Hi all!

I've been involved with the Ride for Kids and the PBTF for about 18 years and I've been fortunate to raise a great deal of money in that time and how I got involved is way too long to share here but I will tell you that my wife and I are thankful we have a healthy, happy, handsome 20 year old kid who is not battling what too many many incredible kids I've met in the past 18 years are fighting.

For me that's about all the reason I need to do some good and help other families that are not as fortunate as mine. I give my time, energy and yes a bunch of money too but right now I am asking that you give me your money through this first giving page.

I'm glad to take coins in the donation jar next to the coffee machine at my dealership so I won't turn any amount away but I am asking that you to dig as deep as you can --- can you afford $1,000 to help fund research and find a cure for one seriously terrible disease?  Don't feel obligated but I learned long ago that if you don't ask for the big donations you won't get them and I've had quite a few strangers, customers and friends hand me checks bigger than this.

If you can donate on that level great and thank you on behlaf of all those who it will help. If you can't, as I said above I'll gladly accept any amount less, perhaps $900 or $500 or $250 or yes, even a $100 donation will be graciously accepted.

This year the Baltimore-Washington Ride for Kids has the amazing honor of being the 500th Ride for Kids event ever held. That's a BIG responsibility for all of us that are Task Force members and help put the ride on but it's also a BIG responsibility to all of you to help make it a very special event and that means bringing in more than the $248,000 we raised in 2011.

I am doing everything I can to raise a lot of money and to do so through every method available to me. That means going beyond asking my customers at Bob's BMW as I do every year. It means doing more than just soliciting, accepting, reconditioning and selling a few used bikes and turning the money over to the PBTF at this years RFK. It means doing more than hosting a bunch of Bob's Garage Tours or even my Annual Belhurst Castle Brunch Ride for 100 people on Labor Day weekend.

Please donate generously here or call me and stop by my dealership to personally deliver me a check. If you have a business we can talk about those opportunities as we always need a few more sponsors to help defray the costs of putting on the event.

I have not set a goal here but may I later on in case some of you need to see something measurable but I will report on what is raised here and through my other efforts and wish to assure you that I want to beat my efforts in 2011 ($120,000 delivered to the event).

Now to be up front about that a good deal of that money came from the Ultimate Bike Raffle 2 which I created and successfully completed. It's not being done this year because two years in a row was a lot of work and not just for me but maybe in 2012 I can convince my wife and staff that we can do it three times and that next year is the right time, despite some concerns in the economy.

So that's it for now. Please donate generously and if you have questions, any questions at all about where the money is going, why I'm so passionate about being involved and my FUNdraising or want to join us at the ride send me an email at bob@bobsbmw.com  or pick up the phone and call me at 301-497-8949 x218 days.

Sincerely,

Bob Henig