Issue 13 - Take the $50 challenge!

I help Corporations & Financial Institutions increase Brand Awareness & secure CRA Benefits & Volunteering Opportunities. I also comment on Financial Markets.

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I sincerely hope that 13 does not prove to be an unlucky number for me as this is the most important newsletter that I have written, to date.

Many of you may wonder why I'm so prolific on LinkedIn - posting daily, commenting multiple times per day, writing weekly newsletters and yet I am not selling anything nor am I looking for employment.

Here's your answer:

My sole reason, for being all over LinkedIn ' like a rash, ' is to draw attention to the Shelter for Abused Women & Children in Naples, Florida. I have been a volunteer at this wonderful place for two years and I try, diligently, in my own idiosyncratic way, to generate additional funding through my LinkedIn network.

Up till now, my approach has been to introduce local financial institutions to the Shelter & whilst this approach is bearing fruit, I felt that there was more that I could do - This is where YOU come in.

I am appealing to your wonderful sense of altruism, to assist in any way that you can, no matter how small, to help me raise funds to assist the Shelter to continue its great work in supporting victims of domestic violence & human trafficking.

It's important that I have ' skin in the game ' and also, that you get ' bang for your buck ' so I am committing, personally, to match the total funds raised from this initiative up to a maximum of $10,000. Therefore, any donation you make will be doubled. If you get tax relief on your donation, your R.O.I will be even greater.

So, if you get any benefit from my financial commentaries or are even slightly entertained by my more ludicrous observations, then you might consider this a small ' payback '. Likewise, if you are a satisfied subscriber to my newsletter, please see this as a way of reciprocating. There will NEVER be any subscription charge for the newsletter but I may consider an annual voluntary fundraising initiative, like this, just for any people who feel the merit of the cause.

On the other side of the coin ( please pardon the pun ), if you are a Crypto fan or a member of the Federal Reserve, who has borne the weight of my sarcastic criticism for too long now, this is your chance to bankrupt me! Remember, you have the power to dig 10 grand straight out of my pocket. How satisfying would that be?

But enough about me - this is all about the Shelter. ( www.naplesshelter.org )

As Collier County’s only certified domestic violence center, The Shelter for Abused Women & Children works to help adult & child victims of domestic violence & human trafficking via safety, intervention & support. Services provided include 24-hour crisis counseling, an emergency safe shelter, a counseling center, a transitional living program, support groups, children’s services, direct assistance & court & legal services.

The Shelter is a 501(c)3 nonprofit/charitable organization that seeks to prevent violence before it begins, protect victims of family abuse & prevail over violence in our homes & community.

For the 11th consecutive year, The Shelter earned Charity Navigator’s four-star rating ( Top 2% of all charities evaluated )

Last fiscal year, The Shelter:

• Answered 1,200 calls to the confidential 24-hour crisis line
• Provided emergency shelter to 312 adults & 121 children ( average stay of 39 days )
• Provided 17,000 counseling and advocacy hours to adults and children.
• Provided primary prevention presentations to 7,000 youths & adults in Collier County, via the Public School systems online portal and in person.
• Served 1,615 victims of domestic violence through our residential & outreach programs

So - Are you up to the challenge? - Here's what you can do :

• Share this with your network - The wider we can spread it, the more successful we will be.
• Donate - There is no minimum donation, although I am recommending $50. I have no idea of anybody's personal circumstances & everybody's capability is different. If you want to ' swing for the fences ' then go for it. After all, Elon Musk supposedly gave $6 billion to charity.
• Company contribution - If you prefer not to donate personally but think that your firm might do so, that would be fantastic. My ' matching commitment ' still applies so please go ahead and use the donate button on behalf of your firm. If your firm is local to Naples and would like their donation to be acknowledged in a way that helps their brand awareness, please message me and we can set that up

You can donate publicly or anonymously. If, like me, you have a rather large ego & would like nothing better than to ' blow the opposition out of the water ' by ' going large, ' then fill your boots '. I can even print a ' Top 5 ' league table, with a special prize for the biggest donor. I will be delighted to take him/her out to dinner if we can get into the same time zone.

So let's make this fun while we all make a difference. I am privileged to be part of an amazing LinkedIn Community I know, deep down, all of you have massive hearts and you won't let me down!