Hi Mates -

I need your help. Roughly nine out of ten open water paddling fatalities are the result of cold water immersion - a tragic situation that takes the lives of hundreds of paddlers each year. It doesn’t have to be that way, and you can help do something about it.

I’m raising funds for the newly established National Center for Cold Water Safety (NCCWS) a new organization whose sole mission is to reduce the number of close calls, injuries, and fatalities that occur when people accidentally wind up in cold water

“Moulton, if you just get the ball rolling, good people will come out of the woodwork, as if by magic, to help make this dream come true.”
- Eric Soares, shortly before his death in 2012

As Eric predicted, good people have indeed come out of the woodwork to help make this dream come true. The Center is now incorporated, and we’re a whisker away from obtaining our 501(c)(3) non-profit status from the IRS. We plan to have our preliminary web site up within the next thirty days.

While it might sound like the job is almost done, the really hard work is just now beginning. This coming year is going to be financially difficult for this fledgling organization. It’s a tough little bird, but it’s barely out of the nest, and we need the support of the paddling community to give it the wings to fly.

What you can do:
This campaign ends January 31st, so we have 15 days to make this first fundraiser a success. Please help us spread the word by telling everyone you know about our need for funding.

We’ve set up a contributions page on the IndieGoGo fundraising site: IndieGoGo

Use Facebook, blogs, email, whatever you think will get the job done.

By working together we can really make this dream come true.

My paws are crossed.

Moulton Avery

PS: For some background information and a preview of our work, please check out this article I recently wrote for the Tsunami Rangers blog:
Tsunami Rangers

Stay Tuned: The second article in this series appears on January 21st.
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