# Fundraiser for Katie Hilleke



## gh (Oct 13, 2003)

If you cant afford to bid on the custom Dagger boat but would still like to do something to help Katie with her daunting medical bills, the PPWC has the solution. Come to Colorado Springs on November 14th and see a slideshow by Tommy Hilleke and buy a raffle ticket for cool kayaking gear and swag. More details to follow.

By the way if you missed the Dagger boat deal check it out, seems very cool. Follow the url on Hobie's post, bid and get yourself one cool boat.

greg


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## Mike B (Jun 24, 2004)

Here are some details. On November 14 at 6:30 the PPWC will sponsor a party at Southside Johnny's in Colorado Springs to benefit Katie Hilleke. Tommy Hilleke will be the guest speaker and will present a slideshow of his pictures from past LVM/Tdub expeditions. He is putting this show together specifically for this event. 

We are collecting a number of donated gear items for a raffle to be held that night with all proceeds going to Help Katie with her medical bills. While we hope many of you will join us that evening, you can participate in the raffle without being there. 

As we complete our list of items we will update the information with a post on this thread. To give an example of some of the things available you can look for a Jackson Kayaks, Sweet Cheeks, a set of JK Happy Feet, Videos from EJ and a special DVD from Penstock productions and many more to come.

To participate, here is what you need to do. Send a check made out to the Katie Hilleke assistance fund, directly to Katie at, 821 bluff creek club rd, Quinton, Al 35130.

Send me an e-mail at [email protected] and tell me how much you donated and give me your contact information including your address to receive your possible prize.

For each $10 donated you wil get one entry in the raffle. We will post the winners and what they won within one day of the raffle on November 14.

Help us help Katie and maybe win some free gear. Please send a check before November 14 or better yet, join us on the 14th at Southside Johnnys to hear Tommy bring us all close to the action. Since this will be just 2 weeks after the Green Race we'll have a chance to hear some first hand race highlights.

I'd like to acknowledge Hobie's benefit through Dagger. His work on this gave us the idea for a complementary approach. Great job Hobie.

This raffle is possible through the generous support of many Whitewater industry folks. Once we finalize the prizes we will post a complete list and thank all the supporters who make this possible.

Directions to Southside Johnny's
http://www.southsidejohnnys.biz/Location/tabid/243/Default.aspx


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## Justin S. (Oct 9, 2006)

For anyone who has never met Tommy, it is well worth the drive. He did a creeking clinic for our club last year. He's one of the coolest boaters/person/pro I've ever met.


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## Mike B (Jun 24, 2004)

I got a message yesterday from Nick Turner with WRSI helmets saying, "You can count on 3 WRSI helmets for the raffle. Where should I send them?"

We did not contact Nick, he just saw the post here on the Buzz and wanted to help. That's what I call stepping up!

Damn I like the boating community. We are still finalizing all the donated prizes. I'll post a full list with our great supportive donors in the next few days. So far we have donations from Jackson Kayak, Shred Ready, Immersion Research, CKS, WRSI, Penstock Productions, and of course, the Buzz. 

Now let's get you all to Coloraodo Springs for the big night on November 14.

Mike


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## Trout_Bobber (Oct 26, 2006)

A lot more stuff on here about fundraising and Katie than over on BoaterSquwak. :wink: 

Thank you, gh2 for pointing me here. This place looks like a MUCH BETTER forum than that dump BT, have yet to find politics on here. 8)


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## Mike B (Jun 24, 2004)

As of this morning, we have collected $620 in money already sent to Katie or pledges to be delivered at the event on November 14. We have collected a total of 38 prizes for the raffle. Momentum is building and once again, the generosity of the boating community is just terrific.

a cool development inspired by a paddler from Georgia is that 45 of 57 raffle entrants have pledged to donate any prizes they win to Brad Ludden's First Descents cancer camp for children. What a great way to set up a win / win situation.

Mike

Here is a list of prizes and number of each prize for raffle to support Katie Hilleke cancer care fund. Sorry about the formatting, but I just pasted from an Excel file.

Item	Quantity	Donor
WRSI helmets (3) http://www.coloradokayak.com/WRSI-Current-Helmet?sc=2&category=54 3	WRSI
Sweet Cheeks http://www.jacksonkayak.com/store/product.cfm?product=sweetcheeks 1	Jackson Kayak
Happy Feet http://www.jacksonkayak.com/store/product.cfm?product=footbag 1	Jackson Kayak
Advanced Playboating DVD (2) http://www.jacksonkayak.com/store/product.cfm?product=advanced-playboating-dvd06 2	Jackson Kayak
Middle weight top and skull cap (winter set)	1	Immersion Research
Tdub cut helmet http://www.shredready.com/products/tdub.htm 1	Shred Ready
Tdub Slideshow DVD	1	Penstock Productions
Stohlquist Wedge PFD http://www.coloradokayak.com/Stohlquist-Wedge-E?sc=2&category=112 1	Colorado Kayak Supply
Funnel DVD A visual guidebook to New Mexico creeks	5	Waterdog Productions
Palm Drytop	1	Palm
lvm #20	20	Penstock Productions
LVM #19	1	Penstock Productions
Total prizes available	38


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## el gordo (Oct 10, 2003)

The momentum on Katie's Fundraiser is really moving. I want to thank so many of you for getting involved and offering support. I spoke with Mike this afternoon and it is amazing how the boating community has come out to support the fundraiser. As you can see above, there are alot of donors. I am excited to see what will take place at Southside Johnny's  on Nov 14th. I look forward to seeing all of you there. 

-Gordon

Click here to read the story on the PPWC website.

or go to the link below...
http://pikespeakwhitewaterclub.com/clubnews.html


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## Mike B (Jun 24, 2004)

Tom Sherburne of Shred Ready has stepped up in a big way. In addition to the Tdub cut helmet listed in the earlier post, he is donating, a Shensu, a Shaggy, a Phly, and a Vixen for a total of 5 helmets. Thanks again to Tom and Shred Ready for your support.

Mike


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## Dustin Urban (Jul 31, 2006)

I just found out about this cause, and I want to give props to PPWC, gear donators and of course all the people who have donated $ thus far. It is a real testament to the close ties of the kayaking community, and I acknowledge all of you for doing your part for the cause. My thoughts go out to katie and her family.
Dustin


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## heliodorus04 (May 31, 2005)

I'd like to challenge everyone to donate if you haven't already. Anything you can give will go a long way to lifting the spirits of someone in the battle of their life - nothing is more important than support of friends, family, and strangers alike. 

It doesn't matter how much you donate - it's the names of people Katie's never met that will bolster her spirits in the fight. I'm more aware of cancer statistics among young people than I'd like to be. It's a harsh and lonely fight. This is a chance to do something really great for someone. As someone who has been the beneficiary of kindness from people I've never met before in my family's fight against cancer, it cannot be overstated how much these gestures strengthen the spirit and raise the will to get up and carry on when the days are at their darkest. Please donate. 

We'll also have a killer time on the 14th, so don't miss it!


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## Mike B (Jun 24, 2004)

Newton Tilson, a paddler from Georgia, made a donation this week and said we could put him in the raffle but anything he won could be donated to First Descents, Brad Ludden's kayaking camp for kids with cancer. Newton's idea caught on and we have 65 out of the 72 tickets in the raffle so far committed to First Descents. We just received this message from Brad. 

On behalf of First Descents, I would like to say thank you to the Pikes Peak Whitewater Club for including us in this awesome event to help Katie Hilleke through a rough time. When I heard about Katie's diagnosis, my heart instantly went out to her and her family. She is heading down a long road, but as the Lance Armstrong Foundation has said, "from the day of diagnosis, you are not a patient or victim, you are a SURVIVOR." Katie is a survivor, a name she can be proud to have. With her diagnosis she joined some 500,000 other Young Adult Survivors. Few people realize how big of a problem Young Adult Cancer is. I have listed some stats to give everyone an idea. 

Cancer is the leading disease killer among 20 to 39-year olds. 
Currently, there is an estimated 500,000 young adult cancer survivors between the ages of 15 and 40 year olds. In addition, 12,000 deaths due to cancer occur each year among 15-40 year olds. 
Young adults face a spectrum of cancers unique to their age group. 
In contrast to younger and older patients, the survival rates for young adults have not increased since 1975. 
Diagnosis and treatment during young adulthood often results in a range of unique psychosocial issues. 
Adolescent and young adult cancer survivors are a vastly understudied population. 
First Descents is striving to give aid to this underserved population by giving them kayaking. Katie was fortunate to have the sport of kayaking and its wonderful community before diagnosis but so few have that and that is where First Descents steps in! 

Thank you for supporting Katie and the entire Young Adult Cancer community in this struggle. We are all with you Katie, you are far from alone! 

Cordially, 
Brad Ludden and FD


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## Mike B (Jun 24, 2004)

Donations as of November 2 are at $1330. We are very pleased and grateful for the support from across the country. 

Mike


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## Mike B (Jun 24, 2004)

Donations are at $1595 this morning. We've had contributions from all around the country. The Hilleke family is just overwhelmed and immensely grateful for the support and caring shown them by the boating community. We are having a positive impact for Katie that goes beyond the monetary value. Just outstanding.

We have 159 tickets in the raffle and of those, 86 are donated to First Descents.

Once again, I'd like to acknowledge Hobie's idea for the Dagger boat auction, which gave us the idea to do something complementary to that effort.

Mike


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## Mike B (Jun 24, 2004)

Here are a couple of points that illustrate the caring and generosity of the boating community across the country. With one week to go before the raffle and big show in Colorado Springs, donations for Katie are $2,125 and 121 of 212 raffle tickets are pledged to First Descents cancer camp for kids. 

Mike


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## Mike B (Jun 24, 2004)

Here is a new way to donate to Katie that adds convenience and still lets you participate in the raffle. 

Immersion research has set up a "Katie Hilleke" section on their on-line store where you can make a 5 or 10 dollar donation. If you want to contribute more, you can buy as many donations as you like, 100% of all donations will be given directly to the Hilleke family. 

To donate online at the IR site go here,

http://www.shopatron.com/index/232.0.19611.0.0.0.0

Send me an e-mail at [email protected] and tell me how much you donated and give me your contact information including your address to receive your possible prize. 

Mike


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## Mike B (Jun 24, 2004)

Yesterday the steering committee of the Katie Hilleke fund raiser had our day brightened considerably when I got this E-mail from Katie Selby. 

Mike- 
Thanks for the info. We, on behalf of South Main, will be giving them $1000. We are sending them lots of love! 

Katie 

This puts donations to date at $3,125 and needless to say, we are all delighted with the level of support. 

For information on the Selby's traditional neighborhood and river playpark project at South Main in Buena Vista Colorado go here, 
http://www.southmainco.com/


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## COUNT (Jul 5, 2005)

For this last week before the event, the CSM Kayak Club is donating $65 (tickets can go to First Descents) and challenging all those other organizations out there to do so, too. Best of luck; you will pull through this Katie.

COUNT


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## Mike B (Jun 24, 2004)

Donations have reached $3,430. 136 of 242 raffle tickets have been donated to First Descents. Looking forward to seeing a bunch of you next Tuesday in Colorado Springs.

High bid on Todd Gillman's picture donation is $150.

Mike


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## Mike B (Jun 24, 2004)

Todd Gillman of the Range Life, the winners of IR's Trip to Hell expedition, has added a very special donation. Here is Todd's story about a picture he had professionally prepared and framed for an auction to be held at our event. The link to the Range Life Blog will show you a picture of the Picture. 

Range Life Blog 
http://therangelife.blogspot.com/ 

Tis the season! 
Even with health insurance, my shoulder surgery has been a stressful financial setback. But I cant really complain. 

Kayaker Katie Hilleke was recently diagnosed with cancer & the related medical costs are really stacking up. I learned about the WW COMMUNITYS EFFORTS to raise some money to help offset the overwhelming cost burden she & her family must bear. I dont know Katie, but I do know her brother .. So I offered to send him a framed print of one of my FAVORITE SHOTS from this year, to be auctioned off at a fundraiser benefit party for Katie. 

This donation is a total team effort. I work for THIS AMAZING MARKETING FIRM in Seattle. We recently worked with THIS AMAZING PHOTOGRAPHER on a studio shoot in Portland. Dylan, the photog, graciously offered to handle the printing & shipping of the photo from his studio in NYC to my AMAZING FRIEND & FRAMER, Rocky, at Full Circle in Jackson, Wyo. Rocky, is also an AMAZING DJ, ARTIST, skater, & ALL-AROUND ATHLETE . He offered to comp the rushed framing & shipping of the finished piece down to Tommy in CO, in time for the benefit party on the 14th. In the end, the job will have taken the image on a bipartisan campaign thu the USofA, from Seattle (blue) to NY (blue) to Wyo (so red) to CO (red), & into the home of a new owner. 

So this post is mostly just a huge THANK YOU to Dylan & Rocky for their help in getting this job done .. & to urge yall to please support Katie by either DONATING or by running up the bidding on this, & several other items up for auction at the party. 

The auction will be held at the Katie Hilleke fundraiser event in Colorado Springs on Tuesday November 14, but we don't want to exclude folks who can't be there in person. To give everyone a chance to bid on the picture, here is what we'll do. Send an E-mail to Mike Brown of the Pikes Peak Whitewater Club at [email protected] and tell Mike what your bid is. The bids will be updated online, as they are received, and can be viewed at http://forum.pikespeakwhitewaterclub.com/viewtopic.php?t=494 

The highest bid received prior to the 14th will become the opening bid the evening of the 14th. If no one outbids it, then we will contact the highest bidder. The bidder has a choice of payment via check to the Katie Hilleke assistance fund or to use the mechanism set up on the Immersion Research site here http://www.shopatron.com/index/232.0.19611.0.0.0.0 to donate by credit card. The picture will be shipped, at our expense, on verification of donation. 

Online bid e-mails must be received by 4pm Mountain Time November 14th to be included. 
If you want to bid online, you are at a bit of a disadvantage as people attending the event will know what they have to beat to buy the picture, but a strong bid can go a long ways to overcome that handicap. 

High bid on top 

$175 Chris Brobin 
$150 Derk Slottow 
$100 - Mike Brown


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## gh (Oct 13, 2003)

We will be getting started at 6:30 tonight, come on down and join us.


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## el gordo (Oct 10, 2003)

This week we have a very special opportunity to support fellow kayaker Katie Hilleke. As many of you know, we have run a fund raiser for her and her battle with cancer. This Tuesday night, at Southside Johnny’s at 6:30pm, we will be holding an auction and raffle to continue to raise funds. We hope to raise even more than the raffle tickets sold already. 

Tommy Hilleke, who did this summer’s “Creeking Clinic” for PPWC, will be doing a spectacular slideshow about his recent and past kayaking adventures. Many of these photos and stories have never been shared publicly. It will be an inspiring evening you won’t want to miss. So, come on out and have some fun! 

I hope to see everyone come out and support the fund drive. 
-Gordon 

http://pikespeakwhitewaterclub.com/clubnews.html


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## Mike B (Jun 24, 2004)

*Katie Hilleke Fundraiser results*

Here are the final results from the Fundraiser for Katie. The raffle and auction were held last night in Colorado Springs. Tommy spent a long day driving to the Springs through the mountains during a winter storm that closed I70 and forced him to cut freshies over Tennessee Pass into Leadville. He said it would take more than a little Colorado winter storm to keep him away from the event. The group saw over 120 of his pictures ranging from Mosely Creek to the Middle Fork of the San Joaquin in CA, and heard some great river stories .

The winning bid for Todd Gillman's picture of Austin Rathman creeking in BC was $200, and that picture will have a place of honor on my wall as a reminder of how well this fund raiser went thanks to the generosity of boaters across the country. Another benefit of that generosity is that the lion's share of the raffle prizes were donated to Brad Ludden's First Descents cancer camp for kids. That makes the raffle a double win.

All told, the Fundraiser generated $4,205. Of that $1700 came from members of the Pikes Peak Whitewater Club, We're all just so proud of the way this group supported this effort. More special recognition goes to Katie Selby, Jed Selby, Dustin Urban and Andre Spino Smith who as South Main donated $1000. The rest of the money was sent from boaters across the country.

We could not have done this fundraiser without the support of many sponsors in the industry. We had several contact us saying they wanted to donate product. I'd like to give special recognition to our sponsors.
Penstock Productions
Jackson Kayaks
Shred Ready Helmets
Immersion Research
WRSI Helmets
Colorado Kayak Supply
Palm
Kokotat
Waterdog Productions
Wavesport
Teva

Here are the raffle results. We'll be sending the prizes to the winners in the next few days.



Item Donor Winner
WRSI helmets WRSI - Dane Patterson
WRSI helmets WRSI - First Descents
WRSI helmets WRSI -First Descents
Sweet Cheeks Jackson Kayak - Tony and Ursula Long
Happy Feet Jackson Kayak - First Descents
Advanced Playboating DVD Jackson Kayak - First Descents
Advanced Playboating DVD Jackson Kayak - Scott Winkleman
Middle weight top and skull cap (winter set) IR - Dave Ackerman
Tdub cut helmet Shred Ready - Jeff West
Shaggy helmet Shred Ready - First Descents
Shenzu helmet Shred Ready - First Descents
Phly helmet Shred Ready - First Descents
Vixen Helmet Shred Ready - First Descents
Tdub Slideshow DVD Penstock Productions - First Descents
Stohlquist Wedge PFD Colorado Kayak Supply - First Descents
Hand Paddles - First Descents
Funnel DVD A visual guidebook to New Mexico creeks Waterdog Productions - First Descents
Funnel DVD A visual guidebook to New Mexico creeks Waterdog Productions - First Descents
Funnel DVD A visual guidebook to New Mexico creeks Waterdog Productions - First Descents
Funnel DVD A visual guidebook to New Mexico creeks Waterdog Productions - First Descents
Palm Cobra Paddling top Palm - First Descents
Palm TourTec PFD Palm - First Descents
Palm Stella PFD Palm - Dave Ackerman
lvm #20 Penstock Productions - Tera Tanaka
lvm #20 Penstock Productions - Dave Ackerman
lvm #20 Penstock Productions - Alex Harvey
lvm #20 Penstock Productions - First Descents
lvm #20 Penstock Productions - First Descents
lvm #20 Penstock Productions - First Descents
lvm #20 Penstock Productions - First Descents
lvm #20 Penstock Productions - First Descents
lvm #20 Penstock Productions - First Descents
lvm #20 Penstock Productions - First Descents
lvm #20 Penstock Productions - First Descents
lvm #20 Penstock Productions - First Descents
lvm #20 Penstock Productions - First Descents
lvm #20 Penstock Productions - First Descents
lvm #20 Penstock Productions - First Descents
lvm #20 Penstock Productions - First Descents
lvm #20 Penstock Productions - First Descents
lvm #20 Penstock Productions - First Descents
lvm #20 Penstock Productions - First Descents
lvm #20 Penstock Productions - First Descents
LVM #19 Penstock Productions - Jim McGee
Woman's Wave Dry Top Kokotat - First Descents


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## gh (Oct 13, 2003)

Really enjoyed the slideshow. Thanks to Tommy for making it through the storm and also thanks to all the people who donated. Really good event for a really good cause. Hope to see you on the river soon Katie.

greg


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## bkp (Mar 19, 2006)

*The boating community*

I have only been paddling for about 18 months, but I can already say that I am very proud to be part of such an amazing community! Stepping up like you did both financially and spiritually makes each and everyone of you a hero in my book!

-Bryan


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