THE FIRST TATTOO IS DONE!
I am keeping the challenge open indefinitely, so at whatever point I hit the next goal, I will add on to the tattoo. The next goal is $7,500 to get a portrait of Mr. T above the current tattoo.

So here's the deal:
As of October 2008, I had a full head of (blond) hair, no beard, no piercings, and no tattoos. I challenged my friends, family and coworkers to raise money for diabetes research, and at specified targets, I would make myself look more like Mr. T. They reached all the goals faster than I ever imagined, and pretty much turned a regular-looking guy from Milwaukee into a Mr. T look-alike, albeit much smaller and more pale.

I never expected it to go this far. It basically started out as a dare to cut my hair, but once it caught on, I thought I should keep rolling with it. There was a day when I walked over to my friend Patrick's desk at work and said in disbelief, "Dude! I raised over $700!!" We've come a long way!

So I'm extending the challenge. I already got the first tattoo. Now we're working on adding on to it. The next goal is easily within reach, and I'll have to add a portrait of Mr. T on my arm. So I'm asking you to pledge how ever much you can, and then send the link on to everyone you know. If everyone puts in $10 or $20 (or $50!) and forwards the link on to 5 or 10 people, there's actually a descent chance I'll have to get the great big back tattoo. But it won't happen without a lot of help, and that includes you!

Please donate on this website, and share the link: www.MrTdiabetesChallenge.com
with everyone in your address book, on Facebook & MySpace, blogs, wherever. Every link helps and doesn't cost a thing!

This is also a great charity for businesses to donate to!! Please don't hesitate to drop the link to your boss, or if you own a business, please consider donating! For any donation over $250, I'll post a link to your business on this pledge page!

Phase 1: $100 Grew a beard
Phase 2: $200 Dyed my (blond) hair black
Phase 3: $300 Shaved the Mr. T mohawk
Phase 4: $500 Got an ear piercing, and an additional piercing for every $50 (6 total)
Phase 5: $2,500 First-level of the tattoo challenge: "I Pity The Fool!" arm tattoo

The next challenge is:
Phase 6: $7,500 A portrait of Mr. T above the text "I Pity The Fool!"
(as seen in the somewhat crude mockup in the picture on the left)

Followed by these challenges:

Phase 7: $20,000 Addition of A-Team imagery around the Mr. T portrait tattoo
Phase 8: $50,000 An extended A-Team collage 'quarter-sleeve' tattoo
Phase 9: $100,000 More A-team imagery, to extend from my arm, onto and across my back, in a back collage.



My backstory:
   I don't have diabetes. My Dad did. It was under control, and he was generally healthy. He'd been a farmer his whole life, and had been retired for a few years when he had an unexpected heart attack that took his life when he was only 57. I was 16 at the time. I'm sure there are much more heart-wrenching stories out there. I was robbed of having my Dad around for pretty much my adult life, but others have lost much more to this disease.
   As for Mr. T-- no, I don't have an unhealthy obsession with him. I mean, like any other guy my age, I thought he was cool when I was a kid. The challenge started out as a way to get people at my workplace to donate, and I thought the Mr. T hair would be a good bet because nobody thought I would really do it. Now, well, it's sort of taken on a life of its own. I never expected it to go this far, but I figure, if I somehow could raise that kind of money for the cause, then I'll get some holes punched in my ears and get a tattoo. I had a friend ask me, "I thought you were against getting a tattoo." I responded, "No, there was just never anything important enough to me to permenantly brand my body with." Now, maybe I've found something.

Please send the link on to your friends, and click the "Give Now" button below and support the cause.

Thank you,
Chris

If you'd like to contact me directly, please feel free! I'd love to hear from you!
MrTdiabetesChallenge@gmail.com

Big thanks to Fullhouse for kicking off the fundraiser (and supporting me at work, even with my new unorthodox look) and to everyone at Fullhouse who donated to get this thing started; and to the following people for taking it to the next level of ear piercings:  Kim, Corey & Megan, Jason, Dan (ROTY), Marla, Sarah Mary, Joyce, Jon, Jeff S, Chad & Jeff O.

And thank you to everyone else, whether you're listed below or you donated elsewhere, whether I know you or not, thank you so much for supporting the cause!

Big thanks to Adambomb Gallerie for offering their tattoo services for half price, and designing my bad-ass tat! Thanks Adam!

Big thanks to Edgar's Calypso for throwing a fundraiser event and donating profits to support my effors and the cause! We were able to raise over $750 in one evening!

Big thanks to Body Ritual for donating their piercing services and supporting the cause!

Big thanks to 5th Ward Pub for donating a 1/4 barrel and throwing a fundraiser event to support my effors and the cause! We were able to raise over $500 in one evening!

Please DIGG this story to get national exposure:
http://digg.com/odd_stuff/White_guy_becoming_Mr_T_for_a_good_cause

I was a guest on TMJ-4 Milwaukee's NBC morning show The Morning Blend! See the video here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SXl2UKGduQs

The Sunday Nov 9th Journal Sentinel did an article on my efforts:
http://www.jsonline.com/news/milwaukee/34121384.html

620am WTMJ News Radio picked up the story:
http://www.620wtmj.com/news/local/34261904.html

CNN Picked up the story on their homepge (click here to view story), and as their "Offbeat Images of the week" a few weeks back.


I should probably say, this page is in no way associated with or endorced by Mr. T, although I'd be happy to have the endorcement if anybody can get a hold of him!! :-)

I Pity The Fool who don't support Diabetes Research!
[c]