I don’t know about your business, but I have been in Christmas mode for quite some time already!  That’s because I have joined The Salvation Army’s team as Corporate Relations Coordinator.  Radiothon planning is well under way; and for the 17^th consecutive year, The Salvation Army is teaming up with Emmis Communications’ 93.1 WIBC for a three day, on-air fundraising campaign benefiting local programs and services for those in need.  To date, corporate partners and WIBC listeners have helped raise more than $1,527,412!

After volunteering with The Salvation Army and Radiothon the last three years, I am thrilled to be a full-time member of The Salvation Army’s Development Staff. To make Radiothon planning easy on me, they have put me in charge of securing sponsorships for the highest profile fundraiser we do during the Christmas season on the leading news/talk station in the city—no pressure, right?  Okay, well, there is quite a bit of pressure actually.  Thankfully, we have a fabulous team putting this extravaganza together—both inside The Salvation Army and out!

Our most dedicated radio partner to date, Emmis Communications, secured Donatos as this year’s title sponsor, and we couldn’t be more grateful.  Reach Magazine/ValPak once again signed on as the Radiothon phone bank sponsor.  Apparently, we are doing something right!  This is the third year for the sponsorship and also the third year Reach Magazine/ValPak employees will be volunteering at the WIBC studios.  Now that the two biggest sponsorships are out of the way, the rest of Radiothon should be a piece of cake, right?  Right!  Only 35 more sponsors to go…

You may not realize it, but The Salvation Army receives approximately two-thirds of our financial support during Christmas.  We work hard to make sure everything comes together, and today that is why I am asking you to help The Salvation Army.  Your sponsorship of an hour during Radiothon and/or your donation of a prize valued at $50 or more will allow us to continue to programs for men, women, and children in central Indiana, and with the need even higher, those programs are vital.

If you have any questions about how you can be involved in the WIBC Radiothon Benefiting The Salvation Army Presented by Donatos, please, do not hesitate to contact me.  I’m looking forward to hearing from you!

Merry Christmas,

For a complete list of available sponsorship opportunities,  click here.

Mel McMahon is the Corporate Relations Coordinator for The Salvation Army.  To find out how your company can donate time, treasure, and talents through Salvation Army programs and services, call her at (317) 224-1019 or email her, mel_mcmahon@usc.salvationarmy.org.

Big Joe Staysniak, co-chair of this year's WIBC Radiothon, was in studio as the 58 hour event wrapped up.

The 16th Annual WIBC Radiothon to benefit The Salvation Army wrapped up on Sunday after 58 hours of programing which encouraged listeners to pledge their support. At the end, $141,164 was raised at the event.

This year’s final total was a little behind last year’s, but it still translates to more than 31,000 meals and more than 1,500 safe nights of shelter for those in need in our community. Of course The Salvation Army would not be able to provide these needs without the generosity of everyone who called in and made a pledge. Thank you!

We also need to thank all of our sponsors: J. Wickham Consulting – Title Sponsor, Val Pak Reach – Phone Bank Sponsor, and Markey’s Rental and Staging – our Toteboard Sponsor. Also, a big thank you to our hourly sponsors: Perkins Nichols Media, Finance Center Federal Credit Union, Planned Investment, Dellen Automotive, Hurst Beans, Central Indiana Roofing and Restoration, Jocham Harden Dimicck Jackson, Northwest Kiwanis, The Mutual Fund Store, Klipsch Audio Technologies, One America, Wilson Kehoe Winningham, Ruth’s Chris, Walmart, Cartridge, Specialist Inc. Firestone, Drug and Opiate Recovery Network, and Seamless Restoration.

This year’s Radiothon Co-Chairs were Big Joe Staysniak of 1070 theFan and WIBC, and Tom Zupncic VP of Marketing of the Indianapolis Colts. Zup was able to get some great prizes this year including an autographed Peyton Manning helmet, autographed Peyton Manning football, Dwight Freeny and Reggie Wayne autographed footballs, game tickets and on lucky donor will get to lead the team out of the tunnel on the Lucas Oil Motorcycle a the January 2 Colts vs. Titans game. Our thanks to Zup and big Joe for all of their help.

Last but certainly not least, we need to thank our long time partner and friends, WIBC. For 16 years now they’ve given us hours of air-time and dedicated support to the ministries and programs of The Salvation Army. Because of your love for this community, we can again serve those who hurting.

Thank you to all for a great Radiothon and we will see you next year!

A huge thanks goes out to Seamless Restoration, LLC for coming to the plate with a last minute sponsorship for the WIBC Radiothon benefiting the Salvation Army.  Seamless Restoration, LLC helped wrap up Radiothon weekend with a generous donation and a gift to each pledge in the final hour —10% off any service offered!

Seamless Restoration, LLC understands that your home is the most important asset you have, so when you are ready to build or remodel, get yourself the best General Contractor in the business!  With 10 years experience in storm restoration, specializing in residential construction, they use the best materials available and hold ongoing training and safety seminars to ensure the producers used are up-to-date in style and technique.

This is Seamless Restoration’s first year with the WIBC Radiothon, and we look forward to many more years working together!

Markey’s makes sponsoring look easy, don’t they? We’d love to include your business in this year’s Radiothon. To sponsor an hour or donate items for prize packages, give Kristen a call at 224-1019.

Sponsorships start at just $500 and include lots of great exposure for your business or organization. We’re all over the web blogging, posting and tweeting about how awesome our partners are, so we’re sure to bring a few customers/clients your way while you’re busy “doing the most good” for your community. And hey, who couldn’t use a tax deduction during the last month of the year.

Go here to learn more about sponsorship or just give Kristen a call at 224-1019.

Radiothon weekend is a lot of fun with Colts-themed prizes and touching stories of the men, women and children whose lives have been changed. But, it’s also a crucial part of funding the programs that provide financial and grocery assistance to struggling families, shelter for the homeless, refuge for women and children fleeing domestic violence, after-school and summer opportunities for metro Indy children, and support for Hoosiers after natural disasters.

 So, what about those co-chairs?

Our co-chairs’ paths intersected at the Indianapolis Colts when Zupancic (above, left) served as Strength and Conditioning Coach during Staysniak’s (above, right) time as a player. They now host a Colts pre-game show along with Jeffrey Gorman and Wil Wolford, called The Heavyweights. The show, simulcast on 1070 The Fan and 97.1 Hank fm and airing on MyNDY, provides exclusive coverage and interviews about the Colts in the hours leading up to the game.

We’re thrilled to welcome these two Heavyweights as our 2010 WIBC Radiothon Co-Chairs. And we encourage you to join us. [check out the promo video] Corporate sponsorships are available starting at $500! We’re also looking for partners to donate prize packages for pledge incentives and for restaurants to donate meals to feed our volunteers and on-air talent who give their time to take pledges and encourage calls. Find out more at WIBCRadiothon.org or give Kristen a call at 224-1019.

And as much as we appreciate the support, this sponsorship comes with some great perks. Each time a WIBC personality mentions the phone number or making a pledge, we’ll encourage listeners to “Call the ValPak and REACH magazine phone bank at 877-71-PEACE”. That’s a lot of mentions across an entire weekend!

Looking for a great way to promote your business and give back to your community, too? We welcome you to join us as an hourly sponsor. Check out our sponsor video with Zup and Big Joe. With sponsorships starting as low as $500, we have options for even modest budgets. To learn more, you can call Kristen at 224-1019 or visit our sponsorship page here at WIBCRadiothon.org.

Thanks so much to all of our hourly and in-kind sponsors – to Emmis Communications and the amazing men and women who produced the -athon, the programmers, the personalities, just everyone who’s made it easy to call Emmis’ lobby home for the past 55 hours. We would not be able to do what we’ve done without their dedication and enthusiasm.

And here are the teary thanks, so buckle up – Thanks to our Radiothon Chair, Quinn Buckner and the Indiana Pacers. You set the tone for giving before the event went on the air! Thanks to Walmart for that incredible demonstration of support! Not only did your $100,000 bump that total, but it went a LONG way in encouraging our listeners to step up and make the calls. Thanks to our Phone Bank sponsor, ValPak and REACH magazine for your generosity and the manpower to keep those calls a’comin. And we can’t forget the folks at Markey’s Rental and Staging for the donation of our big screens – the tote boards are so vital in communicating with our phone bank and with the studio.

On behalf of all of the men, women and children we serve, THANK YOU for your support! This weekend, you’ve truly made a difference right here in Indiana!