"I NEED A MEDIC"

So some of us have been discussing fonding some owrk or charity or something to support that gives to the community at large. I have want ed to find something that would tie in to airsoft and came up with an idea.

BBs hurt! What if we could tie that in to a charity we could establish such that when we buy things that hurt we help out an airsofter as well?

If we are willing to each pledge a small dollar amount every time we buy bbs, we can put this in an account and use it to help a fellow Va airsofter who cannot afford medical care. We would start small and get pledges from other people as well as ourselves. I have already spoken to other airsofters in Va who think it is a good idea and want to help. We can start small and as our fund grows, take on more people with needs. We can hold charity games to raise funds as well. If we take the steps to become a real official charity, we can aslo do things like Buffalo Wild Wings allows where a percentage of the nights profits can be taken as a contribution. There was a fraternity doing just that same thing one evening we were there. Mike Gin from Hivemind has already agreed to put up a free banner on his website and we may be able to get other airsoft sponsors as well.

If we inspire enough people to pledge we can grow this thing to be bigger than ourselves and help more and more people. We can get companies like AirsoftGI and Evike to take part, hopefully Trinity would be the first in line. I know this is ambitous but I feel we airsofters must do something to help the community we love so much and the people in our community that need help most. It would be a great positive thing in the airsoft world and inspire others to do similar things. I know I can personally pledge to pay at least 3 dollars per bag of bbs to start and move on from there.

As far as organization this thing is going to need input an help from as many people as we can get. Right now I am scrambling in my research but dont want to wait to start this because there are people out there that need our help! What say ye? Will you throw your hat in the ring with me and start this thing? Can we band together and build something that will outlast us all?

Also I came up with "I need a medic" as a name because we all call for help sometimes, and another of us comes running. As people we need to do the same. If you have any ideas for better names let me know. We need to have a perfect one!

I think this is a great idea

As much as I complain on how much bios are, I wouldn't mind adding on a dollar or two per bag for a good cause. It would really help to get people at dealers to sponsor this endeavor. I know we all usually get our supply from Mike, but we could also consider people more closer to home like Trinity Airsoft or Ballahack where they can put out a tub or ask the customer if they would like to add on a few dollars for a cause (I know Hardee's, Subway, and Food Lion already do similar things)

Having jars made for airsoft shops is definitely a good idea, including Roanoke if that is possible. Mike Gin has volunteered a free banner, we could put a link on that banner to a website we can create with a link to donate via paypal. We need to make a real organization to do so and have a real bank account for it. But I feel we need a real bank account for ACVT as well. Calling all treasurers!

I am not familiar with what we have to do to make an official charity by law but would love if someone has the time to look into that. If people can start researching all our avenues that would really help! Then we can reach out to places like Buffalo Wild Wings and do charity nights.

Tom Breeden has already offered to set up a donation based game, that is pretty awesome and may get us more people who would make bb pledges. But of course we will need that site to have a place for them to donate. If we can just get things started then the ball may start rolling itself as well!

Already looking in to best way to set up a non-profit organization.

Best description is this from Forbes: http://www.forbes.com/sites/steveodland/2012/05/07/how-to-start-a-charity/

Basically, we need to set up the non-profit the same way we have set up our ACVT club. We need a name, an outline, goals, etc. Then we need to apply through the IRS to set up a non-profit organization that is tax-exempt. We should consult a lawyer with non-profit experience for advisement of how to proceed once we have our mission statement, goals, and name. Once we can get all this together, then we can begin to build a website as the face of our non-profit organization and begin to fund-raise via games, retailers, and public events on a larger scale.


EDIT: As stated in the Forbes outline, a true organization will need a committee with elected positions. This will require more time and effort than our club as a whole. As a student run charity organization, however, Virginia Tech would most CERTAINLY want to assist in our efforts... once we legitimize.