Walking Against The Grain

July is officially over which means that I am 1/3 of the way through my fundraiser. Overall it was a great first month!

— We had the Walking Against The Grain kick off party, which was beyond successful. Thank you again to all those that came and donated.  

— We were able to get a grand total of 87 people to like the Walking Against The Grain Facebook page. EIGHTY-SEVEN! Like I’ve said from the beginning, one “Like” at a time.

— We headed down to San Diego and were able to get the lovely ladies of UC San Diego CHI OMEGA to join the movement!

— Lastly, since I created this blog it was really more of a way for me to remember the process and the struggle that I knew this journey would be. Since my first post on July 1st I’ve gotten 512 hits. That means on average 16 people are viewing my page daily!! 

During the month of July Walking Against The Grain has raised a total of $450! From $0 to $450 thats pretty significant if you ask me! I am beyond grateful to those who have taken the time and the generosity to support what I’m doing. Even if all I raise is $450 at least that’s $450 that the AIDS WALK did not have before and we can call say we were apart of that. Right?!

But if you think I’m going to stop here, you are sadly mistaken! $450 is wonderful but I set out to raise $1500 and I will continue to fundraise until the day of the Walk on October 16th. 

I’m excited to see what August has in store. This month I’m focusing on getting my co-workers and my bosses involved. I also have something every fun up my sleeve that could potentially be awesome for Walking Against The Grain! I plan on announcing what that is by the end of the week. So please continue to show support by visiting the blog, getting others to like the Facebook page and by donating.

Thanks again everyone!

Walking Against The Grain is only $1 dollar shy of being at the $400 mark! Who wants to be the special person to get us to $400????!!!!

ITS ONLY A DOLLAR FOLKS! 

Donate here!!! 

And just like that Walking Against The Grain adds another Sponsor to the list!!!!!

ARLENE NIETO! 

I can’t say thank you enough!

In case you want to donate $1, $5, maybe even $20!!, here’s how:

1. Click here: http://www.aidswalk.net/losangeles/

2. Click on ‘SPONSOR A WALKER’

3. Type in my name: Cristina Rodriguez then click Search

My name should pop up along with the team name ‘Walking Against The Grain’

4. Click on my name

5. THEN DONATE!!

Any questions or difficulties please feel free to email me at ccristinaaaa@gmail.com

Even I want to see if this can actually happen! SEVEN DAYS FOLKS!

San Diego last weekend was amazing!

While I was down there I challenged you all to get one person from San Diego to “Like” the Facebook page. The incentive was that I would personally match a dollar for every person that joined the page. And in 2 1/2 days we got TWENTY-SIX “Likes”!!!

Lets put that into perspective for a second. I mentioned before that my weekly mission is to get 24 people to like the page. The fact that we were able to get 26 people in 2 1/2 days is mind blowing!

Thank you SAN DIEGO! And a big thank you to the ladies of UCSD CHI OMEGA for taking the time to join the movement! You ladies are amazing!! 

While we were their we raised a total of $46.

So far Walking Against The Grain has raised a total of $320.

I’m only $180 away from raising the $500 I set out to collect in July. I have exactly one week to try and reach my monthly goal.

Will I get it done???

We’ve been in San Diego for a day and a half. Before we left LA I initiated a challenge to all the Walking Against The Grain supports. For every friend, who is living in or from San Diego, that you get to “LIKE” the Facebook Page I will personally match a dollar. 

So how many from San Diego have “LIKED” the page since we’ve been here??

TWENTY!

We’re here until Sunday. Help me get those “LIKES”!!!

**EDIT**

Today officially marks the end of Week 2 for Walking Against The Grain.

So where are we now??

During week 1 I got 24 people to like the Facebook page I created. So therefore, 24 is the lucky number everyone. Every week I’m trying to get at least 24 people to like the page. How many did we get during week 2?? THIRTY-THREE! Making a grand total of 57 likes in 2 weeks! 

Progress. Progress! PROGRESS!

I know we’re all curious about how the fundraising is going and we are right on schedule. $1500 is definitely a goal I have to put time and energy to acquire. I’ve broken it down on a much smaller scale. Every month I’m trying to raise $500. So how much do we have raised? $254!! I have another $250 to raise within in the next 2 weeks. 

ohhh let do it!

Some of you might be thinking to yourselves that what we have right now is so insignificant, you might even be thinking to yourselves “I don’t think she’s going to raise the $1500.” To all you sceptics out there I’m here to tell you, doubt all you want about me reaching my goal. But trust me when I say I’m going to make a believer out of you. All I ask is that you be patient. 

Whats on the agenda for Walking Against The Grain?

We’re headed to SAN DIEGO! This weekend is San Diego Pride and we have been invited to attend the “Wicked” after-party at EDEN hosted by Lead the Way SD. Exciting right?? 

Lastly, I personally challenge you to get a friend of yours living in San Diego to “Like” the Facebook page. I will personally match a dollar for every “Like” starting now through sunday! So please tell your friends!

Wish us luck in San Diego!

Walking Against The Grain had its kick-off party Friday night. It was a night filled with familiar faces eager to donate and new faces interested in learning more about the movement. 

When I was putting the party together I struggled with the decision to charge a cover to enter the party or just let everyone in. But the whole point of the celebration was just to get people together and get people excited about what I’m doing. Ultimately, I decided no cover charge. I did however set out to raise $50 for the night. It truly wasn’t about the money, it was about hanging out with the people who are supporting me on this journey. 

My pink piggy bank, which now seems to be the mascot for Walking Against The Grain, was definitely not expecting to get as much attention as it did. The generosity Friday night was overwhelming and truly an amazing sight to see. 

My goal was $50. We raised $204!! 

As I went around collecting donations that night the love and support was unlike anything I could have ever dreamed of. People I never met came to the party because they had seen the Facebook page and have been following the blog. Meeting people for the first time that night and hearing them say “I want to walk with you in October” was surprising and I was truly blown away.  

Friday nights celebration was a success on so many levels. I met so many new people, raised well beyond my goal for the evening, informed new people about the movement and got a group of people excited about something that they probably hadn’t thought twice about. Walking Against The Grain is more than just raising $1500 and getting 25 people to walk with me. Its about taking a stand as a group of young people.

Thank you to those who came out Friday night and not only celebrated the start of something amazing, but also were able to witness that contrary to what society expects from young people, like ourselves, we can come together for a common cause and make a difference. 

Thank you all to an amazing night!