It is time to celebrate once again as we announce the successful close of Fandom Rocks’ second campaign!

Support for Fandom Rocks was in full force the last three weeks of February as everyone came together to reach the campaign goal. PayPal donations, CafePress purchases, and Amazon Associates fees raised over $2,200 USD for our charities! On March 1, when we added Dana’s donations to cover various fees, the final tally came to a nice round $2,350 USD!

Thank you to everyone who donated, contributed to the fan-organized fundraisers, and helped spread the word. The campaign would not have been a success without the involvement of all the fans and supporters.

The Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund and Lawrence Humane Society will each receive $1,175 USD from Fandom Rocks. Plans are underway to deliver our donations in person. Brande will be working with the Semper Fi Fund, and Dana will be road-tripping to Lawrence once again to visit the Lawrence Humane Society. Would you like to join Dana as she tours the shelter and enjoys the St. Patrick’s Day parade in Lawrence? (The Humane Society will have a float, so there will definitely be pictures.) Send us a note to let us know to look for you!

1. The poll for the next campaign charities is still open on the web site. We would love to have a large turnout, and it closes on Saturday, March 15. Please vote if you haven’t yet!
2. The Lawrence Humane Society is placing a plaque in recognition of Fandom Rocks in their building! We have an opportunity to contribute to the text on the plaque. Jump over to our Livejournal community and share your ideas; anonymous comments are fine, too. We will send the final draft on Monday, March 10.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT(S): Rebecca Mawhinney, Brande Ruiz, Dana Stodgel
Phone: 217-408-4006
Email: contact@fandom-rocks.com

Successful Charity Campaign for Fans of CW’s Supernatural
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We’re back! No, it’s not time for final exams and last minute studying, but it is crunch time for our second campaign!

What’s going on for Fandom Rocks? We have three weeks left in our second campaign, and that finish line is rapidly approaching. We are just $450 shy of meeting our $2,000 goal – to be divided between the Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund and the Lawrence Humane Society.

Did you know if we reach our goal, the Lawrence Humane Society has offered to put the Fandom Rocks NAME on display in the shelter – permanently. (If you listened to our interview with the shelter director, you may have already known.) How awesome is that?

Just like last campaign, we’re in the final mile, and it’s time to assess:

• Are you willing to join us for a third campaign?
• Do you have a charity you want to nominate?
• Do you have great ideas for promoting Supernatural and Fandom Rocks?

If so, let us know! We will have the next charity poll available in a few days. Drop by to cast your vote and check on the status of Campaign #2.

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As you know, Dana attended the Creation “Salute to Supernatural” convention this past weekend as a representative of Fandom Rocks. We had a table in the vendors room and a presentation on stage. This was Dana’s first convention, and her running joke was having to be on-stage as a part of the experience. Fortunately, no fainting was involved. All reports came back with thumbs up. Detailed updates on our experience at the convention can be found at our Livejournal community. Convention details from a plethora of attendees can be found at Supernatural Wiki.

A few highlights:

• The dinner and raffle Friday night drew about 80 guests and filled the reserved portion of the restaurant. Total proceeds received were $800! Special thanks to Shannen and Amy for their efforts organizing the event. We also want to thank those who donated items, Houlihan’s for the use of their restaurant, as well as all the guests who attended.
• Dana spoke on Saturday afternoon in front of the collected guests about Fandom Rocks and our goals. Despite some last-minute technical issues and with the help of flying chocolate, she was well-received. People even beat Dana back to the table to talk about Fandom Rocks.
• We also spent time speaking with the CW Source and Time Out Chicago. We will be sure to share those links with you when they are published.
• Based on comments from people Dana met, many of whom were new to the campaign, Fandom Rocks now has an announcement list. Updates will likely only be every couple of weeks, and include campaign progress, reminders of deadlines, etc.
• With the auction and recent donations, we are now at $1480 collected, or 74% of our goal. We still have over 3 months to go!

On a separate, but related note, Jared and Jensen were presented with Special Forces coins by Master Sergeant Kevin Wise during their panel on Sunday. It felt very appropriate and humbling considering it was Veteran’s Day. We had a chance to say hello to MSG Wise earlier that day and were informed the presentation was something of a surprise to them. We also found out he is familiar with Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund, and we are so very pleased to support their cause.

As reported by the CW Source:

“Master Sergeant Kevin Wise, a Special Forces soldier, presented the guys with a letter from General David Petraeus, commander of the Multi-National Force in Iraq, as well as honorary Special Forces coins from his unit. Supernatural is the most requested DVD among armed forces personnel in Iraq and Afghanistan! The guys were amazed and touched, and presented Wise with a shooting script, signed by the cast and crew.”

Learning of the popularity of Supernatural DVDs instantly made us think of our fellow fandom campaign, Operation: Winchester. They launched their second phase on the same weekend. For those who may not be aware, Operation: Winchester is collaborating with the Staten Island Project Homefront to send Supernatural DVDs in care packages to soldiers overseas. Operation: Winchester has a partnership with Fandom Rocks through Amazon Associates, which means that a portion of the DVD purchases will be donated to Fandom Rocks. To learn more about Operation: Winchester, please visit their web site.

(More photos are after the jump. See all of our photos in the forum.)
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The second campaign of Fandom Rocks has been quietly, yet steadily, making progress. Did you know we have already reached 26% of our goal? You guys rock!

Keep spreading the word, and we will make our goal in no time. Remember, if you are holding an event to support Fandom Rocks or attending a Supernatural-related event, we have graphics you may use to create custom flyers. There are plenty of fans and “could be” fans to be reached yet.

Be sure to vote in the latest poll. We want to know how you keep informed on Fandom Rocks. Do you get all the information you need from our web site? Do you visit our community sites? Do we need a mailing list? Let us know!