Depeche Mode t-shirt, and Oakley Juliet sunglasses worn on top of your head apparently doesn't convey that.
• I need to further refine my approach, be more WARM, speak with conviction, passion, and harness all the charm in every fibre of my body to sell this business proposal to all people I come across.
• it's one thing to ask a person for commitment for what you want to say, it's another thing when it's for CHARITY. I can pinpoint the second they go into a dismissive tone, hoping that I would shuffle off and bug someone else.

I'm not letting up on this. I'm going in for Round 2, and I'll be picking up my drycleaning and paying a visit to the following places this evening:

• The Burger Shoppe
• Dangerous Dan's
• The Real Jerk
• Baldini
• Soma Restaurant and Lounge
• Pop Bistro
• Dark Horse Cafe
• The Booze Emporium

Wish me luck guys... I'll report the results later on this evening.

How to send funds to TRANSFORMING FOR SICK KIDS via Email Money Transfer

*** THIS OPTION IS AVAILABLE TO CANADIAN RESIDENTS ONLY***


This option is made available to those who cannot meet me in person. If you choose to send funds electronically, PLEASE KEEP IN MIND THAT THERE IS A $1.50 SERVICE CHARGE that applies when sending Interac Email Money Transfers (EMT).

BUT, depending on what kind of banking plan you have, you may have a certain limit of free EMTs per month, so you won't incur any additional costs.

First, to send an EMT you need to have a bank account with BMO, TDBank, CIBC, Scotiabank or RBC.

As each bank’s EMT process layout is different from one another, I have screenshots up on how BMO Bank of Montreal has their EMT system set-up (since I have a banking plan with them). It will give you a general idea of how to send an EMT step-by-step and how easy it is.

ALSO, I ASK THAT YOU LOOK INTO THE STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTIONS PROVIDED TO YOU THROUGH YOUR OWN RESPECTIVE BANK AS OTHER BANK MIGHT HAVE SOME SUBTLE NUANCES ON HOW TO SEND EMAIL MONEY TRANSFERS, THANKS!

THE ACCOUNT NUMBER IS: 0389-3374-854 and the email address is: transformingforsickkids@gmail.com

DESCRIPTION OF WHAT TRANSFORMING FOR SICK KIDS CHARITY INITIATIVE IS ABOUT

THIS IS A REPOST FROM MY FACEBOOK GROUP:
http://ryerson.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2360543937

GREETINGS EVERYONE!

So some of you are wondering what is TRANSFORMING FOR KIDS all about? I want to tell you the short story first and then the longer second story.

THE SHORTER STORY: I like Transformers. I like birthdays. I like movies. I like Transformers movies that are RELEASED on my birthday. I also like non-profit organizations that help Sick Kids that aren't just from the Greater Toronto Area, but also all over the world. That's the short version. So please join this group and if you have the time, read the longer story ;)

THE LONGER STORY: This is for those who may not know me that well (or at all). If you’ve ever met me, upon meeting me, most of you will realize that I'm extremely social, I've got a scar the size of Texas on the right side of my head when I’m sportin’ a new haircut, I’m a total geek and I have a PASSION for all things Transformers. I've joked for quite some time having known of the release date of the Transformers live-action movie being released (July 4th, 2007) on my birthday, where I'd tell people:"I'll be the FIRST in line at Scotiabank Theatre (formerly Paramount) in Toronto, holding my uber-cool Masterpiece Edition Optimus Prime toy, wearing even my equally super-freaking cool Transformers t-shirt, with a grin from ear-to-ear."THE

PURPOSE/IDEA:During Victoria Day (May 21st) while fireworks were going off, like a bolt out of the blue an idea popped into my head. Instead of going out and having fun with my close circle of friends for my birthday and then probably receiving gifts from my friends, I decided why not give and raise money for a worthy cause? I already feel fulfilled materially, I have a great circle of friends and I’m just about done school and I’ve got a bright future ahead.

THE DESIRED OUTCOME:I want to raise at least $5000 in money and toys for the Sick Kids Foundation and to promote awareness of the fun in Transformers for both adults and children alike. I will both be staying up overnight for the duration of the long weekend, selling tickets and administering the auction to reach this target. I will donate everything from donations, the raffle and auctions to the Sick Kids Foundation.

MY REASONS FOR CHOOSING THE SICK KIDS FOUNDATION:For those who may or may not know, at the age of 10, I had been implicated in a bike accident and smashed my head on a sidewalk behind my house after being involved in a local "bike race" of sorts that went awry on my part. Long story short, I had a blood clot on the side of my head and I needed neurosurgery done by Dr. James T. Rutka at Sick Kids, that’s why I have a scar the size of Texas on the right side of my head. Anyways, I remember it being pretty bleak while I was in the hospital waiting for the surgery and consequently recovering after I had the surgery. I didn't really do much besides play with the shitty toys they had there and some Super Mario World that they had available on the Super Nintendo. Not entirely fun. Since I benefited so much from the services and care that Sick Kids provided to me as a child, that’s why I chose this organization.

WHAT I WILL BE DOING:I will be camping out overnight for the upcoming Canada Day Long weekend in front of the Scotiabank Theatre (formerly Paramount) in order to become the first in line for the 12:01 showing of TRANSFORMERS on my birthday, July 4th. If I’m not the first, I’ll try to be charming/convincing enough to be first in line. If that doesn’t happen, I’ll have to physically intimidate people and force my way to the front. If you’re a big burly dude, and since I’m not very tough, I’ll have to send my team of specially trained Transformer bots armed with proton-laser blasters and turn you to a pile of ashes… just kidding ;)Additionally, I’ll be taking items from my personal collection of Transformers memorabilia amongst other geeky stuff, and put them up for auction on eBay. All proceeds will go towards the Sick Kids Foundation.As for the raffle, up for grabs are 7 gift certificates for Chapters-Indigo valued at $20 each and 1 gift certificate valued at $15.69. These gift certificates are mine, but I'm probably not going to put them to much use so I'm putting them up for the raffle. There will be additional raffle prizes added as I search for more sponsors.

HOW CAN YOU DONATE AND QUALIFY FOR THE RAFFLE?I will be selling raffle tickets personally. To qualify for the raffle, I ask that you donate at least $20Every time you donate to me in person or any of my other friends/team members, we will take a picture of you and post it in these forums and on the blog.I will be shortly putting up instructions in discussion area, on how to donate electronically for all of you technologically inclined people. You can either donate via Email Money Transfer or through PayPal if you’re not based in Canada.What YOU can do to help:It would mean a lot to me (and EVEN MORE to the Sick Kids that benefit from the Foundation) if instead of giving something to me for my birthday (for those of you who personally know me), that you donate whatever monetary amount you deem fit to the Sick Kids Foundation or a Transformers toy/any other toy. If donating money isn’t your thing, then I ask you if you have the time, volunteer your time/services to not just the Sick Kids Foundation, but any other organization to add value to society. It’ll be fulfilling and FEEL GOOD… Trust me. :)

PLEASE NOTE: THERE WILL BE AMENDMENTS TO THIS. I'VE NEVER DONE THIS BEFORE SO PLEASE OFFER CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM ONLY. THANKS!

BUILDING STEAM WITH A GRAIN OF SALT

Although this is my second day really going at this event, I feel big things are looming over the horizon. I'm getting in touch with sponsors for raffle prizes, the small ones and even the BIG ones. I've already been in contact with fine folks at One Million Comix for possible sponsorship. I've built a great relationship with these guys as they're customer service oriented and go great lengths to make their customers happy. Also, I've recruited the help of my close friend Franz who is works occasionally with the people over at the Hairy Tarantula and is a regular patron at 401 Games. The BIG one I'm going after is Hasbro, which owns the North American rights to the intellectual property pertaining to anything Transformers.

I'll be seeking more sponsors and will probably check out the different restaurants in my neighbourhood and see if they could help out with a gift certificate or two in exchange for acknowledgement of their support of this campaign on my facebook group, the blog dedicated to this campaign, and have their logos emblazoned on the t-shirts I will be wearing during my camping outing outside of Scotiabank Theatre up till the movie premieres.

Next on my list of targets: Kubo Radio, Barrio, Soma Restaurant & Lounge, The Burger Shoppe, Dangerous Dan's, The Comrade, and Baldini, all of which are restaurants in the neighbourhood that I live in, which I love <3

TRANSFORM AND ROLL OUT

*Phew!*
It looks like I've finally go things coming along. So far, today I've:

• set up a chequing account specifically to deal with the donation funds
  
• submitted my event proposal form to Sick Kids Foundation
  
• got the facebook group finally up and running
  
• sent out all the invites to the group
  
• targeted other Transformers facebook groups
  
• Next up is to get the raffle tickets, drum up some business for potential sponsors, look at custom t-shirt prices. Only time will tell.. I'm crossing my fingers for this one..

TRANSFORMING FOR SICK KIDS IS A GO!

As the fireworks were going off on Victoria Day, like a bolt out of the blue an idea popped into my head. For quite some time now, I was anticipating my birthday for this year. The reason being that Transformers: The Movie is out on July 4th as well.

With the movie out on my birthday, I knew it would be the perfect opportunity to not only get in touch with my geeky side, but my inner-child as well since I've been ranting and raving about Transformers since Pat Lee's comic company, Dreamwave Productions, had won the rights and produced the comics in 2002.

I had always wanted to make this year's birthday super-fun by geeking it out with friends and watch the movie for the 12:01 showing. I jokingly mentioned that I'd be first in line wearing a homemade Transformers costume made out of boxes that could actually transform into something that resembled a vehicle... until I thought about it again for another 10 seconds and concluded that bringing my Masterpiece Edition Optimus Prime decked out in my Decepticons t-shirt would suffice.

Seriously though, after going on a tangent to explain the background you're probably curious about what that idea that came out like a "bolt like a blue" was huh? To reward you for your patience, the idea was that I camp overnight (for a night or two) to be first in line at Scotiabank Theatre (formerly Paramount) and while doing so, for the month going into my birthday, collect donations of new or old Transformers toys and donate it to the Sick Kids Foundation so that those kids can become immersed in a world of good and evil, hope, valour and honour and have freaking big ass robots battle it out. lol. You see, I have a PASSION for all things Transformers. You have no idea. The very notion of lining up to be first in line (and possibly campnig out) for the Transformers movie, spreading the love and bringing attention Transformers (and my love for it), and doing this for a worthy cause (such as Sick Kids) doesn't even make me flinch.

But then I thought to myself, "why should it stop there"? What about little girls who aren't really into robots kicking each others asses?... I then thought of the gender disparity.. I'm not sure what girls from the ages of 3-12 play with these days, but Transformers toys would probably be low on their pecking order. So I revised the limitation of just having Transformers toys and expanding it to old toys AND monetary donations.

My reasons for choosing the Sick Kids Foundation? For those who may or may not know, at the age of 10, I had been implicated in a bike accident and smashed my head on a sidewalk behind my house after being involved in a local "bike race" of sorts that went awry on my part. Long story short, I had a blood clot on the side of my head and I needed neurosurgery done by Dr. James T. Rutka at Sick Kids. Hence the stitches on the side of my head. Anyways, I remember it being pretty bleak while I was in the hospital waiting for the surgery and consequently recovering after I had the surgery. I didn't really do much besides play with the shitty toys they had there and some Super Mario World that they had available on the Super Nintendo. Not entirely fun. But since I benefitted so much from the services and care that Sick Kids provided to me as a child, that's why I chose this organization.

Sure, you might say that's all fine and dandy. "Cool! That's a pretty good cause, Will! I'LL SUPPORT YOU!" WAIT! It doesn't end there, I even came up with a title for the event.. TRANSFORMING FOR SICK KIDS! Cool isn't it?? Hold on a sec there, bub.. not too fast .. I want to let you in on something - I am doing this for own reasons and they're not completely altruistic. I'm doing it for my own self reasons as well, being that it FEELS GOOD to help others.
When I fully articulated my vision to a close friend of mine, she had expressed her concerns and reservations on the notion of "charity", which made me think more about what I was doing and how it would affect others.

Honestly, I didn't think about it that deeply at first as I was caught up on how FUN it would have been to involve my close friends on this. Raising money for a worthy cause, spreading my love and passion for Transformers, bringing awareness of the live-action movie, AND it being on my birthday?!? I'm so there there!!!.... or not..

Having heard that rant on the limitations of charity and people who benefit from charity being "indebted"... made me... depressed.. It honestly took the wind right out of my sails so to speak.. and that's where I am right now.. I formulated a very rough action plan and made a list of my resources.. but I'm at a standstill.. and not sure on whether this is the most worthwhile thing to do after all. Maybe I was disappointed because I didn't have the full support of that person.

The other day, I talked to that person, and have it resolved. I've finally got things started up and going!