WebKittyn Warbles
Tuesday, July 06, 2010
Blogathon 2010 - This One’s for Jeff Dunn and the Dogs
So it seems the official Blogathon team had to take this year off. Kinda sucks, this was an important year for me and the first time the 'thon really felt personal. I decided I would do the 24 hours anyway and lo and behold, others have also jumped on the bandwagon and there will be some sort of unofficial Blogathon going on this year.
There probably won't be any fancy pledge site like there usually is but it's all about the honour system anyway so it can still happen in a big way and make a difference.
My dear friend Jeff Dunn passed away on June 22nd. I've known Jeff since 1984 and he was truly an inspiration in so many ways. Having beat cancer as a very young child, Jeff grew up blind but he never let it stop him. There wasn't an ounce of self pity in Jeff's body and he did more than many sighted people (his word) that I've known.
Somewhere along the way Jeff hooked up with a wonderful place called Guiding Eyes for the Blind. In their own words:
Guiding Eyes is dedicated to enriching the lives of blind and visually impaired men and women by providing them with the freedom to travel safely, thereby assuring greater independence, dignity and new horizons of opportunity.
This place is so much more than just a school to get a dog. It's a community full of caring people from the people who raise the puppies to the trainers to the administrative staff. In fact, they've recently added a new program for children with autism, further testament to the dedication of this place to making the quality of life better for people who truly need and deserve it.
Guiding Eyes became a second home for Jeff. He took on a position there and worked fiendishly to bring computer accessibility to those who didn't have it. He was an expert in all things technical and had a true passion for bringing the online world to everyone who wanted it. He was a mentor and a beacon of hope and strength for so many people and his spirit never failed to touch anyone he came into contact with.
The world lost a shining star when Jeff died but he didn't want people to mourn him. That wasn't Jeff.
In lieu of flowers, his family asked for donations to be made to Guiding Eyes for the Blind and I can't think of a better way to honour my friend, first computer guru and inspiration than to dedicate this year's Blogathon to him.
The Blogathon will be held on July 31st beginning at 9AM. I will be posting once ever 30 minutes for 24 hours and will include an anecdote or story or quote about Jeff at the end of each entry as I have asked those who knew him to send me their memories.
This is all happening quickly and sort of haphazard with the announcement of no 'official' Blogathon. I don't even have an icon yet and nothing on my sidebar but that will pop up in a day or so.
Now I ask you to for your pledge. Don't worry, I'll be pestering you a whole lot more as it gets closer but all I'm asking for is an email sent to me with a pledge for an amount.
If you don't want to pledge, if you don't want to wait to see if I make the 24 hours or not, that's fine. You can go directly to their website and donate here.
If you choose the second option, I ask this of you.. On the donation form is a section to make the donation in memory of someone. I ask that you put Jeffrey Dunn's name in there. Then I ask you to forward to me the thank you email you will receive from Guiding eyes so I can add it to my ongoing tally as I will have to keep track of it myself this year.
No amount is too small, I know money is tough. This is something truly worthwhile though and Jeff Dunn was really a special person. Dig into your hearts and your pockets and make a pledge. Anonymous is fine, I don't have to know who you are.
This one's for you, Jeff. I miss you.
<-- Steal me!
