One of the first things you can do to help get money for airfare, hotel fees and conference fees is to reach out to friends and family. $20, $30, $40 from several people can really add up.
Remember when talking with people about supporting you to attend this conference to share that this is a citizen initiative in which you will be trained to go back out in your community as an activist working for real change in your community and in society towards the creation of a Department of Peace. Their contribution is a gift towards the peace work you will be doing. When you give them all the facts about what we will be doing with this training, people often find it a joy to give in support. Many people have done this to great success at past conferences. Read a sample letter below. Read our sample letter below that you can adapt to meet your needs.
You can also work in your local district to raise money for yourself and others. Bake sales, garage sales, etc. Ask your friends and colleagues to contribute.
SAMPLE LETTER:
Dear Friends and Family,
I am writing to ask you, my closest friends and family, to support me to attend the Department of Peace Conference in Washington DC. About six months ago, I began to learn about the legislation to establish a Department of Peace in the US government and the more I have learned about it, the more confirmed and excited I get, and it has become my own personal dream to make this bill a reality. You can read the bill and learn about the campaign at the website www.thepeacealliance.org.
The conference will cost $800 for travel, food, hotel, and registration fee. I can afford to cover $210 of it myself, and am working to raise the rest $590. If you are willing to help send a check made out to me to:
Shy Superactivist
3288 Hope Drive
Everywhere, Allstates 27581-023
Here are five reasons I care so much and am spending my free time working to make the Department of Peace law:
1. A woman is beaten by her husband or boyfriend (or former husband or boyfriend) once every 15 seconds. Both police and fire fighters are sent out on calls for domestic disputes, generally with little or no training. Many are injured this way.
2. Our soldiers in Iraq have not been trained to keep peace and reduce violence in the communities where they are stationed.
3. There are proven solutions to violence, by that I mean, programs that have a proven track record of reducing violence in schools, prisons, in families and neighborhoods.
4. Prisons currently house over 2 million people at a cost of $26-30k per person. Yet upon leaving prison they are even more likely to become violent. There are programs that change this trend, and reduce the violence within the prisons and upon release.
5. I do not believe that human beings are born violent, but that we become this way living within a violent and fearful culture. I know that there is the capacity for peace within each of us. I see it the faces of my students, my children and my grandchildren
This campaign is not just for me, it is for my children and grand children. And it is not just for my family, but for our entire country and the world as well. I believe we can live in a world where “compassion is rising” (Ike Lasater’s statement). So contributing to my participating is one way you can support peace, and our efforts in building a culture of peace.
I will not call you about this request, as I would rather you did not experience any pressure. If you would like to be part of building a culture of peace, and / or you want to support me, please make a gift. If I do not raise enough funds I will return it to you. If I raise too much I will donate the remaining money to the campaign.
Thanks for considering my request.
With hugs,
Shy Superactivist
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