Natick to host Vietnam memorial in June

Natick to host Vietnam memorial in June
By Ian B. Murphy/Daily News staff
The MetroWest Daily News

Posted Feb 01, 2011

Natick offers Marathon numbers to charity runners

Natick offers Marathon numbers to charity runners

By Ian B. Murphy/Daily News staff

The MetroWest Daily News

Jan 31, 2011

Boston Marathon Numbers Available in Natick!

Boston Marathon Numbers Available in Natick!

Town Seeks Local Runners to Raise Funds for Two Natick Charities

January 25, 2011

The Town of Natick is pleased to offer local residents and charity runners with an opportunity to compete in the 115th Boston Marathon® on April 18, 2011. This year, the Boston Athletic Association (“BAA”) released 20 “invitational” applications to the towns along the Boston Marathon route, as a thank you for the coordination and cooperation of these communities during the Boston Marathon®. These invitational entries will allow towns along the route to raise funds for worthy community causes. These numbers are highly coveted by those who wish to run as it is limited to a certain number of runners and sold out at a record pace this year.

On Monday, January 10th, the Natick Board of Selectmen endorsed Town Administrator Martha White’s proposal to issue several of the permits to members of the Natick Police Department who run the Boston Marathon®, issue 5-6 of the permits to the Natick Fire Department to be donated to The Michael Carter Lisnow Respite Center in Hopkinton – an organization long supported by Natick Firefighters, and the balance of Natick’s invitational entries being used to support the following causes:

- Bringing the Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial Moving Wall™ to Natick this summer www.movingwallnatick.org

- The Healthy Pantry Initiative, a collaboration between the Natick Community Organic Farm www.natickfarm.org and the Natick Service Council www.natickservicecouncil.org

Both of these charities will enable runners to raise tax-deductible donations and the Town of Natick will

work with the selected runners to enable the processing of online (credit card) donations. Details:

- The Marathon entry fee is $300, to be paid by the runner

- The minimum fundraising contribution is $2,500. Runners must guarantee this minimum fundraising level with a credit card.

- All prospective runners must submit a letter of interest no later than 5:00 pm on February 4, 2011. Letters may be hand delivered to the Town Administrator’s office in Natick Town Hall, 2nd floor or submitted by email to Maureen Fleming at mfleming@natickma.org. Letters of interest must include the runner’s name, address and phone number, designation of the charity for which funds will be raised, and indication of the amount of funds you commit to raising for the charity.

- The first five invitational entries will be made available to those runners who guarantee raising the highest total dollar amount for either/both designated charities. So, to guarantee entry into the race, you must include in your letter of interest a dollar figure at, or above, the minimum

$2,500 and be among the five highest bidding fundraisers. You will receive an invitational entry

and will be required to sign a letter of commitment to achieving your bid level of fundraising.

- The remaining invitational entry winners (anticipated to be five or more) will be restricted to

Natick residents and will be determined by lottery. The lottery will be conducted on Monday February 7 at 5:30 p.m. at the Natick Town Hall. Entrants are invited to attend the lottery and winners will be notified after the drawing. In the unlikely event that there is an insufficient number of Natick residents entered in the lottery, the Town Administrator reserves the right to make alternative arrangements.

If you have an interest in seeking an invitational number to the 115th Boston Marathon, please submit your letter of interest to the Town Administrator’s office, Natick Town Hall, or mfleming@natickma.org by no later than Friday, February 4, 2011 by 5:00 p.m. The Town Administrator’s office can be reached at 508-647-6410.

It’s official!

Check out the January 27th post of the Natick Blog, A blog about all things Natick:

"It’s official: Moving Wall comes to Natick" by Maureen Sullivan

The Moving Wall will be in Natick from June 9 - 12, 2011

The Vietnam Moving Wall will be in Natick, Massachusetts from June 9 - 12, 2011, at the Natick High School soccer field on West Street, just beyond the football field on the same side of the street.

The opening ceremonies will be on June 9th. Details about the opening, and closing on June 12th, will be announced soon. More info will be posted after Feb 9, 2011. Please check our website, facebook page, or here after then.

Please Donate

When making your end of the year donations, please consider donating to the Natick Vietnam Moving Wall. The Natick Veterans Council is bringing the moving wall to Natick in the summer of 2011.

Donations can be made online via PayPal or by check. Please visit our website for more information: www.movingwallnatick.org

The Natick Veterans Council is a local non-profit, all volunteer organization; it does not receive any funding from the town of Natick. We cannot bring The Moving Wall to our community without your support. We need to rely on caring friends, like you, to help raise the necessary funds required in order to achieve this goal. You can help us meet our goal by making a financial contribution.

Please note that we are a 501c(3) non-profit organization.

Accepting Donations

The Natick Veterans Council is bringing the Vietnam Moving Wall to our community to honor and respect those that made the ultimate sacrifice through remembrance and education and to give our community an opportunity that they would never otherwise have.

We are now accepting donations online via PayPal or by check. Please visit our website for more information: www.movingwallnatick.org

The Natick Veterans Council is a local non-profit, all volunteer organization; it does not receive any funding from the town of Natick. We cannot bring The Moving Wall to our community without your support. We need to rely on caring friends, like you, to help raise the necessary funds required in order to achieve this goal. You can help us meet our goal by making a financial contribution.

Please note that we are a 501c(3) non-profit organization.