Fundraiser Progress

We have been absolutely humbled at the generosity of our friends and family during the planning stages for our fundraiser.  Because of them, we are able to guarantee an evening of food, entertainment, and great auction items.  Here is what we are planning so far:

• an informal dinner prepared by a competitive, award-winning Barbecuer
• a stocked bar featuring Boulevard beer and various wines and liquors
• music provided by a professional DJ
• karaoke
• a raffle-style auction full of valuable items (we can't reveal all of them yet, but we will include a detailed list with your invitation), including sports memorabilia, designer handbags, and personalized gifts
• live auction items (among them is a St. Louis getaway package, including great tickets to the Royals-Cardinals series)

If you would like to work on the Auction Committee, please contact us.  We still have many months to collect items for auction, and we would love your help!

We will also be offering corporate sponsorships, so if you know of a company that would like to be involved, please pass along that information!

If you wish to help us with any stage of the fundraiser, please don't hesitate to contact us.  We welcome suggestions and volunteers!

Foundation Update

We have officially formed our foundation, the Max and Bo Foundation for Hope!  We are in the process of requesting approval as a 501(c)(3) Charitable Tax Exempt Organization.  This could take months, but we are ready to proceed with what we hope will become our annual fundraiser.

If you would like to donate your expertise so that we can speed up this process, please contact us!  

The goals of the Max and Bo Foundation for Hope are threefold:  to contribute significant funds to advance SIDS research, to establish scholarship funds for graduating seniors at Shawnee Mission South (Max McFall Memorial Scholarship) and Shawnee Mission North (Bo Rapoff Memorial Scholarship) high schools, and to provide valuable and currently unavailable support resources for parents and families grieving the loss of a child.  Lori and I have discovered that these are huge needs in our local community, and our hope is that we can address these needs in meaningful and significant ways.

Running a foundation in memory of our sons is something that neither of us ever imagined doing, but we are determined to take our tragedies and create something lasting and meaningful out of them.