Did you know that you can turn your everyday online shopping into support for RAMP?
Click here and shop at over 330 stores like Amazon.com, L.L. Bean, Eddie Bauer, Barnes & Noble, Gap and many more! These stores give up to 26% from every purchase you make to your cause. Many of these contributions can be tax deductible for you.

Are you looking for a successful fundraiser that also creates disability awareness?

RAMP has developed such an event which this year raised $135,000! 
Now in its 18th year, RAMP’s Rockford Wheel-A-Thon takes the idea of a 
“walk-a-thon” and gives it a twist – participants travel a route through our community using a wheelchair.

Benefits of a Wheel-A-Thon
Raises critical funds for your organization
Gives companies, organizations, churches and individuals a vehicle through which to support your Center
Creates disability awareness in your community
Generates media and community exposure for your Center

Why reinvent the “wheel”?
RAMP has developed a manual that takes you step-by-step through the evaluation process (to make sure your organization is ready to take on a new event), planning phase and implementation stages, complete with committee job descriptions, sample letters, flyers, posters and pledge sheets. 

Directors had this to say about the manual:
“Through its Annual Wheel-A-Thon, RAMP has shown how to successfully combine disability awareness and community involvement with raising significant dollars for program expansion. It is a winning combination for them and I know it will do the same for other Centers.” 
    - Ann Ford, Executive Director, Illinois Network of Centers for Independent Living (INCIL)

“Our Center was struggling to start a new Wheel-A-Thon fundraising event when RAMP's Wheel-A-Thon guide came out. Our planning committees are all grateful to have the manual, and are finding it much easier to plan the event. We are feeling much more confident that we can organize a successful Wheel-A-Thon. Thanks, RAMP!” 
    - Gail Kear, Executive Director, LIFE CIL, Bloomington, IL.

“RAMP’s Wheel-A-Thon Manual is a very comprehensive tool to begin an agency’s own fundraiser. The step-by-step instructions, sample letters and flyers are invaluable to anyone undertaking this project!” 
    - Donna Joerger, Executive Director, Illinois Valley CIL, LaSalle, IL.

Order RAMP’s Wheel-A-Thon Manual to guide your organization through hosting its own Wheel-A-Thon. From the earliest planning stages to securing sponsorships to sending out thank-you’s after the event, the Wheel-A-Thon Manual will provide step-by-step instructions for your organization to follow or use to create your own ideas!

For just $299.00, receive a hard copy and CD version of the manual, complete with examples of fliers, letters and other promotional materials to help your organization host its 1st Annual Wheel-A-Thon!

Learn more about RAMP's Wheel-A-Thon
Download the Order Form (Adobe PDF)
Ask a Question about the Manual

A letter from a satisfied customer:
9/10/2005
Even before we host our first annual Tampa Wheel-A-Thon on September 17th, I want to say a HUGE thank you to everyone at RAMP for putting together such a comprehensive how-to manual. We never would have tried to do a Wheel-A-Thon in Tampa without it. It was worth every penny and then some. Our first year, our goal was to raise $30,000 ($10,000 in corporate sponsors and $20,000 in participant pledges.) We were hoping to have 100  participants. Everyone on the Steering Committee kind of laughed at our lofty goals. We are a grassroots non-profit, no one gets paid and like almost any steering committee the same 5-10 people do all the work. And like your organization we are a mix of people with and without disabilities, parents of children with disabilities, family, friends and neighbors etc...To date, we have raised $11,000 in corporate sponsorships and have 22 teams and 19 individual participants for a grand total of 182 participants wheeling next Saturday. I don't know how many other groups across the U.S. you have inspired to try this in their own communities, but you have truly inspired Freedom Playground Foundation and the City of Tampa to do this every year.

We have had an amazing response from everyone involved. Our event includes a teen band, Remaining Awake, whose lead singer, Kyle Romano, is a wheelchair user as a result of amputation of both his arms and legs because of spinal meningitis during infancy. He called me up and asked if his band could play because he was inspired by me....PUHLEASE!!! We have a performance by Asher Dance Eclectic whose 7 dancers use integrated choreography with wheelchair dancers and able-bodied dancers. We have an exhibition game from the Tampa Thunder, a power chair soccer team and we'll also have wheelchair athletes on hand to play basketball and tennis with everyone. Not to mention Ronald McDonald is going to wheel and our mascot, Tahoe, is leading the start. Tahoe is a German Shepherd that lives on my street and uses wheels for her back legs.

I could just gush on and on, but I really just want to say thank you for taking the time to share your success and knowledge with other people. Too many times people are reluctant to share information even if it benefits everyone. As you can see from my attachments we copied almost everything you did except for your logo. Next year we'll replace your pictures with ones of our own! I'll leave you with one of my favorite quotes that I think sums it all up. I will send you a follow-up e-mail after next Saturday.

Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.  -  Mark Twain

Thanks for helping us be great!

Stefani Busansky
Freedom Playground Foundation, Inc.