We hope to see many of you at the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, DC on October 28th! Last year we established the reputation of having the best hospitality tent in Charity Village—an accolade we intend to win again this year! And, we hope to raise even more funds for nursing scholarships and research grants with your help. You do not need to be an athlete—you can run/walk the 10K or you can volunteer to be a cheerleader or volunteer to add to the fun in the hospitality tent.

For those of you living outside of the DC area, we know it may not be feasible to travel to DC, so here are some ways you can participate in a virtual way.

• Purchase a raffle ticket for a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity so sail from a Florida port on a marvelous yacht! Spend the day relaxing and enjoying the view or fishing! We will even provide the accommodations—you only need to provide airfare.
• Send an individual contribution to one of our participants—you can do that on our website: www.vanurse.org; click on the Foundation/MCM link and its easy!
• Plan a Chapter activity on that day—this is the most exciting option yet because you will all be together supporting the Foundation goals! How would you do that? Nurses are very cleaver and innovative, so we offer some initial ideas and then you can take it to any level you like! Since each individual runner/walker is pledging $100, we would like to suggest your chapter pledge to raise at least $100; of course, the more the better! So, here are some ideas:
  1. Meet at a local park, neighborhood, or scenic trail on the VA grounds and walk 10K. You could charge participants an entry fee, or you could support this from your chapter dues. Of course, water and other refreshments would be welcome from the participants.
  2. Go to a local mall and walk inside—that is a good option to everyone still experiencing heat waves! Ask some of the merchants to contribute to the cause. Maybe chapter members who are not able to walk could do blood pressure or blood sugar screenings.
  3. Go to a local fitness center and do anything—exercise bikes, tread mills, stair-walkers—any of those devices. As long as everyone is in the same room, the method of torture does not matter! Or, go for a swim at a center or at someone’s home. That sounds like more fun if you live where it is warm or have indoor pools!
  4. Have an educational event at your facility during that week; focus on wellness and exercise. You can get local VA speakers and perhaps provide some refreshments.
  5. Use your imagination and do something! We are counting on your support.