Fundraising target reached. Or not.

Happy days. I've sort of reached my fundraising target. Well, you've reached my fundraising target. I haven't contributed a thing. 

I should rectify that. Can I contribute to my own sponsorship target? It seems a bit pointless - why not just give the money direct to the charities? Feels like cheating, contributing to your own target.

Anyway I've/you've only sort of reached "the" fundraising target, because it's only more than £1000 if you include the gift aid.

So I suppose we haven’t reached the target. Or have we? Gift aid is a very confusing thing in that regard. 

Let’s push on regardless. Let’s make it a definite reaching of the fundraising target. If you haven't yet donated and were thinking that you might, please consider clicking here, right now. 

If you don’t have the first clue why I’m asking you to do this, click here.

Amy, my 9 year old, asked if I got to keep any of the money I raise over the course of the year.

"No"

"What, not even £50?"

"No"

She seemed non-plussed by this.

Thank you to everyone who has made a donation. I know none of you hope to or have any wish to see your money again, but the prospect of giving it all back twofold made a genuine contribution to my abstinence, especially early on. 

When I realised having a drink before 1 Jan 2015 would cost me upwards of a grand, the chance of failing to make it through the year fell to zero. The way to this man's willpower is through his wallet.

Seriously, your generosity has astounded me. I expected to be begging for money come December to make the total. I frankly had no idea I had so many rich friends.

If you would like to read a blog post about my blog, written by someone from the sober bloggers directory, who had an issue with my attitude to not drinking, who I then wrote a response to, who then posted up my response as a separate blog post, click here.

If you'd rather ruminate on whether gift aid should be acknowledged in helping measure the complicated allegiance of necessity, creativity, friendship and opportunity which characterises the exchanges between a fundraiser, sponsor and charity, or whether it simply a government-licenced side-effect of altruism, here's some thinking time for you. Use it wisely...

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And, relax. Till next time.