GROWTH FOR LIFE

February 14, 2020/in Special Events, Support, Uncategorized, Upcoming Events

GROWTH FOR LIFE

Dear Waypoint Community,

Due to caronavirus concerns, we have canceled our April 2nd Annual Fundraiser. We will be releasing virtual alternatives that will still celebrate our 10-year anniversary, bid farewell to Co-Founder Adam Combs, and raise important funds. We will be sharing video messages from three members of the community that were selected as event speakers in the coming weeks to explain why Waypoint creates opportunities that allow growth for life.

I’m sure you can imagine this is a difficult reality, especially given that this is our biggest fundraiser throughout the year, bringing in 35% of our annual individual giving. The average attendee of the spring fundraiser gives between $200 and $750. With initial projections expected to raise $80,000 and $20,000 lost in program revenue so far, we need your contributions toward raising 100K. If you feel led to generosity during this trying time, please help Waypoint continue into the next decade!

These friends of Waypoint had committed to inviting their friends and co-hosting this event. They’ve committed to giving their typical donation and we’re so grateful. Thank you to…

Cherise and Bobby Bransfield, Sarah Perry and Tony Kingsley, Sandy and John Gillis, Dubs and Rob Dickey, Laura and Rick Malnight, Liza and Chris Mills, Suzanne and Stephen Erwin, Stephanie and David Javaheri, Stephanie and Dan Allred, Eunice Groark and Kevin Clark.

Thank you to our event sponsors! Each and every one of the sponsors below committed to leaving their donation in place despite the canceled event. We’re honored and thankful for your support.

2020 Corporate Climbathon

February 9, 2020/in Special Events, Support, Uncategorized

Rock climbing, team building, beer, networking and raising money for a great organization!

Rally a team of coworkers (no prior climbing experience needed) and earn bragging rights as you compete against other local companies. Prizes awarded for the number of climbs completed, most money raised, and other fun competitions.

Post climb, party with us at Mighty Squirrel brewery next door for a celebration, networking, and winner gloating. Don’t worry, everyone wins, as each competitor will receive one ticket for a free brew!

All of your support makes transformational adventure programs accessible for people with disabilities!

WHEN? Thursday, March 5, 2020 | Climbing: 4:00 – 6:00 | After Party: 6:00 – 7:00

WHERE? Central Rock Gym, 411 Waverly Oaks Rd. Suite 105, Waltham, MA 02452

HOW MANY PEOPLE MAKE UP A TEAM? Teams can be made up of 4-10 individual climbers.

WHAT IF I’VE NEVER CLIMBED BEFORE? No problem! All skill-levels are welcome. We’ll have the necessary equipment as well as staff and volunteers to make sure you learn how to climb and get to the top of as many climbs as you want.

WHAT ABOUT THE “FUNDRAISING” PART? We are asking every climber to raise a minimum of $100 to support Waypoint Adventure transformational adventure-programs. We’ll even provide you with plenty of materials and videos that you can send to family and friends to raise support for your team. People in the past have raised funds on social media, GoFundMe, or sent physical letters to family/friends.

DOES YOUR COMPANY WANT TO SPONSOR? “Anchor Teams” buy in at $1000 and get your companies logo on marketing materials and post event updates.

HAVE MORE QUESTIONS? Contact Miriam at mtalamini@waypointadventure.org or 781-325-7980.

Can’t Make it? DONATE to the event!

________________________________________

THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS

Wiffleball Cookout!

September 6, 2019/in Uncategorized

The inaugural Wiffle Ball / End of Summer Cookout was a smashing hit. Pun intended. There was face painting thanks to our resident-artist, Miriam, balloon animals thanks to our friend and former-clown, Steph, burgers and dogs grilled to perfection by chef master Dave, expert score-keeping by Jeff and Davis, photography by Bill, pitching by Timmy and Mike, and the fantastic volunteer efforts of so many others who helped and participated. What a hilarious, awesome night.

It was the Peduto Penguins vs the Bored Chair Falcons and there was literally a diving stop at home plate to leave it tied at 5-5. We went into an extra inning ending in a 1 run squeaker by the Penguins! The Peduto Penguins won the honor of having their team name etched into the coveted Golden Bat!

To end it all, Dan and Adam each got a pie to the face. Enjoy these awesome pics!

Friends & Family Climb-A-Thon!

August 29, 2019/in Fundraisers, Rock Climbing, Special Events, Support, Uncategorized, Upcoming Events, Volunteer

Looking for a fun afternoon of camaraderie, competition, exercise, and the opportunity to raise awareness and funds for Waypoint Adventure? COME BE A PART! Check out pictures from last year!

WHEN? Saturday, October 26, 2019 from 1-4pm

WHERE? Central Rock Gym, 74 Acton St, Watertown MA 02472

WHAT IS IT? An opportunity to gather a group of friends to go indoor rock climbing AND raise awareness and revenue for Waypoint Adventure.

HOW MANY PEOPLE MAKE UP A TEAM? Teams can be made up of 2-10 individual climbers.

WHAT IF I DON’T HAVE A TEAM? No worries! We will be organizing teams of individual Waypoint supporters just like you!

WHAT IF I’VE NEVER CLIMBED BEFORE? No problem! All ages and all skill-levels are welcome. We’ll have the necessary equipment and plenty of extra belayers around to make sure you get to the top of as many climbs as you want.

WHAT ABOUT THE “FUNDRAISING” PART? We are asking every climber to raise a minimum of $100 to support Waypoint Adventure transformational adventure-programs. We’ll even provide you with plenty of materials and videos that you can send to family and friends to raise support for your team.

CAN I VOLUNTEER TO HELP OUT WITH THE EVENT? We need 20 volunteers to help belay at the event, and 5 others to help with greeting, registration and raffle. Contact our Volunteer Coordinator, Steve, at sdastous@waypointadventure.org or 781-325-7980.

WHAT IF I HAVE MORE QUESTIONS? Contact Miriam at mtalamini@waypointadventure.org or 781-325-7980.

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER!

Can’t Make it?

CLICK HERE TO SUPPORT THE EVENT!

Check out Pictures from Last Year!

End of Summer Cookout and Wiffle Ball

July 24, 2019/in Uncategorized

It’s the first annual Waypoint Adventure Family Cookout & Wiffle Ball Game! Come celebrate the Waypoint Community and join us at our End-of-Summer Cookout/Potluck and Wiffle/T-ball/Kick Ball game! The cookout used to just be a Volunteer thing, but this year we’re opening it up to EVERYONE and adding a Wiffle Ball game! Hang out with Waypoint participants, families, friends, and volunteers. Bring your own side-dish and lawn chairs. Waypoint will provide burgers, hot dogs, veggie burgers, drinks, desserts, tables, and entertainment.

When you register at the link below, you’ll tell us how you’d like to participate in the Wiffle Ball game: As a player, spectator, cheerleader, coach, scorekeeper, or sponsor.

WHEN? Thursday, September 5th from 5:30-8:30pm

WHERE? 453 Concord Ave, Lexington, MA 02421. This is the Waypoint Adventure Headquarters on the campus of Cotting School. We’ll use the Cotting School’s turf field for our Wiffle Ball game and adjacent patio for grilling and eating. There is plenty of parking.

WHO? Waypoint Adventure participants, friends, family members, and volunteers. All ages!

WHAT TO BRING: All your friends! It’s one big community-building day! Please also bring a side dish for yourself (a salad, chips, etc) and a lawn chair. We will have some chairs, but not enough for everyone. PLEASE DON’T BRING: Alcoholic beverages or any pets.

SCHEDULE FOR THE EVENING:

5:30pm – Cookout and Summer Slideshow

6:30pm – Designation of Teams (Tell us you’re playing at the Register link)

6:45pm – The first Pitch!

After third inning – Volunteer of the Year presentation

After game – presentation of First Annual Wiffle Ball Trophy

8:30pm – Go Home.

Volunteer Training 2019

June 28, 2019/in Training, Uncategorized, Volunteer

Volunteer Training this year got an upgrade. Not only did we do our typical “soft skills” session Friday night and our “hard skills” kayaking session on Saturday, like we’ve done in the past, but this year, volunteers had the option of TENT CAMPING too at Camp Chickami in Wayland! We love how this Volunteer Community is always up for a grand adventure! It was an awesome weekend full of good questions, curiosity, positive risks, and learning about adaptive strategies among a supportive community.Our session on Friday night at the Waypoint office covered Disability Awareness and Sensitivity as well as our signature “CAP Sauce.” Volunteers got to hear about the three ingredients that go into every program to give it that Waypoint flavor. We had a cookout, watched a video, and got to dive in to important topics such as inclusion, language, statistics, etiquette, and those three key things: Community, Access, and Preparation.

Then the crew camped at Camp Chickami (thanks for letting us use your site, Camp Chickami friends!) and played a thrilling game of “Waypoint survivor.” You all know this fun night was dreamed up and designed by our very own Volunteer Coordinator Extraordinaire, Steve Dastous.

Lastly, on Saturday morning, we kayaked at Wayland Town Beach. We used task analysis techniques to teach 3 basic skills, (putting on a life jacket, getting in and out of the boat, and paddling), practiced transfers, got to use adaptive set-ups for seats and paddles, and practiced a t-rescue scenario. Volunteers got the basics of adaptive kayaking and walked away with a better understanding of their role on Kayaking programs in general. We couldn’t have had a more engaging group of volunteers and more perfect day to train. Thanks also to our new Trip Leader, Kelsey Gross for leading us! Check out pictures!

Friday night at Camp Chickami playing Waypoint Survivor.

2019 Spring Fundraising Party — Report

April 9, 2019/in Achievements, Annnouncements, Fundraisers, Latest News, Special Events, Support, Uncategorized

If you attended last Thursday’s event, we hope you had as much fun as we did! Thank you for coming. If you weren’t able to make it, we missed you!

This years event raised just over $65,000! Thanks to everyone who gave, more people with disabilities can participate in these life transforming adventures. We’re truly grateful for this outpouring of support.

Guess what? There’s another opportunity to support… A generous donor has stepped up to match all donations up to $25,000 throughout the month of April. So, give today and your gift will be doubled!

Check out the event pictures below and make sure you watch our new video which highlights the “I CAN” spirit of all Waypoint’s programs as well as the importance of your financial investment to make these programs accessible.

Finally, another big shout out to our 2019 sponsors:

2019 Fundraising Party

February 27, 2019/in Special Events, Support, Uncategorized, Upcoming Events

Waypoint empowers people with disabilities to say “I CAN!” These opportunities are made possible because of your partnership and support. Join us in celebrating the many I CAN moments of 2018, and discover your part in making I CAN a reality in 2019.

Dress in Festive Spring Attire and note that Brae Burn Country Club specifically requests NO DENIM, PLEASE.

Are you interested in Sponsorship?

Lead with us! Corporate Sponsorship of this event shows community involvement, strong partnership, and is a perfect way for your brand or name to reach the Boston-area community.

Click to see our sponsorship levels

A huge thanks to those who have stepped up to sponsor this event so far!

Meet Our Host Committee!

Dan and Stephanie Allred

Robert and Cherise Bransfield

Amy and Yumin Choi

Rob and Dubs Dickey

M.A and Jim Gallerani

Sandy and John Gillis

Laura and Rick Malnight

Sarah Perry and Tony Kingsley

Kelly and Jeff Woolbert

Bryce and Chrissy Youngren

Climb-A-Thon 2018

October 30, 2018/in Fundraisers, Rock Climbing, Special Events, Uncategorized

“Awesome. Organized. Chaos.” — That’s what one participant said after Saturday’s Climb-A-Thon fundraiser. We think that’s a pretty accurate description. It was a jam packed room of enthusiastic people who gathered to meet one another, climb hard and support the Waypoint Adventure mission to challenge people with disabilities to discover their purpose, talents and strengths through the transforming power of adventure…. and it was AWESOME!

The energy was palpable and together we raised $16,820 which will be used to help purchase adaptive equipment and provide scholarships throughout the next year.

Thank you for helping to make this year’s Climb-A-Thon so successful! Thank you to all of the climbers, volunteers, donors and spectators! Also a special thank you to our sponsors (Central Rock Gym & Walltopia) – Your investment and support will empower youth and adults with disabilities to take on new challenges this year through adventure education programs!

Sincerely,

The Waypoint Adventure Team

A special thank you to our sponsors Central Rock Gym & Walltopia

2018 Spring Fundraising Party — Report

June 5, 2018/in Achievements, Annnouncements, Fundraisers, Latest News, Special Events, Support, Uncategorized

For those of you who could join us at the 2018 Spring Fundraising Party, thank you for coming! We hope you enjoy the pictures! For those of you who couldn’t make it, we missed you!

A big thank you to the event sponsors: Gillis Family, Natowitz Family, Petrini Corporation, Boston Ability Center, Rifton and Newfangled Studios

If you were there, you had the chance to see Waypoint’s new video titled “Belonging“. Click here to watch and share this amazing video showcasing the power of adventure and community.

Thanks to all of you we raised just over $80,000 which will be used to increase program capacity and enable more than 1000 more people to participate over the next two years. Together we will ensure that people with disabilities and our communities continue to be impacted deeply and more people have the opportunity to participate.

Hope to see you all on a Waypoint Adventure soon!!