Kilted to Kick Cancer Fundraising Challenge: The Winners!

Thirty days, dozens of EMTs and gun nuts around the country wearing kilts to raise awareness of male-specific cancers…

… and $8,114.50 raised for cancer research, just through the participating blogs.

The amount of direct donations is likely much more.

Guys, I cannot express how grateful I am for your donations and your participation. I give major props to Motorcop and Happy Medic for the idea, and TOTWTYTR for bringing it to our attention in the first place. Next year when we do this, we want to have kilted men in every state, spreading the word about prostate and testicular cancers.

Before I announce the final fundraiser standings, I'd first like to acknowledge the corporate sponsors and the vendors who made this whole campaign possible. Don't just scroll down to find out who won, go visit these vendors' sites and let them know you appreciate their support. Without them, we'd have been able to feel really good about ourselves, raise awareness with the folks brave enough to ask us why we were wearing kilts… and maybe raised a few hundred bucks.

Instead, with the support of the corporate sponsors and the vendors who donated prizes, we raised over $8100, every penny of which goes straight to Prostate Cancer Foundation and LiveStrong.

Magnum Boots and Alt.Kilt stepped up to the plate and lent their support to the campaign as our corporate sponsors, providing shirts, kilt and boot giveaways, contest prizes, and promotional materials. Magnum makes the most rugged and comfortable duty and tactical boots in the business, and if you don't own a pair, you should. And if you don't own a Steampunk kilt from Alt.Kilt, you should. They're chick magnets!

Larry Weeks from Brownell's was among the first to donate, and I'd like to thank to Say Uncle for pointing me in his direction. If you're a gun nut and you don't shop at Brownell's, rectify that oversight immediately by bookmarking their site, and browsing their catalog. It's like the Victoria's Secret catalog for gun nuts!

Alex Simpson from Unkilted was kind enough to design the official Kilted to Kick Cancer website, gratis. Not only that, but he has relentlessly promoted the cause through Twitter.

Michael's Custom Holsters donated a custom holster/gunbelt combo, and Dragon Leatherworks donated one of those gorgeous Talon holsters for the cause. These are two startup holster makers, folks, and they make quality gunleather every single bit as well-made as their more established competition. You could do far worse than throwing a little business their way the next time you need a home for your heater.

Todd Louis Green of Pistol-Training.com donated a free registration to one of his gun classes, and to be honest, this is the one prize I coveted the most. Ultimately though, the guy who won it could use it more than me.

Kilt This donated not one, but two $150 coupons toward the purchase of one of their custom kilts, as well as a pair of kilt chains. If you haven't checked out their site, do so. Their products are quite distinctive. I kinda like 'em!

Hornady Ammunition and Virginia Arms Company, and to Old NFO for making those happen. Old NFO is among my favorite people in the blogosphere and in real life, and with one phone call, the man worked miracles in 24 hours. Not only that, but he threw his hat into the ring and raised money, too.

Tim Brazier, my publicist at Kaplan Publshing, who donated 22 copies of my book in the final days of the campaign, as enticements to get people to donate.

It also needs to be said that the unsung heroes here are the people who opened their wallets – in an economy as shaky as this one – to support this cause. I am honored and humbled by your generosity. Let's say that number one more time: $8114.50. And yet, prostate cancer will overtake breast cancer this year in number of deaths, and still gets 1/40 of the research funds and publicity.

People donated in honor of friends and loved ones taken by cancer, and in honor of the survivors. I was emailed stories that brought me to tears, and stories that dried those tears with a smile of hope. One donor had a four-year-old brother taken by prostate cancer. Another good friend is watching the disease slowly and agonizingly take his father from him. Other donors had loved ones who survived because their cancer was discovered early, which is precisely the reason for dozens of us wearing kilts for the past month.

1 in 6 men will develop prostate cancer within their lifetimes, and 1 in 36 will die from it. Yet caught early enough, it is a survivable cancer. Urge your loved ones to get themselves checked. 

And for the bloggers who participated, here's what the top three fundraisers will get:

Top Fundraiser:

Second Place Fundraiser

  • A $250 gift certificate from Hornady Ammunition.
  • Free registration to one of Todd Louis Green's handgun classes. Todd is one of the most highly regarded handgun trainers around, and he teaches all over the country. Check his site for upcoming classes in your area!
  • A $150 voucher off of a new kilt ($300) from Kilt This, choice of one of their standard designs in your color choice, and one kilt chain.
  • Custom Dragon Leatherworks Talon holster for your semiauto handgun, inlaid with your family tartan or one of Dennis'  standard hide inlays. *NEW!*

Third Place Fundraiser

  • A free pair of Magnum Stealth Force 8.0 SZ WPI tactical boots, a $155 value. Magnum Boots USA is one of the official sponsors of Kilted to Kick Cancer, and they make the most rugged and comfortable tactical or work boots you'll ever own.
  • A $100 gift certificate from our other Kilted to Kick Cancer sponsor, AltKilt! Put it towards one of their great-looking Classic Buid kilts, or check out the schweeeeet Steampunk Kilts here!

 

Without further ado, the final standings:

  • A Day In The Life Of An Ambulance Driver: $2000 to Prostate Cancer Foundation, and $720 to LiveStrong. Thank you to each and every one who donated on my behalf, and thanks to the other bloggers who spurred me to get my fundraising efforts into high gear. I realize most of you guys read the other bloggers in this challenge as well, and I am humbled by your support.
  • MArooned: $275 to Prostate Cancer Foundation, and $2142.50 to LiveStrong. Folks, Jay got over $500 in just the last 4 hours. He nearly overtook me. So, he not only gets another Talon holster, but gun school with Todd Louis Green (which he sorely needs), and $250 worth of Hornady ammunition to shoot while he's in class. Not only that, but he'll have a stylish kilt from Kilt This to wear. After Todd gets through with him, maybe that "Minute of Berm" tee shirt he'll have to post on his blog for the rest of 2011 will no longer apply to him.
  • Gun Nuts Media: $1150 to LiveStrong. Caleb deserves huge props for shaming the rest of us into doubling our efforts when he raised a thousand bucks in four days. Dude not only has gun game, but fundraising game as well. And now, we'll get to see him wearing his kilt from Alt.Kilt and perhaps his Magnum boots at Bianchi Cup 2012, and I'll be rooting for him to shoot lots of X's.
  • A Look At EMS From 120 Feet Below: $197 to Prostate Cancer Foundation, and $290 to LiveStrong. DiverMedic's employer didn't match his donations by the deadline, but he can be proud that PCF will soon get a check for several hundred more dollars because of his fundraising efforts. And DiverMedic, since you were such a good sport, I release you from your beer-buying obligations at EMS Today 2012. First few rounds are on me, brother.
  • New Life Changes: $340 to Prostate Cancer Foundation, $25 to LiveStrong. Strong work by my fellow medic and shooting buddy, Medic Matthew.
  • Atomic Nerds: $155 to Prostate Cancer Foundation, $40 to LiveStrong. Nice job, Stingray! I'll hoist one of your beers in your honor in a few days!
  • Nobody Asked Me: $25 to Prostate Cancer Foundation, $120 to LiveStrong. Old NFO's contributions go far beyond the money he raised, and for that I am doubly grateful.
  • Husband In Law: $95 to Prostate Cancer Foundation, and $45 to LiveStrong. Not bad for a totally new blogger, HIL. Ya done good.
  • Reactuate: $100 to LiveStrong. Nice work, Newbie!
  • Snarkybytes: $90 to LiveStrong. Nice work, Alan!
  • Evyl Robot Soapbox: $60 to Prostate Cancer Foundation. That is, if you don't count the holster, belt and sporran he donated, which are worth far more.
  • Better and Better: $50 to Prostate Cancer Foundation. The Big Aristotle did his part for the cause.
  • Former Action Guy, $45 to Prostate Cancer Foundation, $30 to Livestrong. Strong work!
  • I Aim To Misbehave: $45 to LiveStrong. Nice work, Captain Tightpants! You done the browncoats proud.
  • I Am McThag: $45 to Prostate Cancer Foundation. Nice work, McThag, and you win the prize for Hottest Arm Candy While Kilted pic.
  • John Richardson, Epijunky, John MXL, The Packetman, Snarky, Random Ward, Ralph Herrera and Wayne Evans also took up the challenge. While their fundraising efforts may not have borne fruit, their efforts at raising awareness cannot be quantified. And ultimately, raising money might save lives in the future, but raising awareness has the potential to save lives now.

Thus endeth Kilted to Kick Cancer 2011, folks, but the job of raising awareness does not end. I'll be wearing kilts occasionally from now on, and we're gonna do this bigger and better in 2012. Hopefully, we'll have kilted representatives in all 50 states by this time next year.

Now if you'll excuse me, I gotta go shop for king-sized nylons, makeup, and something pink to wear on my blog for the bulk of October. A deal's a deal, after all.

Browse by Category