Special Thank Yous

In this season of thanks, I am very thankful for a bunch of wonderful people.

Everybody who participated in the recent Valour-IT fundraising competition deserves the thanks of all involved, and the thanks of those who will benefit from the funds raised. But there are certain people who played particularly significant roles in the startling success of the endeavor.

The Team Leaders were the heart and soul of the competition, its most visible participants, and the single biggest reason for its success. They donated their blog space and significant time to publicizing Valour-IT, encouraging donations, writing inspiring commentary, and coming up with creative fundraising ideas such as the auctions. Valour-IT and Soldiers' Angels extend their humble thanks to team leaders Holly Aho, Mrs. Greyhawk, Smash, and Blackfive. You guys were amazing!!

Others also played important roles...

NZ Bear was one of the first big bloggers to step up and publicize the competition. Thanks to him, we ended up linked on Instapundit and countless smaller blogs that first discovered Valour-IT through NZ Bear's post on his homepage. He also helped Holly set up our registration page for the competition teams.

Hugh Hewitt mentioned Valour-IT multiple times on his radio show and made several posts about it on his blog. With his millions of listeners and readers, his efforts had a significant impact.

Michelle Malkin also stepped up and brought Valour-IT to the notice of her numerous readers. It was thanks to her that the first Saturday of the competition was much more active than had been expected. She made several posts about Valour-IT, including mentioning the team totals. The website was still getting hits from her links a week after the competition was over.

Mike Wallster was the first of the cartoonists to step up to the plate for Valour-IT. He created two great cartoons that bloggers used to get out the word about Valour-IT and help people understand how important it is (Tip o' the hat to Bill Faith, who brought Mike onto the team).

Cox & Forkum popped up with an amazing cartoon that captured the spirit and mission of Valour-IT in a single frame. They gave the rights to Valour-IT, and auctioned off the original to raise $650 for the competition.

Chris Muir of Day by Day jumped in with his auction offer of a personalized cartoon strip, raising $571 for Valour-IT.

Tim Sumner of 9-11 Famlies for America brought Valour-IT to the attention of Mark Levin. Levin has the highest rated drive-time talk show in NYC, and he encouraged his listeners to donate. Thanks to both of them, we received a number of large donations from the NYC area.

Besides blogging about Valour-IT, numerous other bloggers and a blogless Valour-IT supporter offered up their talents and possessions to inspire donations. Tremendous thanks go to all of you for your wonderful efforts that made the Veteran's Day fundraising competition such a marvelous success.

Special thanks also go to the brave Carren Ziegenfuss who did a terrific job in her first TV appearance, and CPT Chuck Ziegenfuss who didn't let his medically-induced mental haze keep him from successfully pitching Valour-IT to the Secretary of the Army from his hospital bed.

Due to the efforts of those described above (and countless others), Valour-IT is now on the map. We have received multiple inquiries from corporations interested in supporting Valour-IT, as well as media contacts who would like to know more. Soldiers' Angels is now making Valour-IT an important part of their general fundraising. Additionally, there are exciting things happening that will be announced soon, involving a signficant veterans' support group and the U.S. government (stay tuned!).

On this Thanksgiving Eve, I am extremely grateful for the extraordinary supporters of Valour-IT who have moved it from dream to reality. When seen in the light of the veterans' lives that will be impacted, the value of your work on behalf of Valour-IT is beyond calculation.

May you all be blessed as much as will be the wounded warriors whose lives you have touched.