For the last few months, our Roadie teams have been driving all over the United States, sharing information about Invisible Children and gathering support for #zeroLRA. The meaningful conversation and connections fostered by our tours are key to fueling involvement in our efforts and support for our programs.
But, since their words alone cannot bring child soldiers home, some of our roadies decided to get a little bit creative.
David (pictured right) and Tyler (pictured left) speak to the Invisible Children club at Emerson College along with some other incredible supporters from Boston.
David Ocitti, Tyler Furtado and Dana Gallaty have been rallying support for the campaign along the East Coast. They recently developed the #weekforaweekchallenge. The team stressed creating a direct connection between fundraising efforts and Invisible Children’s on-the-ground programming in order to motivate supporters to go the extra mile.
“There are a lot of incredible perks that all of them can get through #zeroLRA and we felt that we needed to reward them ourselves. They are always being affirmed for their continuous support by our team and we wanted them to hear it coming directly from the source,” the team said over email.
So who better than Lacambel, a household name in northern Uganda’s radio scene and key player in broadcasting Come Home Radio messages to members of the Lord’s Resistance Army?
When someone raises $1,000 for the #zeroLRA campaign, they support a full week of Come Home radio broadcasts, which directly reach members of the LRA and play a key role in encouraging them to peacefully surrender. The team challenged supporters to fundraise $1,000 in one week – a week of fundraising for a week of come home broadcasts in central Africa.
“It could encourage even more defections since [the LRA] would be able to hear that there are people in the United States that are fundraising to make sure that they come home,” they added. “It reflects the level of commitment from the international community towards ensuring the safe return of those still being held captive.
David talking about zeroLRA to the students at Palmyra High School in New Jersey.
Two standout supporters – Eastern University and Jessica McDowell – received a shout out from Lacambel during one of his programs.
Finally, when we asked if the team had a few words for those fundraising for #zeroLRA, their response was simple — “every step counts.”
“$1,000 may fund a week for Come Home Broadcasts that can be heard by the LRA and encourage them to come home. But also, $1 may support one single defection flier that is seen by someone within the LRA and is the message of hope to them…Incredible stories of people returning to their homes after years of living in the conflict will continue as long as we continue to send them a message,” they said.
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