Attention everyone on the North Shore!
Each year, Ipswich River’s Paddle-a-Thon fundraiser continues to grow. Even last year amid the shutdown, people showed up to paddle, walk, bike, pledge, and give for clean water.
This year, with outdoor gathering restrictions lifting just in time for summer, our Paddle Raisers are taking it to the next level.
A new Paddle Raising Team has formed in the Headwaters of the Ipswich River Watershed. This year, the Reading Ripples have set a fundraising goal of $7,000 by June 19th. They are already more than halfway to their goal!
Not to be outdone by some newcomers, our friends Team Long Haul are also bringing their A-game this year. They smashed their first goal of raising $3,500 a month early, and have now accepted a challenge from the Reading Ripples to also get to $7,000 between now and June 19th.
As a member of the Reading Ripples, I’m calling on all our supporters to join the new #PaddleRoyale competition this year and see who can raise the most for clean water. We’re hoping to announce corporate sponsors in the coming weeks, and we encourage our sponsors to form their own teams and show their company pride.
My only request: if you form your own team, please follow the example set by Team Long Haul and Reading Ripples by making a ridiculous poster! To join the fun, you can download the Ipswich River logo and Paddle-a-thon 2021 logo to include in your poster below, and tag us on Instagram at @ipswich_river.
And a big thank you to all our Paddle-raisers who have joined so far. Whatever you can do for the river and our #EndangeredIpswich campaign this summer, we thank you for your support! And I hope you’ll have some fun in the process.
To support Team Long Haul’s new goal of raising $7,000, visit their GoFundMe page here.
To join the Reading Ripples or create your own team, just go to the Paddle-a-Thon form, select ‘Part of a Community Team’ (or ‘Company Team’ for our business), and type in which team you’re part of in the Comments section at the end. Anyone who joins a team and gives $100 or more gets a one-year family membership, a cool T-shirt, and the joy of knowing you’re helping to make sure our communities, our wildlife, and our rivers have enough clean water to thrive.