Essay #6: Letter to Faygo and Children's Hospital sent 12/3/2009

When the contest ended on 12/1, we were a few hundred votes ahead (we had almost 1700)--there shouldn't be any issue. The announcement comes on 12/15. Thanks again. Drink your Faygo!

I sent this note to Faygo tonight. I wanted to let Faygo know that they essentially have a free commercial here, if they want it.

I carbon copied my contact at Children's Hospital. This was my way of letting Ellen to know that we're coming. I always see people like Brandon Inge and Nick Lidstrom actually doing things with the kids. I'd prefer the "spend some time there" approach, versus "pass it over the counter" approach. Maybe giving some notice would help. We'll see.

Someone mentioned the idea of having a Wii Delivery Party ahead of time at one of the local establishments (Cheli's? Hockeytown?) on the day of delivery, for anyone interested. Count me in.

But first things first--they have to name the winners.
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Dear Faygo,

I am a big believer in random acts of kindness--I feel that it lifts the spirits of the giver, as well much as the recipient. I also believe in the strong bonds of family and friendship. Lastly, I believe in giving back.

I am a lifelong Michigan Resident who is blessed and fortunate to have a great job at Chrysler. I have a great family—a wife and two kids, eight and six. Faygo has been a part of my life, as long as I can remember. I feel strong ties, especially in these times, to a local company like Faygo that employs Michigan residents.

Eight years ago, my family and I spent some time at Children’s Hospital of Detroit. My daughter had some precautionary studies done, related to a heart murmur. I was always impressed with their care and support. Moreover, I felt great sympathy to those parents and children dealing with much more than a heart murmur.

Back in October, I sent separate notices to my friends, and to Ellen Burnett, Director of Major Gifts at Children’s Hospital of Michigan. I notified them that I had entered an essay contest through Faygo. I stated that if we won, I would donate the prize to Children’s Hospital. Ellen confirmed that the Child Life Division at Children’s Hospital could use the Nintendo Wii.

I saw this as a great opportunity to do something positive, and rally a great bunch of people together, during really hard times. Furthermore, I saw this as a great opportunity to reinforce the idea of “giving back” for my kids. The past seven weeks have been amazing—family, friends, and friends of friends from around the world rallied around this cause. People really wanted to see this through. .

Through all of this, there was a great feeling about Faygo. There are people all over the country and world, who grew up with Red Pop, Rock and Rye, and Faygo Root Beer, who absolutely love it. My essay practically wrote itself—it came so easily. I’ve essentially become a walking, talking Faygo advertisement.

When the voting closed on Tuesday, it appeared that our entry was in first place by a few hundred votes. I know the results come out on 12/15/09-- I just wanted to make you aware of my intentions, in case Faygo wants to be a further part of this. “Family, Friends, Faygo” has a nice ring to it.

I want to thank you for the opportunity, and for a lifetime of refreshment.

Sincerely,

Jerry Herman

cc: Ellen D. Burnett
Director, Major Gifts
Children's Hospital of Michigan


From http://thehermanletters.blogspot.com

Essay #4 - Why Children's Hospital- 10/15/2009

As you know, I have elected to submit an essay to the Faygo contest to win a Wii. As I've stated, I intend to donate this to-either Children's Hospital of Detroit, or Ronald McDonald House. I'm currently in sixth place, and the essays that finish with the top five vote totals win. Many of you have voted, and I greatly appreciate your support. You can continue to vote, once per email address per day. I'm currently voting on five different email addresses per day. The link is below.

I have two experiences to shed light on how arrived at these two potential recipients.

The first takes place at a hotel called Weber's in Ann Arbor, in October of 2003. My wife was 8 months pregnant with my son. We met another couple, Bill and Sue, in the hot tub--they were from San Antonio. Their friends and family chipped in to give them a night away from the Ronald McDonald house, where they had been staying for months. Their son, Logan, was born prematurely, with complications. He was on life support at University of Michigan Hospital. Bill described how well the Ronald McDonald house treated them--the cost per day was that they had to "do a chore"--vacuum, wash dishes, etc. We exchanged information. The husband, "Bill", said he would keep Colleen in his prayers. We promised to keep Logan in our prayers.

A few weeks later, our son was born, very healthy. I thought about Bill and Sue and Logan. I checked the "Logan Update" website that they had provided, and found a Logan Memorial with a list of sympathies from those same family members and friends. That put everything in perspective.

The second experience takes place in December of 2001, a week or so after my daughter was born. We were informed that she had a cavity one of the chambers in her heart, which was causing a slight murmur. As a new parent, you don't really know how to process this type of information.

The pediatrician scheduled testing at Children's Hospital in Detroit. Having gone to school for four years in Detroit, my expectations were LOW. However, we were overwhelmed with how accommodating they were in the Cardio center. The doctors and nurses at Children's Hospital really went out of their way to answer our dumb, over-protective parent questions as though they weren't dumb. We made a few follow-up visits over the next year, and eventually, the hole closed up and everything was fine.

The real thing that I remember about Children's Hospital is the faces of the other parents coming and going. They all looked like concerned parents like me, trying to do what was best for their son or daughter. I know that not all of them received the same "good news" that I did. I frequently place myself in the shoes of one of the "bad news" parents. I think about how difficult that would be, and how nice it might be to share a smile with their child amidst all of the doom and gloom.

That's why I have chosen Children's Hospital.

I contacted Ellen Burton, one of the people who manage donations at Children's Hospital. She told me "Yes, our Child Life Division uses the Nintendo Wii….Thank you for thinking of us and please let me know, when you win”. And so, I am asking you. Please vote for my essay, once per day—it takes literally 30 seconds. Please ask your friends to do the same. Help me to give something back.


Here is the link:

http://www.faygo.com/ContestDisplay.aspx?id=269

From http://thehermanletters.blogspot.com