Echoers!
Happy New Year! I sincerely hope that 2022 is off to as good a start as possible for everybody.
I have some exciting updates!
First of all, 2021 was one of our most successful fundraising years. But it didn't look like it was going to be at first. You saved us.
Admittedly, I was pretty thrown off by changes to my own life through 2021. Struggles in planning and organization meant we were one fundraiser behind by the time Fall of 2021 came along. My hope was to try to close the gap with my 40th birthday fundraiser. And wow...you all really, really came through. Between Facebook and our website donations, you gave 7000 dollars in a single campaign. We've never raised that much at once before. Your generosity means that we are able to cover expenses of the Women in Action Development Project until Fall of 2022 - a whole other graduating class. I spoke to many of you personally of my gratitude for your donations. But let me thank you all again for making 2021 an incredible year for Esther's Echo. I am truly humbled by your generosity.
Secondly, I've been asked to moderate a really cool discussion at an online event that I wanted to invite you to join called TrekTalks!
TrekTalks is a Star Trek themed telethon running all day today, January 15th from 12pm Pacific Time to 7:45pm PT, to support an organization called the Hollywood Food Coalition. As many of you already know, I'm a big space/Star Trek geek. Star Trek depicts a future where humanity has begun to explore the galaxy while working to end poverty, disease, and war on Earth. My whole life I've been inspired by this positive view of the future. In a way, my work with Esther's Echo is to honour that inspiration – trying to make the present a bit more like that future.
Because of my work with Esther's Echo, I was asked to moderate a panel called "Trektivism" which invites several actors from Star Trek to share their own social change initiatives ranging from access to vital medicine to tackling climate change in addition to Hollywood Food. The panel begins at 5:34pm Pacific Time (8:34pm Eastern). I'm REALLY excited about this because I get to hang out with some of my favourite Star Trek actors online and I'll have the opportunity to talk a little about Esther's Echo with the Star Trek fandom – my two worlds in one place!
Thank you all so much again for making 2021 amazing. Here's to 2022!
-Matthew